clarinet

Is an Armenian born artist in NYC. He has performed throughout the US and abroad as a soloist for over 35 years. His groups "Taksim" a Near Eastern jazz-fusion ensemble and "Transition" a folkloric

violin,

(Instructor/performer)

Studied Arabic violin with Simon Shaheen in New York, Alfred Gamil in Cairo, Abdul-Baset Bakkar and Abdul-Min'im Senkary in Aleppo, Syria, and Arabic classical singing with Mohammad Qassas in Aleppo.

Arabic oud, Arabic singing

(Instructor/performer)

Is a world class musician who began his studies in his native land of Morocco as a child. He is classically trained.

(Instructor/ performer)

A longtime professional entertainer, is a diversely skilled musician, playing and singing in both Eastern and Western styles.

Turkish darbuka

(Instructor/ performer)

A Roma born to a singer mother and a folk dancer father in Prilep, Macedonia, Seido has palyed darbuka / dumbek in Balkan and Middle Eastern style for 30 years. With his extensive experience playing Turkish, Greek, Balkan, and Middle Eastern percussion ]]> USA Camp Event Music Teachers past and future Mon, 16 Mar 2009 00:52:03 +0000 http://folktours.com/usa-music-teachers/ossama-farouk.html http://folktours.com/usa-music-teachers/ossama-farouk.html Arabic tabla (Instructor/performer)

Ossama Farouk, known as Farouk to friends and colleagues, is a self-taught performer of Middle Eastern percussion.  Egyptian-born, he has been playing the popular Arabic hand drum instrument named table (other names for this drum include darbuka, dumbek, doumbek, derbakeh) since the age of 5.  A natural talent, he was the first in his family to develop a passion for music and percussion.

Turkish oud, singing

(Instructor/Performer)

Was born in Diyarbakir, Turkey. He took his first music lessons from his father.He played cumbus until he moved the States at the age of 17 where he picked up the oud. Mike has been performing in the New York City area ever since.

Turkish kanun

(Instructor, Performer)

Studied kanun, chorus and violin at the Bogazici Music Foundation in Istanbul. He has performed in concert with many classical Turkish singers, such as the Erkose Brothers, Inci Cayirli, Safia Ayla, and many others. He has been living and performing in NYC since 1998

 Turkish Baglama, Saz

Soner Cicek was born in Mus, Turkey and grew up in Izmir. At the age of 9, he began playing the Saz and the Tar, eventually becoming an expert on these two instruments. He graduation from the Conservatory of Music in Izmir with a degree in Turkish music and after his graduation he was asked to stay on in a teaching position.Over the years he has participated in concerts all over the world.Since 1993, Soner has been living Carrboro, NC.

(Instructor/performer)

Has been involved as a dancer, musician and director of folkloric troupes for 25 years in Turkey. He is a highly respected, seasoned performer who has delighted audiences throughout Europe, Asia, the Far East, Mexico and in the United States. As a singer and musician, his skills with song, the baglama (lute), davul (drum) and kasiklar (wooden spoons) are much in demand.

(Performer guest musician)

Tamer; born in Karaman, Turkey in 1970, Tamer Pinarbasi attended the Istanbul Technical University State Conservatory of Turkish Music, where he developed his own technique for playing the kanun .

Turkish, Balkan Clarinet

(Performer guest musician)

Ismail Lumanovski was born in Bitola, Macedonia in the year 1984, and started playing the clarinet at the age of nine. He made his debut in 1998, with the Macedonian Philharmonic, and his U.S.A. debut in 2002 with the World Youth Symphony Orchestra at Interlochen Arts Camp.

Omar is now one of the most sought-after musicians, whose work transcends political boundaries while maintaining traditional sensibilities inaway few artists can manag. Omar Faruk was a musical prodigy. He was born in Adana, Turkey to a musical family who nurtured his precocious talents. At the age of eight, he began his musical career by developing proficiency on the kaval, a small diatonic flute.

Instructor/ performer is a native Egyptian who has lived in the Boston area for over 20 years. Karim performs primarily Arabic, Turkish and Andalusian hand percussion, including the Egyptian Tabla (goblet drum), Riqq (tambourine) and Segat (brass castanets also known as finger cymbals).

(Instructor/performer)

Born in Germany to Turkish and Syrian parents, Nezih Antakli was introduced from an early age to the fascinating tradition of Middle Eastern culture and music. For several years, he performed with various groups in Germany. In search for a deeper and broader knowledge of music, he studied percussion at the World Music Department of the Conservatory for Music and Dance in Rotterdam/the Netherlands and graduated in 2004.

As one of the founders and biggest stars of Bulgaria's wildly popular "wedding music" scene, Yuri Yunakov is a saxophone player of astounding technical virtuosity.

Instructor/ performer (guitar - bouzouki) played lead guitar in the Israel Air Force Band. He is a Greek born musical arranger and virtuoso on guitar and bouzouki.

Instructor/ performer (ney, mey, zurna) hails from Ismir, Turkey, where he combined his natural musical proficiency in rhythm and melody with formal studies in the idiom of Turkish folk music.

The legacy begins pre-biblical from 1600 BC in an area today called The Middle-East. Passed on from one generation to the next, Naji Hilal was born in Qarnayel Lebanon from a musically gifted family. At the early age of 6, Naji’s father made absolutely positively sure that Naji carries this bequest.

Instructor/performer (oud) an American-Armenian, is one of this country's finest oudists. Haig has played with many of the best musicians in Turkey, Armenia and the Arab world and has been a featured soloist in New York's Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall. He has toured with "Transition" and "Taksim."

Taiko, Violin, Riffs

Nikolai Ruskin is a multi instrumentalist known for his skill on a variety of instruments from around the Middle East.