William Shaheen was the youngest of five siblings, a musician of the violin and oud, a composer, an optician, and a teacher. He was all of these things, and even then he was at his core an incredible brother, uncle Read More …
William Shaheen, Rest in Peace
Rest in Peace, Victor Abdunnur
We have lost a dear member of the Retreat family, oud player and vocalist Victor Abdunnur. Deepest condolences to his wife Maha Shakhashiri and the family. Both Maha and Victor attended the Retreat many times. Their zest for life and Read More …
Celebration of Life Honoring Michel Merhej and Bassam Saba
On January 31, 2021, we held a Celebration of Life on zoom to honor Michel Merhej (1928-2020) and Bassam Saba (1959-2020), our dear faculty members who passed away due to COVID-19. We paid tribute to the wonderful achievements and personalities Read More …
Bassam Saba Rest in Peace
We are devastated to report that one of our leading faculty members, nay and flute virtuoso Bassam Saba, passed away on December 4, 2020 from COVID-19 complications. Bassam was a founding faculty member of the Arabic Music Retreat. His passing Read More …
Laura Shaheen Memorial Scholarship
Laura Shaheen, known to her family and friends as Lulu, left us and this world on August 12th, 2020. Born in Palestine to a family with a deep love of music, Lulu was the sister of Rosette Shaheen and brothers Read More …