The 2009 self-titled debut from pianist/composer Jon Balke's Siwan ensemble was universally acclaimed as his modern composition and improvising quintet met Moroccan singer Amina Alaoui and Bjarte Eike's Barokksolistene, a Baroque group that weds the raw rhythms of Scandinavian folk to High Baroque. The album offered composed and improvised music centered on Gharnati music, inspired by the Al-Andalus era (730-1492). That inspiration is taken further afield on Nahnou Houm (English translation: "we are them"). Ms. Alaoui has been replaced by Algerian vocalist and oudist Mona Boutchebak, whose background lies in Arab-Andalusian music. The eight-year break between albums was because Balke sought an Andalusian singer who could assimilate his material in a contemporary group. (Ms. Boutchebak has performed with Western symphony orchestras, jazz, rock, and hip-hop groups as well as Arab classical ensembles.) The question the composer pondered while writing was: "How would Europe and the rest of the world have developed if the three religions (Islam, Judaism, and Christianity) had managed to co-exist in the aftermath of Al-Andalus?" Siwan can and does offer an answer: its members are rooted in the three aforementioned traditions and work at cultural and musical cooperation ardently.

1		Duda
2		Desmayar Se
3		Castigo
4		Del Rey
5		Ma Kontou
6		Nahnou Houm
7		Zem Zemeh
8		Aun Bebiendo
9		Arco Y Flecha
10		Sin Nada Querer
11		Itimad

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