In September 2017 the Nerve Centre, City of Derry hosted a very special gathering with musicians from BASORK. Heartbeat & the Orchestre des Réfugiés et Amis.

With members from all three groups meeting for the first time, the dialogue was music in the form of improvised sessions. These sessions were recorded and are now repeatedly broadcasting online via Beyond Skin's internet radio platform Homely Planet. The recordings are the genuine unedited improvisations allowing you the listener to get a rare insight to the experimentation to form ideas as the musicians enagaged in intercultural music dialogue.

"It is wonderful to get yourself totally lost in music with strangers" - Robert Peoples

Tune into Homely Planet via  RADIO GARDEN  or  TUNEIN.COM

A short teaser video is also available on youtube

The session featured Mark Smulian & Gani Tamir musicial directors and co-founders of Heartbeat, an organisation that unites Israeli and Palestinian youth musicians to build critical understanding, develop creative nonviolent tools for social change, and amplify their voices to influence the world around them. Heartbeat is also an #ArtsDialogue partner organisation. www.heartbeat.fm.    Mark & Gani's visit to Northern Ireland was supported by IBIS Belfast Hotels & Community Relations Council as part of Community Relations & Cultural Awareness Week.

Orchestre des Réfugiés et Amis is an intercultural arts project that was established in 2016 with the support from the Arts Council Northern Ireland. www.beyondskin.net/odrea. The Nerve Centre sessions featured Shindar Ali & Nikos Petsakos.

Donal McGuinness & Robert Peoples performed in the session representing Balkan Alien Sound Orchestra. BASORK is a ten piece fusion group whose compositions are influenced by Irish, European and Middle Eastern sounds. Brass, Strings and Woodwind combine with hints of jazz, funk and various traditional musics with big melodies and lots of improvisation. www.balkanaliensound.com/basork