NAN Presents Seffarine

The Northeastern Arts Network (NAN) is proud to present Seffarine in concert as part of the 2019-2020 Big Sky Series. The concert will be at Glasgow High School on Tuesday, Feb. 4, beginning at 7 p.m. in the auditorium.

Seffarine’s international blend of sounds features soulful Moroccan singer Lamiae Naki and flamenco guitarist Nat Hulskamp. Their music embraces and extends Naki’s rich heritage, which spans from Moorish Spain to the Sahara, by mixing Arabic Andalusi music with Manuel Gutierrez’s explosive flamenco footwork, the grooves of acclaimed bassist Damian Erskine and the exotic instrumentation of Persian master multi-instrumentalist Bobak Salehi. These diverse backgrounds meld into an intoxicating blend of ancient and modern that Bass Player Magazine describes as a “gorgeous intersection of Spanish flamenco, Arabic and Andalusian music, Persian classical, and jazz.”

Seffarine takes its name from the ancient metalworking square in Naki’s home city of Fez, Morocco. Her family is well known in the Seffarine as master metalworks continuing the tradition today. The square dates back to the 9th century and is famous for the complex rhythms that can be heard from the blacksmiths’ hammers.

Naki was drawn to music from a young age and began singing, writing songs, and using every resource to find new music and influences from widely varying cultures. She studied Andalusian music and other forms of classical Arabic music in Fes, and has continued to immerse herself in diverse musical styles, from Bossa Nova to Iranian music. She resides in Portland, Ore.

Hulskamp began studying guitar at age 17 and was introduced to flamenco guitar by Jose Solano. His interest in the influence of Arabic music on flamenco led him to study oud in Morocco. After returning to the U.S., he moved to Seattle to study ethnomusicology at the University of Washington. He resides in Portland where he composes and performs with Shabava, the Nat Hulskamp Trio and Seffarine.

Tickets for the event will be available at the door and are $15 for adults, $13 for seniors and $5 for students.

The Big Sky Series is made possible in part by the Montana Performing Arts Consortium Presenter Development Program which is supported by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, Montana Arts Council and legislative grant from Montana’s Cultural Trust, and the Western States Arts Federation.