Arab Women Artists Now Festival

Evening Artists
Main Space, 8.30pm
Ruba Shamshoum, a Palestinian musician born and raised in Nazareth, is influenced
by jazz, rock, hip hop and naturally by Middle Eastern music. She has been studying
and experiencing music professionally since 2008. Since then, she’s developed a wide
musical repertoire; writing and performing pieces influenced by Rock, Brazilian music,
jazz standards and contemporary jazz amongst other styles. Ruba currently lives in
Dublin, Ireland, and wrote the song Ya Leil La Trouh for Annmarie Jacir’s fil When I
saw You. Recently, she’s released other songs such as Fuqaati (My Bubble), with an
animated video in 2014.
Ruba will be accompanied by Orlando Molina on guitar, and will be performing her
original music in Arabic. Each song in the set tells a story and reveals both the fragility
and strength of the vocalist. Ruba’s music is a mix of jazz and pop wrapped in a Middle
Eastern vibe.
Main Space, 9.30pm
The wild and graceful Ghalia Benali is one of the musical surprises to emerge from the
Arab world at the turn of the millennium. Her fluid voice and compositions absorb a full
circle of wide influences from Arabic folk and jazz traditions to contemporary chill out
and Indian Classical music. She uses classical Arab language, where a word reveals its
numerous sides while being performed and interpreted to perfection by this great singer,
moving audiences and critics around the world.
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