مهرجان برزخ 2023 في أبوظبي

Ecstatic Italian pizzica tarantata meets propulsive Algerian Saharan rhythms in an exciting cross-boundary musical conversation.

Day 1 of Barzakh Festival

CGS - Canzoniere Grecanico Salentino (Italy) and Lemma (Algeria).
Canzoniere Grecanico Salentino (Italy)
Canzoniere Grecanico Salentino (CGS), created in Puglia in 1975 by the writer Rina Durante, is the first and most important group to produce popular Salentinian Music. Now led by his award-winning multi-instrumentalist son, Mauro Durante, CGS has updated their sound to create a fascinating reinterpretation of tradition and modernity that revolve around the famous pizzica tarantata ritual, which had the power to cure through music, trance, and dance the bite of the fearsome tarantula.

Lemma (Algeria)
Hailing from the Saoura region, this powerful all-female band presents a joyful symphony of several music genres from the spiritual to the most earthly. They sing texts borrowed from the mystical odes and supplications from the hadra sessions, as well as passages from some well-known malhûn texts. Their percussion draws from hidûss and hadra, and is as much in the rhythm as is in the darbouka or the bendir. Their rhythm is rich and comes in many genres; borrowing the rhythm of ’arûbi (a free and repetitive rhythm) and haddâwî (the rhythm of the wandering mystics of the Moroccan brotherhood of Sidi Haddi) as well as other rhythms and melodies from all across the Maghreb.


Korean shamanic folk-pop meets guitar-fueled Somali songs in an exciting showcase of cultural traditions.

Day 2 of Barzakh Festival features ADG7 (Korea) and Sahra Halgan (Somaliland).

Ak Dan Gwang Chil (Korea)
Making their UAE debut after an acclaimed online concert with The Arts Center, Ak Dan Gwang Chil (ADG7) are a multi-award winning Korean traditional music group, featuring six Korean traditional musicians and three powerhouse female folk singers. They perform repertoire from the sacred, shamanic, and secular gut (ritual music) and minyo (folk song) traditions of the Hwanghae-do region, nowadays a western province of North Korea. Presented with the support of the Korean Cultural Center.

Sahra Halgan (Somaliland)
Sahra Halgan presents a mix of original compositions and traditional Somali songs through distorted guitars, African percussion, and Sahra’s distinctive warbling vocals. Sahra sings about love, gratitude, and rebuilding her nation, using poetry typical of the Somali language. Each member of the group brings their own distinctive background into the music: Krol, who has spent time in Bamako studying Malian percussions, uses his set of hand drums to drive the band, while Salètes’ distorted guitars and hypnotic riffs give a solid rock backbone, and keyboardist Graham Mushnik, injects Golden Era psychedelia.

The Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi is committed to providing a safe and healthy environment for all patrons.

See below the guidelines for attending events at The Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi.

● Entry to the NYUAD Campus is through either the East or West Parking or the Welcome Center.
● Patrons will be required to present a valid ticket to an event at The Arts Center upon entry to the campus.
● As per current Department of Culture and Tourism guidelines a Green Al Hosn is NO LONGER needed to attend public events in Abu Dhabi.
● The wearing of face masks is NO LONGER required in most indoor public places, including campus buildings.

For access and wheelchair bookings please email nyuad.boxoffice@nyu.edu