Music of the Arab World: Oud Virtuoso Simon Shaheen
Schedule
Fri, 24 Apr, 2026 at 08:00 pm
UTC-04:00Location
16 John St , Saugerties, NY, United States, New York 12477 | Saugerties, NY
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Virtuoso Palestinian musician, composer and educator Simon Shaheen dazzles listeners as he leaps from traditional Arab maqam to jazz and Western classical styles. His soaring technique, melodic ingenuity, and unparalleled grace have earned him international acclaim. Shaheen is one of the most significant Arab musicians, performers, and composers of his generation and his work incorporates and reflects a legacy of Arab music, while forging ahead to new frontiers.Born in the village of Tarshiha in the Galilee, Shaheen's childhood was steeped in music. His father, Hikmat Shaheen, was a professor of music and a master oud (lute) player and Simon began playing the oud at the age of five, and a year later began studying violin at the Conservatory for Western Classical Music in Jerusalem.
His contribution to the world of arts was recognized in 1994 when Shaheen was honored with the prestigious National Heritage Award at the White House. In the 1990s he released four albums; contributed to Bill Laswell's fusion collective Hallucination Engine. His music is on the soundtracks for The Sheltering Sky and Malcolm X and he composed the soundtrack for the United Nations documentary For Everyone Everywhere celebrating the 50th anniversary of the United Nations Human Rights Charter. His album Blue Flame with his group Qantara was nominated for 11 Grammy Awards. In addition to his work in traditional and classical Arabic music, Shaheen has participated in many cross-cultural collaborations including performances with Sting, Quincy Jones, Bill Laswell, and The Klezmatics.
After graduating from the Academy of Music in Jerusalam in 1978, Shaheen was appointed its instructor of Arab music, performance, and theory. Two years later, he moved to New York City to complete his graduate studies in performance at the Manhattan School of Music and later in performance and music education at Columbia University. In 1982, Shaheen formed the Near Eastern Music ensemble in New York, establishing a group that would perform the highest standard of traditional Arab music. In 1997 Shaheen founded the Arabic Music Retreat with instruction in all facets of Arabic music including technique, theory, and repertoire which continues today.
His concert credits are a compendium of the world's finest venues from Carnegie Hall, and the Kennedy Center to Cairo's Opera House, Theatre de la Ville in Beirut, and Belgium's Le Palais des Arts.
Shaheen is a Professor at Berklee College of Music and devotes much of his time to working with students to champion and guardian Arabic music.
Video: https://www.aljazeera.com/video/al-jazeera-world/2020/2/5/simon-shaheen-a-musical-journey
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16 John St , Saugerties, NY, United States, New York 12477Event Location & Nearby Stays:
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