Joan Chambers Concert Series: Layali Al-Sham

Layali Al-Sham group photo

Layali Al-Sham’s visit to the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg will provide local music aficionados the opportunity to experience the performance of diverse styles of Arab music in the intimate setting of the Mary Lou Campana Chapel and Lecture Center. Part of the Joan Chambers Concert Series, the program begins at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, April 6, and is open to the public at no charge.

Layali Al-Sham is the University of Texas at El Paso’s (UTEP) premier Middle Eastern Music Ensemble. Its instrumentation varies from traditional Western classical instruments like the oboe to Middle Eastern classical and folk instruments, such as the ney and oud.

"Layali Al-Sham is all about the sharing and exchange of beautiful music,” said Andrea Shaheen Espinosa, DMA, director of the Middle Eastern and World Music Ensembles. “We are incredibly excited to bring our project to Pitt-Greensburg’s Joan Chambers Concert series and share our love for Middle Eastern music with new audiences."

The group is recognized for performing diverse styles of Arab music at a professional level and as a site for cultural exchange. Its members originate from multiple countries, including the Middle East and Latin America. Students and professional musicians cross the US/Mexico border every week to participate and continued to do so in the midst of tragic cartel violence and a tightened border policy. They seek to bring attention to the hardships and violence that people must endure in the midst of conflict in both the Middle East and their sister city of Juarez, Mexico, which was deemed the most dangerous city in the world in 2010.

Espinosa is the assistant professor of Ethnomusicology and Oboe Studies at University of Texas, El Paso. She is an active member of the Society for Ethnomusicology, the Latin American Studies Association, the International Double Reed Society, and the Middle East Studies Association.

Her research interests include: Folk Music, Migration and Nostalgia, Music and Trauma, and Nationalism. She is a Medici Scholar, FLAS recipient, and a Fulbright Fellow, and she maintains an international performance schedule with symphony orchestras in Syria, Jordan, Palestine, and Greece. In addition to performance and research, she continuously promotes advocacy for Arab musicians throughout the Middle East and in refuge.

The Joan Chambers Concert Series is made possible through the support of George F. Chambers, president emeritus of Pitt-Greensburg. The music series brings local, national, and international artists to the campus for performances of the highest professional caliber. It is named in honor of President Chambers’ late wife, Joan Chambers, an ardent supporter and representative of Pitt-Greensburg in the community for many years. The Children’s Literature Collection in Millstein Library, another of her passions, was developed and named in her honor.

Founded in 1963, the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg is a publicly assisted, four-year, liberal arts college in southwestern Pennsylvania. Pitt-Greensburg offers 29 baccalaureate degree programs, including new majors in Nursing, Healthcare Management, Public Policy, and Education, as well as 24 minors and five certificate programs. With nearly 1,500 students, more than 10,000 alumni, and faculty and staff numbering 260, Pitt-Greensburg provides a vibrant, diverse community that is a dynamic model of a 21st century liberal arts education. As part of the University of Pittsburgh system, Pitt-Greensburg offers the resources of a world-renowned university combined with the individualized and immersive experiences of a small liberal arts college. Creativity and an entrepreneurial spirit permeate the campus and extend into its many collaborative projects with the Westmoreland County community. Nestled in Pennsylvania’s beautiful Laurel Highlands, the campus is a five-minute drive from uptown and less than an hour’s drive from Pittsburgh.

Publication Date

Wednesday, December 31, 1969 - 23:00