Music and dance ensemble from Rijal Alma, Asir, Saudi Arabia, in the Abu Dhabi Book Fair 2013

Music and dance ensemble from Rijal Alma, Asir, Saudi Arabia, in the Abu Dhabi Book Fair 2013, April 26th, as part of the focus on the GCC nations.. This ensemble originates from the village of Rijal Alma in the mountainous area of Asir, in the South-West of Saudi Arabia, close to Yemen and in a way overlooking the Red Sea, with quite a stretch of mountains and coastal areas in between; but anyway closer to Eritrea and Djibouti than even to Riyadh. Thanks to visual artist Ahmed Mater, who originates from the region, and to Hamza Serafi (the latter of the Athr Gallery in Mecca), who helped finding this fine ensemble. Of course the acoustic quality of this clip made by regular camera does not honour the ensemble in the fully right way. The program was curated by Neil van der Linden, in cooperation with Marianne Catalan Kennedy.