This class will introduce participants to liturgical Jewish poetry from the Middle East, and Arab musical mode system ("maqam") used to sing them! Through careful listening, brave experimentation, and maybe even trying out a solo or two, participants will have the opportunity to relish the ways in which the specific notes, slides, and ornaments of the Arab musical aesthetic can offer new possibilities for expression within Jewish music.

Yoni Avi Battat is a multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, and composer. In his career, Yoni has been immersing himself in maqam, the musical mode system of Arab music. These efforts led to his 2022 debut album Fragments, which explores his Iraqi-Jewish identity by pairing maqam music with lyrics in Arabic, Hebrew, English, and Yiddish. His most recent project Kedmah: The Rising Song Piyyut Project, presents Jewish song and poetry from the Middle East and North Africa. Their debut album, Simu Lev, emerges on Rising Song Records in the Spring of 2024.