Testimonials:
...jai
bien recu ma robe et mon burnous et ils sont vraiment tres tres beau
malgré le delais rapidement ke je vous ai donné je l ai recu en temps en heure merci encor hacene je recommanderais c trop
beau
Fousia, France 21/10/08 Read more ...
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Films, Documentaries,
movies
DVDs, CD's
and videos
from Algeria
Documentary on the Berber
culture in Algeria
(Ansi D-kki7, Anda Teddu7)
Producer:
Hacène Zennia
The Road Behind, The Road Ahead
is about a return to the roots, my Berber, Amazigh roots in Algeria, North
Africa. Over the years, I have witnessed the assimilation of my culture away
from the French colonial period toward Arabization, and now toward the west with
the advent of the internet and wireless communications. This documentary aims to
capture traditional Berber culture before the last pure generation - the
generation of my mother, who never went to school, speaks only Berber, and live
in a traditional Berber culture - vanishes.
I chose to go back to my
native village to produce the film despite the distance and the difficulties.
The Berber culture survived for five thousand years through poetry, songs,
dances, and traditions. Video is a new medium used to preserve and document the
Berber culture. This is a contribution to its preservation and its promotion.
From the DVD menu you can choose to view the film
in its native Berber language, in French or in
English.
It also contains extra footage from the region
where
it was filmed
"In memory of a Hero"
Latest
Music CD
(2009)
(Ur ken Tetsu) Singer:
Moh Alileche
Label: Flag of Freedom
Moh Alileche ( Promounced ali-LESH ) was born in1959 in
Kabylia, a mountainous region of northern Algeria. He moved to California in
1990. He plays traditional Algerian Amazigh music, singing in his native
Tamazight language, and incorporating the use of instruments common to North
Africa, namely the mondol and bendir. Many themes in his music focus upon the
importance of Freedom, Love, Truth, and Justice… Alileche blends his soulful,
emotionally charged, passionate voice to hypnotic rhythms, captivating melodies,
and entrancing beats. He has released four albums which include 1999’s “Tragedy
(Tawaghit)”, “The Source of Water (Taawit), in 2002, “North Africa’s Destiny?” (Tarwa
n’ Tamazgha), in 2005. Indie Acoustic Project chose “North Africa’s Destiny?”
as the best album in the World Music-Africa category in 2005. And in 2009 he
released “In Memory of a Hero” (Ur Ken Tetsu) . Alileche currently lives in
Berkeley, California, where he enjoys playing and educating at various venues in
the local music community.
"North
Africa's destiny"
Music CD
(2005)
(Tarwa N'Tamazgha) Singer:
Moh Alileche
Label: Flag of Freedom
When it comes to the Berber--more properly Amazight--people
of Algeria, culture and politics can be hard to separate. The original
inhabitants of North Africa have long felt under cultural attack in this
country. They consider their language, lifestyle, and music, threatened by a
government bent on "Arabization" of the country, most notably the mountainous
Kabyle hinterlands, long the home of the Amazight. Kabyle's greatest modern
troubadour, Matoub Lounes, was assassinated for his activism in 1998. Since
then, from his adopted home in California, Moh Alileche--also born in Kabylia--has
taken up the baton. On this, his third and best recording, Alileche emerges as a
powerful musical voice, driven by a life mission.
Song titles like "Amezruy (A Culture on the Brink of
Extinction)" suggest didacticism rather than poetry. This song critiques the
marketing of Algeria's popular rai music, which Alileche argues is being used as
a tool in the government's acculturation campaign. Whatever one makes of the
argument, the song itself is beautiful. A wheedling violin leads Alileche's
9-piece ensemble into a relaxed, rolling desert groove--rich with flute, violin,
mondol, and layered percussion working magic within a dense, 12/8 feel.
Alileche's voice a tuneful, buzzing presence throughout, expressing savvy
mournfulness and soulful grit.
Most of these nine pieces begin by featuring one of the
ensemble's instruments--flute, violin, banjo, guitar, or mondol, the signature,
paired-string lute of Kabylia. The first-rate players on this album make it
Alileche's most satisfying release yet, whether in eloquent, improvised
introductory passages or lush ensemble playing. Alileche is not a virtuoso
singer, but his voice has a calming warmth, and he skillfully places it within
lush--but not overdone--orchestration that make it delightful to hear. The
energized, hypnotic mood of striving in "Avrid (Toward the Summit)," the shaabi-like
strut of "Tamurt (The Abandoned Homeland)," and the jazzy timbres of "Adu
(Windstorm)" show three different faces of a gifted composer and arranger.
Ultimately, this album is a celebration of culture, and
two pieces conjure the mood of a village celebration. "Tameghra (The Wedding
Celebration)" offers an ecstatic, chant-laden round of thumping cross rhythms,
driving hand claps, and wild ululating by a group of women. "Assirem (Hope)"
concludes the set with a loping, darkly serene instrumental. However engaged,
Alileche is more than a musician with a cause. At a time when Amazight cultural
expressions are receiving more and more attention and nurturing, he is a gifted
and original voice and musician, and a man who has learned how to make a great
record.
Contributed by: Banning Eyre for www.afropop.org
. . .
Listen to the CD to indulge in the Berber world music
1. A Culture on the Brink of Extinction
(6:23)
2. North Africa's Destiny?
(4:00)
3. Toward the Summit
(7:54)
4. Traditional Song/ Instrumental
(3:26)
5. The Abandoned Homeland
(6:02)
6. When You Are Away
(7:32)
7. The Wedding Celebration
(4:41)
8. Windstorm
(2:59)
9. Hope / Instrumental
(5:32)
Running time (48:32)
AU$18.95 -Stock:
3
"The Source
of Water"
Music CD (2002)
(Taawit) Singer:
Moh Alileche
Label: Flag of Freedom
Between the Arab culture of
Northern Africa and the more well-known sub-Saharan
cultures, the Amazigh people struggle for survival
and recognition. California-based Moh Alileche serves
as something of a musical ambassador, calling
attention to his people's plight with sadly beautiful
music. The new album opens with "A Culture on the
Brink of Extinction," relating how the government
uses Rai music (and bribes and other means) to erode
the Amazigh culture. (Sadly, Alileche missed an
opportunity to further educate listeners by including
liner notes helping distinguish the differences
between Amazigh and non-Amazigh musics. Instruments
and scales are similar, so the casual wanderer might
miss the distinction.) The songs "North Africa's
Destiny" and "The Abandoned Homeland" echo this
cultural decay. Yet also included are traditional
songs, along with songs about wedding celebrations,
love, windstorms, and hope. While the music isn't as
fiery as Tinariwen's desert blues or as poppish as
Rai, it's eminently enjoyable, ranging from the
sparse, somber "North Africa's Destiny" to the
danceable longing of "When You Are Away," a duet with
singer Linda. Alileche's dedication to his cultural
mission might be summed up with lyrics from the song
"Toward the Summit": "I expect to encounter troubles
/ ferocious heat, paralyzing cold, merciless storms /
yet I shall surpass each one. / I know I will reach
my destination / even if it takes a long time." No
fan of North African music and culture will regret
spending time with this fine CD.
1. A Fight In My Mind
(4:29)
2. 'Le Pouvoir'
(4:46)
3. Be Happy
(3:32)
4. The Swallow (Homage To S. Azem) (5:25)
5. Food Of Love (Instrumental)
(3:30)
6. The Source Of Water
(12:16)
7. Fear
(5:32)
8. The Groom
(4:02)
9. Tavern
(7:11)
Running time (49:22)
AU$18.95 -Stock:
3
Berber
Poetry CD
(Timsal n Tudert) Author:
Ahcène Mariche
Hear the
voice of Ahcène Mariche now recite his wonderful poems. Poems that address many
aspects of life. Whether in love, family, culture, society, nature and others.
You can even learn them and recite to your loved ones. Why not!
Boualem
Zeraoui is a Kabyle singer who sings from the bottom of his heart about his
culture in Kabyle language and expresses feelings that can make you lose the
sense of time while listening to his CD. He's born and lives in Tizi Rached. He
even used one of the poems of Ahcene Mariche in one of his songs.
Berber Music Cassette of
Boualem Zeraoui
(Barkayi)
Boualem
Zeraoui is a Kabyle singer who sings from the bottom of his heart about his
culture in Kabyle language and expresses feelings that can make you lose the
sense of time while listening to his CD. He's born and lives in Tizi Rached. He
even used one of the poems of Ahcene Mariche in one of his songs.
