From her first professional concerts in Ramallah and Cairo at the age of 14 through her packed concerts in worldly​ ​theaters in Paris, New York, Amsterdam, London, Casablanca, Beirut, Amman, Kuwait and Tunis, Nai Barghouti has been​ ​wowing audiences with her unique vocal and musical dexterity.​ ​

Well rooted in the Arab-near Eastern maqams and trained in classical western music and jazz, Nai has been praised​ ​by both Western and Arab music critics as a “classical diva.” Nai’s vocal technique stunningly evokes qualities of three Arab legendary singers, the velvety depth of Asmahan,​ ​the powerful projection, range and control of Umm Kulthum, and the unparalleled angelic and deeply emotive​ ​head resonance of Fairouz. Recognizing this, the renowned Egyptian Maestro Amir Abdel Megid wrote, “There is​ ​light in her voice.”

After studying classical music and jazz vocal technique for two years at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music​ ​in the U.S., Nai moved to Amsterdam, where she was awarded both her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees with​ ​honors from the Conservatory of Amsterdam. There she explored the relationship between Arab tarab music and​ ​Jazz, and developed her unique singing technique called NaiStrumentation, a layered ornamental technique for using the voice as a musical instrument.

A native of Aleppo, Syria, Mohannad Mshallah is a professional singer of Middle Eastern Music who was born in 1979. He has performed across the Middle East and was selected to participate in Super Star 2 (2004), a television show based on the popular British show Pop Idol that also spawned American Idol. He ultimately won sixth place. Following his success on Super Star, Mohannad has gone on to record six singles and composed many other songs! In 2012 he performed at the San Francisco Opera world premiere "Heart of a Soldier" and was a great success!

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The National Arab Orchestra and Maestro Michael Ibrahim perform with singers Nai Barghouti and Mohannad Mshallah as they present Along the Silk Road: The Music of the Levant, a program that celebrates the vibrant melodies of the Levant.