Axis of Love is an ongoing series of events featuring meditative music from the Middle East, North Africa and beyond, with instrumental, traditional and innovative sounds. The series launched in 2017, with the goal of injecting positivity and empathy into the global conversation. The Rhythm Foundation offers this series as a recommitment to our core belief in the value of international cultural exchange. 

Artists presented to date include Ballake Sissoko (Malian kora master) and Vincent Segal (French cellist and hip hop artist); the South Asian ensemble Riyaaz Qawwali; and Egyptian duo Tarek Abdallah (oud) and Adel Shams el Din (riq tambourine), Iranian tar master Sahba Motallebi; Nigerien tuareg blues guitarist Mdou Moctar; Mauritanian female griot Noura Mint Seymali; Iraqi trumpeter and bandleader Amir el-Safar; Moroccan gnawa trance group Innov Gnawa, Moroccan oud master Driss El-Maloumi, Syrian chamber group Takht Al-Nagham, Azerbaijani multi-instrumentalist Han Beyli, and Pakistani-American award-winning artist Arooj Aftab.

2024 Season Info soon