• Live unique calligraphy by Kaalam (France)
• Daf performance by Hussein Zahawy (UK)
• Nasheed performance by Maher Zain

Kaalam (aka Julien Breton)

Inspired by Arabic, Chinese and Japanese art, Julien began working with calligraphy in 2001, since inventing his own Latin-based alphabet. Despite having no calligraphic training, Julien creates unique artworks which have been exhibited around the world. Julien, who goes by the name of Kaalam, further sets himself apart from other calligraphers by not only using his skills on canvas, but also through virtual light calligraphy, using light pens of different sizes to create distinct art pieces.

Hussein was introduced to the daf by his grandfather at the age of five, and when he was 13 was invited to join the first national Radio and Television Orchestra of Kurdish music in Europe. Hussein has studied music both at college and university, and as well as being a professional percussionist he also works as an actor with theatre companies in the UK and US.

Hussein is a versatile percussionist having worked on different projects. In 2005 he was invited to work on the soundtrack for the Hollywood film ‘Kingdom of Heaven’.

From a young age music has played an important role in Maher’s life – his first musical inspiration came from his father who was a singer himself. After being involved for a while in the music scene as a producer, Maher moved to New York with producer RedOne where he worked with chart topping artists. However, Maher felt the lifestyle surrounding the music industry was not what he was looking for and subsequently left to move back to Sweden.

In early 2009, Maher re-entered the music industry and began working on his debut album reflecting his European and Muslim roots. Maher has performed around the world including Sweden, Canada, Australia, the US and Algeria, and is fast becoming the “new star of Islamic music.”