Masāfāt: Oren Ambarchi, Mark Fell, Will Guthrie & Sam Shalabi

Oren Ambarchi’s works are hesitant and tense extended song forms located in the cracks between several schools: modern electronics and processing; laminal improvisation and minimalism; hushed, pensive songwriting; the deceptive simplicity and temporal suspensions of composers such as Morton Feldman and Alvin Lucier; and the physicality of rock music, slowed down and stripped back to its bare bones, abstracted and replaced with pure signal. Ambarchi has performed and recorded with a diverse array of artists such as Fennesz, Charlemagne Palestine, Sunn 0)), Thomas Brinkman and Keiji Haino. Since 2001 Ambarchi has toured Europe, Nth America and Japan regularly and has performed at major festivals such as ATP (UK), Sonar (Spain), Mutek (Canada), CTM (Germany), INA GRM (France), Roskilde (Denmark), Etna Fest (Italy), Festival De Mexico (Mexico) and many more.

Mark Fell is a multidisciplinary artist based in Sheffield (UK). He studied experimental film and video art at Sheffield City Polytechnic. In 1998 he began a series of critically acclaimed record releases on labels including Mille Plateaux, Line, Editions Mego and Raster Noton. Fell is known for exploring the relationships between popular music styles, such as electronica and club music, and his typically academic approaches to computer-based composition. Fell’s practice has expanded to include moving image works, installation, choreography, critical texts and educational projects. He has worked with a number of artists including Yasunao Tone, Keith Fullerton Whitman, Ambarchi and Carl Michael Von Hausswolff. Fell's practice is reflected in the range and scale of international institutions that have presented his work which include - Hong Kong National Film archive, The Baltic (Gateshead), Museu d'Art Contemporani de Barcelona.Mark Fell is a multidisciplinary artist based in Sheffield (UK). He studied experimental film and video art at Sheffield City Polytechnic. In 1998 he began a series of critically acclaimed record releases on labels including Mille Plateaux, Line, Editions Mego and Raster Noton. Fell is known for exploring the relationships between popular music styles, such as electronica and club music, and his typically academic approaches to computer-based composition. Fell’s practice has expanded to include moving image works, installation, choreography, critical texts and educational projects. He has worked with a number of artists including Yasunao Tone, Keith Fullerton Whitman, Ambarchi and Carl Michael Von Hausswolff. Fell's practice is reflected in the range and scale of international institutions that have presented his work which include the Hong Kong National Film archive, The Baltic (Gateshead), Museu d'Art Contemporani de Barcelona.

Will Guthrie is an Australian drummer/percussionist living in France. He works in many different settings of music: live performance, improvisation and studio composition using various combinations of drums, percussion, objects, junk, amplification and electronics. He plays solo and in various projects such as The Ames Room and The Sommes Ensemble. His music has been released on labels such as Gaffer Records, Erstwhile, Clean Feed, 23five, Editions Mego, Ipecac, iDEAL and his own Antboy Music label. Guthrie studied at the Victorian College of the Arts in Melbourne. In Nantes, France he is part of the collective CABLE# which also organizes regular concerts and an annual festival. Regular collaborators past and present include Jérôme Noetinger, Oren Ambarchi, Anthony Pateras, Chulki Hong, Keith Rowe, David Maranha, Toma Gouband, Erell Latimier, Ava Mendoza, Adam Sussmann, Matt Earle, Ren Walters, Helmut Schafer, David Ades and Mark Simmonds.

Sam Shalabi is an Egyptian-Canadian composer and improviser, living between Montreal, Quebec and Cairo, Egypt. His work has evolved from punk rock into a fusion of experimental, modern Arabic music that incorporates traditional Arabic, noise, classical, text, free improvisation and jazz. Shalabi has released five solo albums and has appeared on over sixty albums. He has also toured Europe, North America and North Africa. Shalabi’s recent projects include the release of a duo album with Stefan Christoff, two albums on the Italian label Sagittarius with Lebanese, Turkish and Egyptian musicians. He is also releasing a new composition called Isis and Osiris as well as releasing an album with The Dwarves Of East Agouza, a Cairo-based trio with Maurice Louca and Alan Bisho, alongside working on his sixth solo album.

Nadah El Shazly is an Egyptian singer, composer and music producer living and working in Cairo. She is currently working on her debut album, continuing along her constantly evolving live set, which she has been performing the past few years. As well as composing, performing and producing her music using her voice and various electronic approaches, Nadah plays the sax, keys and percussions. Known for her versatile vocal prowess, Nadah’s journey in music is full of turns and shifts that sum up to give her sound myriad layers of influences. Before taking up sound art production training in Cairo, Nadah was consumed by early 20th century music in Egypt. Nadah studied psychology and theatre at the American University in Cairo until 2012. She has since been pursuing composition and music production, co-founding the Shorba duo with Egyptian artist Mohamed Shafiq, collaborating with Lebanese rapper and producer El Rass, producing a track for the collective Nassibian Orchestra and composing for film and visual art.