The ferocious heat on Tihama, the Red sea coastal plain of Yemen, is matched in its intensity by the tibbal music, an Afro-Arabian amalgam that features lyres, reeds and, particularly, virtuoso drumming. Its practitioners are largely drawn from the akhdam, an outcast group with a reputation for sorcery, who bring passion, skill and stamina to performances which accompany acrobatic dancing and ceremonial trance.

“..uncompromising and raw music with a rhythmic intensity that will have you either transfixed or running from the room.” Songlines

1  Wedding Song
2  Lambuna Zār
3  Teahouse Drumming
4  Simsimīya Ballad
5  Habashi Dance
6  Tumbara Zār
7  Tahdīra
8  Indian Film Song
9  Sharah Dance
10  Wadi Mawr Zār
11  Saint’s Day Drumming
12  Saint’s Day Drumming
13  Saint’s Day Drumming
14 Sham Allah
15 Tahdīra: Marisi Dance

Recordings and text by Anderson Bakewell