Syria's soulful rhythm
Traditional Levantine sounds fused with music from a new generation inspired by rock and hip-hop.
Last Modified: 27 Aug 2011 10:18 GMT
Next Music Station
Across the Gulf
Music inspired by the motion of the sea - from fishermen's melodies to Bedouin desert songs.
Morocco revisited
We meet the 'godfathers' of Moroccan music in the coastal city of Casablanca.
We discover how different musical expressions live together in the same land.
Last Modified: 09 Aug 2011 14:08 GMT
An eclectic music scene pulsates through the Lebanese capital.
Last Modified: 02 Aug 2011 13:50 GMT
Egypt's music overpowers its listeners, so much so that we return to hear more unique sounds from this ancient land.
Last Modified: 30 May 2011 14:40 GMT
Using music to build bridges of understanding between the East and the West.
Last Modified: 25 May 2011 12:22 GMT
Traditional and popular music styles collide and collude.
Last Modified: 18 May 2011 16:17 GMT
Yemeni musicians combine traditional melodies with modern technology to create a unique music scene.
Last Modified: 08 May 2011 15:28 GMT
Inheriting one of the oldest musical traditions in the world Egyptians have never lost their love for music.
Last Modified: 05 May 2011 15:20 GMT
In depth
Tunisia: Cultural crossbreeding
Tunisia celebrates its musical legacy while looking toward the future and embracing rhythms from around the world.
Painting a 'soundscape' of the Arab world
Musician and filmmaker Fermin Muguruza talks about Next Music Station, a series exploring music in the Arab world.
Meet the musicians: Bahrain and Kuwait
A musical journey across the Arab world
Fermin and his team visited nine different countries, interviewing more than 80 musicians.
Ameeri Band
"Maritime art is our culture, we must protect it, continue practicing it and pass it on to the coming generations."
"The oud is my soul, I can't explain it. There is a very close relationship between me and the oud."
Last Modified: 24 Aug 2011 10:51 GMT
"We came up with a lovely mixture of our personalities."
Last Modified: 24 Aug 2011 10:31 GMT
"When our people used to go to the military, they used to sing Hujeini style as they rode their camels."
Last Modified: 24 Aug 2011 10:20 GMT
"In the Gulf, our problem is that we are restricted with the traditions of a very conservative society."
Last Modified: 24 Aug 2011 10:03 GMT
"Bahrain is an open country and full of various styles of music taken from heritage and developed by many artists."
Last Modified: 24 Aug 2011 09:58 GMT
"I like Jazz music, I like classic and Nahma. That is where I find my soul."
Last Modified: 23 Aug 2011 14:31 GMT
Meet the musicians: Lebanon
Dr. Ameer Jaffar
"The oud is the 'weapon' through which we can show our capabilities as Arab musicians in the West."
I-VOICE
'People living in Lebanon's refugee camps can never forget Palestine.'
'If someone is a musician, he acts like someone on the battlefield.'
Last Modified: 25 May 2011 09:52 GMT
'My dream is for my country to be stable and for its rulers to be loyal to the country.'
Last Modified: 25 May 2011 09:54 GMT
'It's art and culture that makes a country well-known, not politics.'
Last Modified: 25 May 2011 09:57 GMT
'I believe singers of today should unite and fight this wave of bad singing.'
Last Modified: 25 May 2011 10:00 GMT
'Every time I want to listen to songs about my homeland, I listen to Marcel. I'm from Palestine.'
Last Modified: 25 May 2011 11:47 GMT
Morocco's musicians
Soumaya Baalbaki
'Tango can't be shallow. It's all about love. Arab music is all about love.'
Karima Skalli
'What I wish is for our culture to reach the world.'
'We used to hang out in the neighbourhood and sing, come up with new rhythms, using [...] a can or the side of a car.'
Last Modified: 19 May 2011 12:56 GMT
Oum
'Marrakesh is my hometown, where I grew up and where my home is.'
Last Modified: 19 May 2011 12:42 GMT
'I adopted my uncle's style of playing music and singing.'
Last Modified: 19 May 2011 12:49 GMT
Yemen's musicians
Hamid el-Kasri
'My father opposed the idea of me liking Gnawa music and had even beaten me sometimes to focus on my studies.'
Abdulbasset al-Harethi
'Music has become the soul's food, a cure, and an inevitable part of human life.'
'I wish Yemen to live in happiness, progress and prosperity, as Yemen is the source of civilisation and Arabism.'
Last Modified: 11 May 2011 13:24 GMT
'Music is the language of the world that can reach all its peoples.'
Last Modified: 11 May 2011 13:24 GMT
'Sometimes, we need to say more than just words.'
Last Modified: 11 May 2011 13:20 GMT
'We don't have a good musical background to be able to develop our heritage.'
Last Modified: 11 May 2011 13:18 GMT
'Our ancestor's heritage is dying out.'
Last Modified: 11 May 2011 13:18 GMT
'I started to sing old songs, just like any other singer.'
Last Modified: 11 May 2011 13:09 GMT
'Everybody starts by singing at weddings in Aden of course.'
Last Modified: 11 May 2011 13:06 GMT
Egypt's musicians
Sharaf al-Kaedi
'I believe that singing is not haram or forbidden as they chant songs in all celebrations of various occasions.'
Ahmed el-Touni
'We chant religious supplications all night.'
'Music is an inevitable part of everyday life.'
Last Modified: 30 May 2011 14:39 GMT
'People feel relaxed when they hear Zar music with its strong drum.'
Last Modified: 30 May 2011 14:39 GMT
'I searched for those people who had a spiritual relation with singing.'
Last Modified: 30 May 2011 14:40 GMT
'We choose freely between various styles of music. We do what we want and what we feel like.'
Last Modified: 30 May 2011 14:40 GMT
'As much as we try to reflect the state of our society, we also try to solve our problems in the Arab world.'
Last Modified: 07 May 2011 12:57 GMT
'I believe that music is one of the most important forms of art.'
Last Modified: 08 May 2011 12:32 GMT
'People have a wrong idea about jazz. They think it's just meaningless noise.'
Last Modified: 08 May 2011 12:32 GMT
'I launched a project that is a mixture of oriental and electronic music.'
Last Modified: 07 May 2011 13:07 GMT
Tunisia's musicians
Wust El Balad
'When artists produce music, they reflect the mix in which they live, the reality they exist in.'
Leila El Hjaiej
'Literature is food for thought and music is food for the soul.'
'I believe that every free spirited person is at heart a revolutionary and I want to express this feeling.'
Last Modified: 26 Apr 2011 13:02 GMT
'Music is the only tool that can provide quick solutions as an alternative to speech.'
Last Modified: 26 Apr 2011 13:03 GMT
'It is a physical relationship with music that you understand not only with your ears, but with your whole body.'
Last Modified: 26 Apr 2011 13:04 GMT
'The singer is a witness to the times in which he or she lives.'
Last Modified: 26 Apr 2011 13:04 GMT
'I try to fuse the jazz style with Tunisian culture.'
Last Modified: 26 Apr 2011 13:04 GMT
Next Music Station

A musical odyssey through the rhythms of the Arab world. With nine countries visited and more than 80 musicians interviewed, this series by musician and filmmaker Fermin Muguruza paints a 'soundscape' of the Arab music scene. From Morocco to the Gulf, Next Music Station takes us on a journey, exploring issues of tradition and modernity, as well as the struggles of the present and the yearning for a brighter future.
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Airing times

Next Music Station airs each week at the following times GMT: Tuesday: 2000; Wednesday: 1200; Thursday: 0100; Friday: 0600; Saturday: 2000; Sunday: 1200; Monday: 0100; Tuesday: 0600.
In pictures