AN ANDALUCIAN EVENING WITH AL-FIRDAUS ENSEMBLE

[PLEASE NOTE - The EVENT is in-person
ONSITE
in London
and for those who can not attend in person can purchase the
LIVE ONLINE STREAMING
ticket to watch it from their device and those coming in person, should you not decide to attend person on the night, you will still recieve a link to the live online streaming, irrespective but are encouraged to attend in person if you have registered for that ticket, as this helps with allows seat allocation, respectively for fellow participants -
Seats are not assigned and on a first-
come
arrival basis
].
TICKET DEFINITION
:
Ticket for general admission are all those aged three and above. Any one aged two and under, will have to seat on the lap of the parent or guardian or on a push buggy/pram per child.
REGISTER ONLINE and MAKE PAYMENT here or BANK TRANSFER and you will receive final instructions.
PAYMENT DETAILS
- If do not wish to pay via Eventbrite using Paypal [
to avoid extra charges
], please email us directly to the following and we will send the bank details to make direct transfer. Please email us directly to info@islamiccourses.org with the following:
Name of Event: An Andalucian Evening with Al-Firdous Ensemble
Ticket type:
General
or
Family
or
Online
Number of tickets:
Name:
Email:
Mobile/Cell:
Once you have done this, we will send you the bank details to make transfer to.
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Organised by
Islamic Courses
with the support of the
Al Manaar | The Muslim Cultural Heritage Centre
present:
AN ANDALUCIAN EVENING WITH AL-FIRDAUS ENSEMBLE
With
Ali Keeler and
Al Firdaus Ensemble
team from England, Spain and Morocco.
Host
Master of Ceremonies
[MC]:
Kristiane Backer
[ www.kristianebacker.com ]
Date and time
: Friday 27th November 2026, 7p
m - 9.30
pm
Venue:
Al Manaar | The Muslim Cultural Heritage Centre, 244 Acklam Rd, London W10 5YG
Al Firdaus Ensemble based in Granada was founded in 2012 by the English violinist and singer Ali Keeler and includes musicians from England, Spain and Morocco. The group takes its inspiration from the word Firdaus, which is the Arabic name, of Persian origin, for the most elevated abode in Paradise. The intercultural nature of this name reflects the character of the group in which musicians from different countries and cultural backgrounds are brought together with one purpose. Just as the musicians tune their instruments, so they need to tune their hearts to receive the inspiration of the moment and transmit that to the audience. The traditional Arabic term for this kind of music is sama` which could be translated as “the art of listening”.
The unique sound of their music is due to a synthesis of different musical styles. These include original compositions of a more Western classical character with influences from both Celtic and Flamenco traditions, and new arrangements of songs drawn from the rich heritage of traditional sufi music from Arabic, Andalusi and Turkish sources. The words of the songs are mainly in Arabic drawn from the poetry of the great sufis from Al Andalus and the Arab world such as Ibn Arabi and Al Shushtari.
Also within their repertoire are musical adaptations of poems in aljamiado, old Spanish written by the Moriscos using the Arabic script. In this way Al Firdaus hopes to revive the heritage of the Moriscos whose culture was forbidden in its day and and has only reached us through manuscripts which they left behind on their expulsion in 1609 and that have been discovered over the years hidden in old houses.
Al Firdaus usually plays in quartet or quintet formation, but is versatile and can perform as a trio, or in larger formations depending on the requirements of the concert. They use a combination of Arabic and Western classical instruments in addition to the flamenco guitar, and have a range of singers, some of whom are soloists and others who sing in the choruses. They can also perform in choral formation accompanied only by percussion instruments.
They have performed in concerts and international festivals throughout Europe, Bosnia, the U.S., Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Turkey, Lebanon, and Malaysia.
Host Master of Ceremonies [MC]: Kristiane Backer
[ www.kristianebacker.com ] is an award winning TV presenter, journalist, speaker, author and voice-over artist based in London with a pan-European career. As a former TV presenter on MTV Europe she interviewed many high profile guests including, world leaders, major artists, musicians and Hollywood stars. Her best-selling publication “From MTV to Mecca” charts her life to Islam and currently she engaged in intercultural and interfaith dialogue, New Muslim Converts projects and was nominated Global Ambassador for the Exploring Islam Foundation.
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DEADLINE FOR BOOKINGs APPLY after which registrations will close!
For more information call/tel:
07956735301
or email:
info@islamiccourses.org
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*
TICKET DEFINITION
:
Ticket for general admission are all those aged three and above. Any one aged two and under, will have to seat on the lap of the parent or guardian or on a push buggy/pram per child.
* Please note, time and resources have been set aside to ensure the programme runs in a smooth and professional manner for the maximum benefit of participants and thus unless the event has been postponed or cancelled, there are
NO REFUNDS
as part of the terms and condition policy.
*
R
efreshments
can be purchased at the venue or cafe's or restaurant's near to the venue and
NOT
included in ticket price.
*The event is
BOTH
in person
ONSITE
in London
and for those who can not attend in person can purchase the
LIVE ONLINE STREAMING
ticket to watch it from their device and those coming in person, should decide not to attend person on the night, you will still recieve a link to the live online streaming, irrespective but are encouraged to attend in person if you have registered for that ticket, as this helps with allows seat allocation, respectively for fellow participants.
Seats are not assigned and on a first-
come
arrival basis
.
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