Male

41

I seem to have forgotten about tribe since the thing was so wonky last year. I'll still check in every great once in a while, but if you want to communicate on a regular basis, come find me on facebook.

I'm a lifelong percussionist (erm, musician), and also have been involved in producing and engineering recordings and concert events in the Twin Cities.

I have been playing Arabic, Balkan & Latin Percussion for over 20 years, Kit of Drums for over 10, and also many other instruments from many different cultures. I used to play guitar and bass, and then the latin percussions, but the Call of the East won out.

I am a reasonably proud 18 year veteran performer of the Minnesota Renaissance Festival, and have also performed at the Colorado, Arizona, So. Cal, and North Carolina RenFests, until I decided to work on a career as a musician in the Twin Cities. I am on the Board of Directors for the Indian Music Society of Minnesota...

While I have performed with literally 100's of Bellydancers over the course of years, I never felt like doing that dance...
I did study Nothern Indian Kathak Dancing here with Rita Mustaphi and her Guru, Birju Maharaj and family for a very short time, enough to figure out that in order to do that RIGHT I would have to shave my head and move to India, and do ONLY that. Maybe for my 40's?

A short list of some of the bands I have played with - or with members of:

The Maroons, Shangoya, Boiled in Lead, Electric Arab Orchestra, Layalli Sharque, Machinery Hill, The Beggars, Pennywhistle, Cassandra Shore and the Jawahiir Dance Company, Margo Abdo O'Dell & Co., The Georges Lammam Orchestra, Cazadores, Sheep of Joy, Big Surf, IS, A Crash of Rhinos, Rai Action Collective (RIP)...

In the past seven years the number of bands I performed with has fluctuated between 4 to 7 groups, but with the unacknowledged demise of RAC and my forced departure in 2005 from the (Indian) Subcontinental Fusion band Jantri,
I was back to where I started, in a way:

Saharan Nights,

which is a continuation of sorts of the band called

Electric Arab Orchestra...

Which was probably the USA's only Arabic rock band in known history, existant for more than 15 years, called it quits in the year 2000.

It seems that SN is taking a break as well in 2006, given all of the trouble we have had finding a decent, if not inspired, lead singer here in the Twin Cities... Very discouraging really!

I am playing more often with Machinery Hill now, which has been rather pleasant, as I get to play a number of different styles of music, and either play Kit of Drums or percussion, depending on if the regular drummer is on the gig or no.

I also go to various drumjams around the Twin Cities looking to find "The Groove"...Sometimes it appears, sometimes not, but it's always elusive :)