Portrait Interview of the Palestinian-Lebanese percussionist Johnny Farraj, currently based in New York City. We talked about his life, the Arabic music scene in the US, his new book Inside Arabic Music, published through Oxford University Press, and more. Visit Johnny's website www.maqamworld.com and check out his book for a great dive into the diverse and intricate world of Arabic music.

The music played during this episode is: 

1. Arabic Percussion Solo from a concert with Syrian Songstress Gaida at (Le) Poisson Rouge with the following percussionists: Zafer Tawil on Arabic tabla, Johnny Farraj on riq, Tareq Abboushi on daf, and Tony De Vivo on congas.

2. Umm Kulthum performing Al Atlal ("The Ruins") live at the Olympia Theatre in Paris, November 1967.

3. Lebanese Folkloric Song Aataba

4. Simon Shaheen – Rast Taqsim on the Oud

5. Arabic Percussion Solo – same as in no. 1

6. Performance by singer Wajdi Ayoub accompanied by many local Arab musicians at New York's Roulette Theatre, including Johnny Farraj performing on the riq.