The Yemen Tihama [CD]

The ferocious heat on Tihama, the Red Sea coastal plain of Yeman, is matched in its intensity by the Tibbal music, an Afro-Arabian amalgam that features lyres, reeds and particularly, virtuoso drumming. The performers on this disc are largely drawn from Akhdam, an outcast group with a reputation for sorcery, who bring passion skill and stamina to performances which accompany acrobatic dancing and ceremonial trance."The Yeman Tihama" contains rare and otherworldly performances of authentic trance musicfrom this remote region of Arabia. These recordings were made as part of a survey undertaken in the 1980s as part of a multi-disciplinary project to study all aspects of the culture of the Tihama. This proved timely as the political unification of North & South Yeman in the 1990s and increasing mechanisation and modernisation have altered the area and its traditional culture permanently. This exciting disc captures the traditional music of the region which has retained an edge of intensity. Released as part of the series of authentic world music records which marks a significent collaboration between Topic Records and The National Sound Archive's International Music Collection.