Preview: Andalusian Music Festival @ Strathmore

While the music itself is ancient, the inspiration behind MENA and the festival lies in a recent tragedy that has shaped the current decade. Kawai, a Japanese native who moved to New York as a business school student, was a successful entrepreneur when 9/11 changed her life. She lost her business and was displaced for over a year. She then began reading books on Arab culture and listening to Arab music.

"It just came. When I heard music from Syria and Morrocco, it was like, I know this music," Kawai recalled. "Then I thought I should do something."

For this festival, Kawai assembled a lineup of talented musicians with whom she had worked over the past two years, and all of whom are considered the best in their field. The concert will begin with a Sufi piece sung by the young Marouan Hajji. The Orchestra of Tangier will then perform a traditional vocal and instrumental piece, titled "Hijaz al-Kabir", from their home country, and the evening will conclude with Lotfi Bouchnak and his ensemble playing traditional pieces from Egypt and Tunisia.

Translations of the lyrics will be provided, but Kawai believes they are not necessary to understand the emotional core of the music.

"If you look at the translations, they are poems of love, pleasure, wines and nature," she said. "These are things we can all understand."

The Andalusian Music Festival takes place tomorrow night at the Music Center at Strathmore. Tickets to the 8 p.m. show are $25-$85.