Original Quartet in concert in Washington, D.C.

Original Quartet explores the roots of Andalusian music with a repertoire that includes old poems and songs from Iraq, Sephardi compositions and Indian traditional pieces, as well as modern compositions created specifically for this project.

More than 1,000 years ago, the most important and influential cultures of the West; the Greco-Roman, Arab, Jewish Sephardic and the culture of the gypsies of India gathered in a land called Andalusia. There they created one of the most important musical movements of our era, Flamenco. However, Andalusia was not only the birthplace of Flamenco but also of Pablo Picasso and the great Spanish poet Federico Garcia Lorca; the influences of Flamenco and the culture of Andalusia are seen throughout their work.

In this show, Original Quartet explores the roots of this music, their differences and commonalities. OQ is made up of 4 new stars of world music and representing these four cultures: Spanish guitarist, composer and multi-Grammy winner Javier Limon, Iraqi violinist and singer Layth Sidiq, Albanian singer Sheyda Peyman, and Indian vocalist Shilpa Ananth. The repertoire includes old poems and songs from Iraq, Sephardi compositions and Indian traditional pieces, as well as modern compositions created specifically for this project.

Original Quartet

• Javier Limón (Iberia) is a Spanish guitarist, composer and world renounced artist from Spain who has worked with many musicians from all around the world and has a vast experience in Flamenco, Jazz and World Music.
• Layth Sidiq (Iraq) is a violinist and singer born in Iraq and raised in Jordan, who graduated Berklee college of music with a bachelor’s degree and has participated in such events as the Dominican Republic Jazz Festival, the Boston Symphony Hall and the Royal Albert hall.
• Sheyda Peyman (Albania) is a singer from Albania with roots from Iran, Germany and Italy. Playing the piano and the guitar too, she is currently studying music at Berklee College of Music, in Boston.
• Shilpa Ananth (India) is a vocalist from India whose main focus is on making a bridge between the West and the East by mixing traditional Indian music with more modern music like Jazz and R&B.

This concert is part of EUROBEATS: European Music Festival. Please note that this concert originally included Tali Rubinstein (Israel) as the singer; Sheyda Peyman (Albania) will replace her.