Sitting in the Four Seasons Hotel in Cairo bored, I get a call from a friend. She asks me to join her and friends at Cairo Jazz Club, I decided, why not. Getting there I meet this band called Eftekasat, they are mostly Egyptian and 1 Jordanian. They state that they play a mixture of Jazz Fusion with a Arabic twist.
As I wait for them to come on stage after eating my dinner, I think of the last year here in Cairo of the Revolution and the many people without jobs and the suffering of the people of Egypt. After being here in Cairo and seeing the destruction of the former President and now the fight for political power in Egypt, my mind raced like a fast moving train through the deserts of Egypt.
The band makes its way up, about 7 of them in total. The first notes blow me away! The violist is the best I have ever heard, mixing in the blends of 1/8 notes of the Arabic scales with the contemporary jazz sounds from the band. The Arabic Flute player brings a melody which you want to just close your eyes and think of how wonderful it is to be in Egypt during this historical time. The band was amazing. I asked them afterward why are they in a small jazz club in Cario and not on tour around Europe and US, they simply said...no one has given us the chance.
To be honest, Contemporary Jazz enthusiasts would fall out of their chairs to hear this music. What a great performance and moving of the soul as you stand (cause you cant sit while these guys play). They are by far one of the best I have ever heard.
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