Jan Hendrickse and Dirk Campbell first met in 1998 while doing some work for the Royal Shakespeare Company. This marked the beginning of a creative friendship that in 2003 saw the formation of the World Wind Band, which will be performing at the Manoel Theatre on 23 January. This project was driven by their mutual commitment to the study and dissemination of ethnic wind music from all over the world. This has seen them perform, do educational projects, and lately also record a CD.

Their music is a fusion of ethnic and contemporary sounds that encompasses traditions from all over the globe. These include music from as far afield as Armenia, Azerbaijan, Korea and West Africa. In Malta they will be presenting a programme titled Listen to the reed and the tale it tells, which is inspired by the writings of Rumi, a 13th century Persian poet.

This concert is the result of collaboration between the Manoel Theatre and the British Council. The performance starts at 7:30pm, and tickets start from Lm3. Tickets can be bought from the box office, which can be contacted on telephone 2122 2618 or by e-mail on [email protected]. Alternatively, tickets can be booked on-line by logging on to www.teatrumanoel.com.mt.