TIRIS

Listen to the debut recording of Tiris-SANDTRACKS!! Produced by Kad Achouri and Mohamed Hafsi and Sandblast. Recorded in Algiers and Paris. The album was released in September 2007.
Named after a deeply culturally symbolic region of Western Sahara , this music and dance group is made up of 8 Saharawi refugee artists and musical director Momo Hafsi. All based in large camps in SW Algeria, they have been forced to live there for over 3 decades since Morocco invaded and illegally annexed their homeland in 1975. Their songs tell of the long forgotten and invisible struggle to regain Western Sahara and highlight their collective aspirations for independence and freedom.
Formed out of a series of talent competitions in the refugee camps, this relatively new group combines old and new talent, tradition and innovation in a powerful and raw way. Tiris is made up of nine members and features: • Ahmed Sidi Mufid AKA Mufeed (singer) • Mohamed Said Mohamed Salem Esouilma AKA Shueta (singer) • Emhamed Ahmed Baba Ahmed AKA Mohamed Zein ( electric guitar)- • Bauba Bleiel Embarec AKA Beba (keyboard) • Ahmed Ahmed Zein AKA Ahmed Zein or Mohamed Salek, (tidinit) • Embarca Zahu Ayin AKA Embarca (dancer and chorus and percussion)- • Salma Ali Did AKA Swelma-( dancer and chorus and percussion)- • Boubba Han Cheikh AKA Boubba (dancer and chorus and percussion) • Mohamed Hafsi AKA Momo- (electric bass and music director of group)the legendary Shueta, known locally as the Arethra Franklin of the Sahara, who has been singing for the cause since 1985 forms a sublime duo with young rising star Mufeed, a 26 year old phenomenon with a stunning voice and a sizzling performance style. Both come from families of artists.
Accompanying the two main vocalists are the traditional tidinit played by Ahmed Zein (a four stringed instrument traditionally played by men) and the t’bal. Modern instruments played are the electric guitar by Mohamed Ahmed Zein, and keyboard by Beba . There is a chorus of three singer-dancers (Embarca, Swelma and Boubba) who perform stunning dance sequences with and without the traditional t’bal. Many of the dances represent highly stylized gestures of everyday life activities. 72-year-old foot puppeteer Belka is the ninth member, as vocalist & dancer.
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