Palestinian and Levantine ensemble, Dabke & Tatreez

About this episode

The episode features a discussion with members of the Dabke & Tatreez ensemble about cultural resistance through music and dance at the National Folk Festival.

This week, we take you to the National Folk Festival in Canberra, where we chat with three women from Dabke & Tatreez, a music and dance ensemble. Dabke & Tatreez formed in Sydney (Gadigal land) with musicians and dancers from, and with roots, in Palestine, Lebanon, Turkiye, Cyprus and Indonesia. We spoke with Ayse Shanal (Artists for Peace) and Hala & Hoor al-Sammak (Three Rivers Ensemble and Dahnoon Dabke) about resistance through music and culture in Palestine and the Levant. We also hear Dabke & Tatreez live at the 60th National Folk Festival, playing songs and tunes from a time that pre-dated 1948 and continues to this day in spite of Israeli occupation and blockade.

People in this episode

Guests: Ayse Shanal, Hala al-Sammak, Hoor al-Sammak

Topics covered

• music
• dance
• cultural resistance
• Palestine
• Levantine culture
• folk festival

Keywords

• Dabke
• Tatreez
• National Folk Festival
• Palestine
• cultural resistance
• music ensemble
• Levantine culture

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Dabke & Tatreez

Places: Gadigal land, Palestine, Lebanon, Turkiye, Cyprus, Indonesia

More episodes of Women on the Line

• No Kanak liberation without women's liberation! · May 31, 2026
• Banning menstrual products as a political weapon in Myanmar · May 24, 2026
• 40 Years Since Nurses' Strike · May 3, 2026
• Capitalism is Femicidal: Women Resisters Speak Out · April 12, 2026
• Age Verification and Access to Adult Content · April 5, 2026
• Bollywood's soft power and the far-right government · March 29, 2026