bana haffar/nour mobarak: you are the audience

This cassette tape is a document of two live performances by the Bana Haffar/Nour Mobarak duo. Their mutual pleasure in variable tunings, granular synthesis, and structured improvisations shaped their collaboration. A lifelong expatriate, Bana Haffar was born in Saudi Arabia in 1987 and spent much of her childhood in the GCC. Through her switch from ten years of electric bass to modular synthesizers in 2014, Bana is attempting to dismantle years of institutional "conditioning" in traditional systems of music theory and performance. She is interested in exploring sonic disintegration and coalescence into new forms and synthesized experiences. Nour Mobarak (Lebanese-American, born 1985 in Cairo, Egypt) is an artist working with writing, music, performance, sculpture, and film making. Performances include the Hammer Museum, Los Angeles; Miguel Abreu Gallery, New York; Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego; Stadslimeit, Antwerp; Cafe OTO, London, and Cambridge University, Cambridge; among others. Mobarak has participated in exhibitions at Miguel Abreu Gallery, Cubitt Gallery, Rodeo, Taaffe Place, LAXART. Her writings have been published by De Appel/F.R. David, The Claudius App, and The Salzburg Review among others. Her music has been released by Ultra Eczema (Antwerp) and Recital (Los Angeles).