Just one day before the Palestine Foundation annual benefit gala for Gaza, the Palestine Foundation and the Mawtini Choir are hosting a special Arab Musical Masterclass: Echoes of the Levant, California’s first Arab music intensive workshop. The event will feature master classes and beginner tutorials on traditional instruments and voice.

Join us on Saturday, October 17, 2026 with Ramzi Aburedwan, the Palestinian musician, composer, and founder of Al-Kamandjati, and the Dal’Ouna Ensemble for a hands-on workshop celebrating Palestinian heritage through music and storytelling. Light food will be served.

Saturday, October 17
1 pm to 5 pm
Palos Verdes Estates

all registrants will receive exact location!

Workshop free for Mawtini Choir members; $50 per person for all other attendees. Tickets are limited: Only 50 available! Registration is required. 

Click here to get your tickets today: https://www.simpletix.com/e/echos-of-the-levant-tickets-296136

 

Benefits of the Workshop and Masterclass

This masterclass has a particular value for young musicians. For those who are already playing an instrument as well as singing, it offers something different from a normal choir rehearsal: individual attention, musical feedback, ensemble work, listening, and the opportunity to discover different approaches to both voice and instrumental playing.

Participants will have the chance to meet and work directly with experienced musicians. Sometimes one such encounter can be very inspiring and can influence the direction they take in their musical development. It can build confidence, open new perspectives, and create relationships with musicians who may remain valuable contacts well beyond the workshop itself. With today’s possibilities for staying connected across countries and distances, these encounters can develop into lasting artistic relationships.

The day will combine individual work and listening with ensemble coaching, and then finish with a full choir rehearsal where we bring the different elements together.

Musical Faculty Bios

Ramzi Aburedwan 

Ramzi Aburedwan grew up in the Al Amari refugee camp in Ramallah, where his family took refuge after being driven out of their home in Palestine in 1948. The violence of the first Palestinian intifada (1987-1993) marked Ramzi’s childhood and adolescence. At age 16, Ramzi participated in a musical workshop, which proved to be a life-changing experience. From 1996 to 1998 he studied at the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music in Ramallah. In 1998-2005, Ramzi received a scholarship to study viola at the National Regional Conservatory of Angers (France). Ramzi graduated with a DEM in viola, and chamber music. At the French conservatory, Ramzi met up with other students with whom he created the Dal’Ouna Ensemble in 2000. Today, Ramzi splits his career amongst many projects. He has worked as a concert performer, bandleader of Dal’Ouna, musical director, composer and arranger for the Palestine National Arabic Music Ensemble, and viola soloist performing Western classical music with chamber music ensembles and orchestras throughout the Middle East and Europe.

Ramzi’s deep engagement with Palestinian youth led him to realize a lifelong dream in 2005: the creation of the Al Kamandjati Association. Al Kamandjati’s mission is to bring musical education to Palestinian children and, in particular, to those who are most vulnerable – the children of the refugee camps. Al Kamandjati has provided music education to children living in refugee camps of Al Amari, Jalazon, and Qalandia, in the village of Deir Ghassana, and the cities of Ramallah, Jenin, Gaza City and Hebron in Palestine as well as in Lebanon, in the refugee camps of Bourj el Barajneh and Shatila. Full bio is here : https://www.ramziaburedwan.com/biography

Mona Miari (voice)

Mona Miari is an internationally renowned Palestinian-American singer, songwriter, and artist based in New York City, celebrated for her distinctive voice and powerful stage presence. Her music bridges Palestinian and Levantine heritage with diverse global influences, creating a unique and contemporary artistic language. She has performed at leading venues and festivals worldwide, including Lincoln Center, BAM, Brooklyn Museum, Joe’s Pub, BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! and the Boston Hatch Memorial Shell. Mona is the Artistic Director and leader of the New York Arab Chorus, the first Arab chorus of its kind in New York City, and has collaborated with internationally acclaimed artists including Roger Waters and Zülfü Livaneli. Through her music and interdisciplinary work, she continues to champion cultural dialogue, artistic innovation, and the global presence of Arab music. Full bio here : https://www.monamiari.com/bio-2

Ziad Ben Youssef (oud)

For this artist, interest in and training in lute-playing began in his native Tunisia (more precisely, in Kelibia) with masters who initiated him into the world of “maqam”, the foundation of oriental music in its widest acceptation (Egyptian, Iraki, Turkish, Armenian heritage…) . His musical culture was forged listening to brothers Munir and Jamil Bashir, Ali Sriti, Farid Ghosn, Anouar Brahem, Saliha, Manolo Sanlucar, Paco De Lucia, Sabicas, Nass El Ghiwan and many others… Ever since, he has worked at constantly developing a personal artistic vision allowing him to abolish frontiers. His reflection is essentially aimed toward improvised music and the meaning of traditions in today’s world.  Full bio here :https://www.ziadbenyoussef.com

Michael Geyre (accordion, keyboard)

Born into a family of musicians spanning five generations, Michael Geyre began studying classical piano at the age of five. From the age of sixteen, he devoted himself to a career as a composer, arranger, and multi-instrumentalist. A curious and versatile musician, he has explored a wide range of instruments and technologies, including synthesizers, accordion, the Ondes Martenot, and the Haken Continuum. He has toured and performed with numerous artists and ensembles across world music, jazz, rock, and French chanson, including Allain Leprest, François Corneloup, Balkan Kartet, and Deep Forest. Michael has contributed to more than 60 albums and composed the music for the video game Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap and the television series Bitmuch (France 4). He also works as a consultant and sound designer for the music technology brands Korgand Arturia.

Youssef Hbeisch (percussion)

Born in 1967 in a village of the Galilee, he began playing percussions at the age of 7. Later, he studied philosophy and musicology and researched the rhythms of different cultures (Indian, Cuban, African, Latin). Nowadays he specializes in oriental percussions, having mastered diverse musical traditions he infuses in his playing, giving it a unique style, refined and creative, praised by specialists. Full bio here :https://www.arabosounds.com/youssef-hbeisch/

Reserve Your Seat

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