Panel: liberating music technology for Arabic music and beyond

Against the backdrop of AL.FESTIVAL, the Berlin festival centering music from the Arabic world and diasporic communities, we gathered an expert group to discuss liberating technology from some of its Western biases and exclusionary design. Now you can listen back (and read more), with artists ABADIR and Basel Naouri plus Ableton’s Dr. Laurel Pardue, as chatter ranged from critical views of futurism to ways software can mesh with Indonesian gamelan.

No one shreds on keys like Mauritania’s Ahmedou Ahmed Lowla

Ahemdou Ahmed Lowla is on the move. Breaking out across Europe for the first time in 2019, I caught up with the Mauritanian WZN superstar last month. Hearing his music will change how you think about keyboards — and new stuff is on the way.

Peter Kirn - September 5, 2025

Pitch is political: learning Arabic maqams and decolonizing music

Sami Abu Shumays has uploaded his complete lecture on politics and maqams. He talks about how decolonizing music also meant decolonizing himself—reconnecting to his roots as a Palestinian American. This is essential context for Sami’s work, which includes the Arabic tuning section of Ableton Live 12’s tuning implementation and free companion site.

Peter Kirn - August 21, 2024

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