This cooperation of a traditional Jerezian gipsy familiy and the Moroccan/American formation Al-Andalus is without a doubt one of the most successful fusion projects of the last few years.

The roots of flamenco music can actually be traced back to early medieval Andalucia, where Moors, Jews and Christians lived together peacefully and prosperously. As a result, it is no wonder that quite a few flamenco musicians have shown special interest in Arab music.
Artists like El Lebrijano and Segundo Falcón paid special attention to this subject and both realized very successful projects.

Exceptional about this project however is the fact that Al-Andalus as such already is an extraordinarily multicultural concept.
Al-Andalus is an ensemble which, as the name says, focusses on music that refers to Moorish Spain from the 8th to the 15th century.

The core of Al-Andalus is formed by husband and wife Banzi.
Tariq Banzi from Tétouan, Morocco and Julia Banzi from Colorado, US are a model of integration and multicultural cross-fertilization.
From childhood onwards, Tariq was surrounded by the Andalucian music tradition. He is both a talented musician, playing among others the lute and darbuka, and a celebrated composer.
Julia is a versatile musician, an ethnomusicologist and especially one of the few female flamenco guitar players in the world.
The Banzi’s view on contemporary Andalucian music is based on shared experiences, skilful analysis and a highly creative synthesis.

Flamenco dancer Maria Jose Franco belongs to the contemporary young Andalucian elite. She particularly earned her traces alongside Antonio El Pipa, but has now been touring with her own company for quite some time.
Flamenco dancer Luis Moneo belongs to the legendary Jerezian gipsy family of which his brothers Juan “El Torta” Moneo and Manuel Moneo are the best-known representatives.
His son Juan Moneo is a guitar player, completely influenced by the Jerezian style , with a very virtuoso technique and especially an extremely intense perception.

The contrast between both can hardly be any bigger. Still, their Andalucian tour was one of that year’s most successful undertaking. Maria Jose Franco & Al-Andalus are now coming towards the North for a limited series of concerts.
This ensemble is both original and viruoso. But above all, they ensure an evening filled with heavenly music.