Album Notes

Recorded live at Rabat, Morocco in 1970 with a traditional orchestra, singing sensation and oud player Leony Elmaghribi performs his original works at "Radio Maroc" to a national Television and Radio audience.

Leony also performed in private concerts for his majesty the king of Morocco, Mohamed V on numerous occasions. "I have great memories of his majesty, Mohamed V, may he rest in peace" recounts Leony, now retired and living in Montreal, Canada.

The orchestra includes traditional Oriental instruments such as the oud, quannoun and darbukah, as well as Western instruments.

Leony Elmaghribi also writes al-Ala Algerian music and music from Andalousia, a region of Spain and the most populated of the seventeen autonomous communities that constitute Spain.

Jews in Morocco played an important role in the perpetuation of this musical oral tradition. In fact, the late Rabbi David Bouzaglo was known to have a conservatory of sorts in Casablanca where a number of Arab and Jewish musicians trained in al-Ala.

Andalusian classical music uses instruments including oud (lute), rabab (fiddle), darbouka (goblet drums), taarija (tambourine), qanún (zither) and kamenjah (violin). Other instruments have included pianos, banjos and clarinets, though none of these instruments lasted for long.

Leony is available on iTunes for Download at:
http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?playListId=128683278