We are very happy to have recently held a second music mastering workshop, titled Even Less Dependent Music, from April 20 to 25, 2026, and which took place at the Athens Mastering Studios in Athens. The workshop was led by mastering engineer Heba Kadry and Josh Bonati, with the participation of electronic musicians Adham Zidan (Egypt), Deena Abdelwahed (Tunisia), Ismail Hosny (Egypt), Nadah El Shazly (Egypt), and Sarouna Mushasha (Palestine).
The five-day workshop explored contemporary mastering approaches and focused on analog capture, calibration, signal flow, achieving consistency across masters, and preparing deliverables for streaming, CD, vinyl, and cassette. Combining critical listening with a hands-on experience, the workshop set aside some time for private practice, which was followed by group discussions and feedback.
Adham Zidan is a composer, performer, recordist, mixer, and producer. He is a member of Baskot Lel Baltageyya, The Invisible Hands, Today Is Tomorrow, and Another Time Ensemble. He works in music, sound design, and interdisciplinary performance, has composed for theatre, dance, and film, and worked with artists such as Alvarius B., Maurice Louca, Nancy Mounir, and Raed Yassin. His latest piece, How It Ends, is an installative composition in nine movements for nine musicians. Adham also creates and hosts podcasts, talks, and radio shows, and currently co-manages a residency program between Prozess in Bern and Beirut & Beyond in Beirut.
Deena Abdelwahed is a producer, composer, and DJ. She has released two critically acclaimed albums, Khonnar (2018) and Jbal Rrsas (2023). Beyond playing her hybrid DJ sets at clubs and festivals, from alternative Tunisian scenes like World Full Of Bass and Arabstazy to Berghain, Dekmantel, Glastonbury, and Sonar, Deena has composed for dance, theatre, and cinema, such as Radouan Mirziga’s Magec/The Desert, Marion Blondeau’s Lilith, and Essia Jaïbi’s Flagranti. Following two residencies at IRCAM in Paris, Deena built a new percussion interface and a MIDI Qanun, developed with Tunisian musician Nidhal Jaoua.
Ismail Hosny is a composer, producer, and DJ. His work is primarily focused on the intersection of electronic music and Egyptian and Arabic rhythms through multiple solo and collaborative projects, such as 3Phaz and his collaboration with artists Nadah El Shazly and Msylma. Ismail also works in sound design and compositions for contemporary dance groups in Egypt, such as Nasa4Nasa, where he has been exploring music and sound beyond concert halls and dance floors.
Nadah El Shazly is a singer and producer, whose electroacoustic work reimagines Arabic classical music and explores new sonic and harmonic frontiers. Besides performing at a large number of local and international festivals, including Roskilde, Primavera, and Big Ears, Nadah has also scored three feature films, the last of which is Mahdi Fleifel’s To A Land Unknown. She has released Ahwar (2018) and, more recently, her studio album with One Little Independent Records, Laini Tani (2025).
Sarouna Mushasha is a musician, music producer, audio engineer, and DJ. She is the founder of Tawleef, an independent record label and artist space based in Palestine. She has worked on Maya Al Khaldi’s Other World, and is currently working on Haya Zaatry’s newest album, Atlal.
This workshop was made possible with the generous support of the DOEN Foundation and Mophradat’s structural funders.