Al Balad Music Festival wraps up tonight with two performances; Labess band from Algeria and Amel Mathluthi from Tunis. Young Algeria guitarist and singer Nedjim Bouizzoul and his band fuse gypsy rumba and flamenco with gnawa, chaabi and other traditional North African rhythms. In addition to the interesting fusion of music, Bouizzoul sings in both Arabic and French. (Sunday at 8:00 pm)
Mathluthi is a songwriter, composer, guitarist and singer that has been adding her own print on Tunisian music since an early age. Mathluthi’s “Kelmti Horra,” (My Word is Free), in 2012 became the soundtrack of the Tunisian revolution. Mathluthi will be performing in Jordan for the first time. (Sunday at 9:30 pm)
The second edition of the Algerian Film Days kicks off this week at the Royal Film Commission. The film selection includes “Yema” by Djamila Sahraoui, which won numerous awards at film festivals and tells the story of a mother who buries one son who died as a soldier with the regular army, while her other son fights with the Islamic militants. (Monday at 8:00 pm)
Serwan Baran’s latest art collection is currently on exhibit at Nabad Gallery. The Iraqi Kurdish artist presents a series of portraits reflecting “an existential angst and disorientation.”
“Living on the Edge” is Baran’s 20th exhibition, his fifth in Amman. He has took part in several modern Iraqi art collective exhibitions and has numerous solo exhibitions in various countries including: Tokyo, Syria, Morocco and Iraq.
A group show featuring a collection of art work by children and artists currently residing in the Zaatari refugge camp will be exhibited at Dar Al Anda for two days, under the title of “Refuge.” The exhibition will include multi-media and photography created as part of a month-long street art project inside the confines of Zaatari. (Opening Wednesday at 6:00 pm)
Abdul Hameed Shoman is screening the 1952 Hollywood film “Singin’ in the Rain,” directed by Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen and starring Gene Kelly, Donal O’Connor, Debie Reynolds and Cyd Charise. “Singin’ in the Rain” is one the greatest musicals of all time, and is ranked fifth on the list of America’s 100 greatest films by the American Film Institute. (Tuesday at 6:30 pm)
Tech geeks behold, Amman Tech Tuesdays returns this week, bringing developers and designers to talk about the difference between “user interface” and “user experience” and what tools are available for designers and developers in creating better and ground-breaking users experiences. (Tuesday at 7:00 pm)
Alif ensemble is performing at Al Balad Theater for the first time in Jordan. The musical ensemble brings together talented musicians from across the Arab world. Oud player, Khyam Allami, Palestinian composer and vocalist, Tamer Abu Ghazaleh and Egyptian electronica musician, Maurice Loca, established Alif in 2012, and since then have been collaborating with talented musicians from various Arab countries. This time around they will be joined by Lebanese percussionist Khaled Yassine and bassist Bashar Farran. (Wednesday at 8:30 pm)
For details on these events and more, check out 7iber’s cultural calendar.