World peace and cross-cultural bonds shape the repertoire of Alabina, the Paris-based ensemble fronted by vocalist Ishtar. The group fuses Middle Eastern musical traditions with the intricate, virtuosic pulse of Flamenco, a creative partnership realized across recordings that feature Ishtar alongside her collaborators Los Niños de Sara—four gypsy musicians from the south of France who earlier worked with Manitas de Plata and Paco de Lucia.
Born to an Egyptian mother and a Moroccan father of Spanish extraction, Ishtar grew up in Israel. Her grandmother, a well-known Egyptian singer, passed down a deep affinity for music that prompted Ishtar to launch her career while still a teenager. At seventeen she was already appearing in Israeli nightclubs and taking roles in theatrical productions; the next year she joined the Israeli army, becoming one of the nation’s first female jet-fighter mechanics.
Ishtar departed Israel at twenty-four and spent a short time performing in Austrian clubs before establishing herself in Paris. In 1996 the Jewish-French producer Charles Ivgi invited her to record a refreshed interpretation of the Mideastern song “Yallbina.” Retitled “Alabina,” the track emerged as a worldwide dance success.
