Tamaas Festival 2027 in Abu Dhabi

Tamaas Festival 2027 in Abu Dhabi packs three bands and two stages into a single Friday evening at The Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi on Saadiyat Island. Ibibio Sound Machine, Bombino and Sami Galbi share the bill, each representing a different corner of the world but all drawing on the same idea: taking traditional music and pushing it somewhere new.

Tamaas, written تماس, means “contact” in both Arabic and Farsi, and the name fits. The Arts Center describes the festival as a space where artists who bridge modern approaches with traditional roots meet, and where cultures, styles and genres connect in one place.

The running order

Doors open at 6:30pm, and the night moves between the open-air East Plaza and the indoor Red Theater:

• 7pm, East Plaza: Sami Galbi opens with a standing set.
• 8:15pm, Red Theater: Bombino plays a seated concert.
• 9:30pm, East Plaza: Ibibio Sound Machine close the night outdoors.

Tickets follow the stages: standing general admission covers the East Plaza, while the Red Theater has reserved seating. Check which you hold before you go, as the two spaces work quite differently.

Who is playing?

Sami Galbi

A multi-instrumentalist and producer from Switzerland’s alternative scene with Moroccan roots, Sami Galbi takes North African Raï and Chaâbi and plugs them into electronic beats. His sound draws on hip-hop, UK bass, house and Afro-Caribbean dance music, and he performs with analogue machines, raw synthesisers and electric guitar. The listing bills his live show simply as “high energy”, which makes him a natural opener for a standing crowd on the plaza.

Bombino

Born Goumour Almoctar in Tidene, Niger, in 1980, Bombino is a Tuareg guitarist and singer often called the “Sultan of Shred”. He grew up in exile in Algeria and Libya during the Tuareg rebellions of the 1990s and taught himself to play guitar. His 2011 album Agadez brought him to a wider audience, and later records made with Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys (Nomad) and David Longstreth of Dirty Projectors (Azel) built his international following. In 2019 his album Deran made him the first artist from Niger to receive a Grammy nomination. Expect hypnotic, looping desert blues guitar, best heard from a seat in the Red Theater.

Ibibio Sound Machine

Formed in London in 2013 around frontwoman Eno Williams and co-founder Max Grunhard, Ibibio Sound Machine are an eight-piece afro-futurist collective. They blend West African rhythms with electronics, disco and post-punk. The band have released five albums, played Glastonbury, WOMAD and Green Man, and supported Coldplay at Wembley Stadium. A sixth album is due later in 2026 on Merge Records, so the Abu Dhabi set could include some of that new material.

How Tamaas has grown

Tamaas is part of the programme at The Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi, which has become one of the capital’s most adventurous venues for music, theatre and dance from around the world. The previous edition, in February 2025, paired Afro-Cuban funk from Cimafunk with Congolese electronic band KOKOKO! on the East Plaza, followed by Egyptian electro shaabi from Abosahar and Moroccan aïta from Aïta Mon Amour in the Black Box. All of those artists were making their UAE debuts.

This 2027 edition keeps the two-stage format but moves the indoor set into the Red Theater, giving Bombino a seated concert setting that suits his music.

Who it suits

Tamaas is for listeners who enjoy discovering artists they may not have heard on the radio, fans of African and North African music, and anyone who likes the festival feel of moving between stages without committing to a full day outdoors. A late January evening on Saadiyat Island is also one of the more comfortable times of year to stand outside for a concert.

If you only want one act, Bombino’s reserved seating in the Red Theater is the most relaxed option. If you want to dance, the East Plaza sets from Sami Galbi and Ibibio Sound Machine are where the energy will be.

Getting into campus

NYU Abu Dhabi is a working university campus, so entry is a little different from a standard concert venue. You will need two things: your event ticket and a campus access QR code, which NYUAD Campus Safety sends by email. Entry is through the East or West Parking or the Welcome Center, and vehicles use the East or West Parking areas.

By car, follow Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Street (E10) past Al Mina, then Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Street (E12) and on to Laffan Street; GPS is recommended. By bus, route 170 stops at Saadiyat New York University 3, a short walk away. Taxis and ride-hailing apps also work well for Saadiyat.

For wheelchair and access bookings, contact the NYUAD box office at nyuad.boxoffice@nyu.edu before the night.

Find more live music in our concerts guide, browse the capital’s art and culture listings, or plan the rest of your weekend with our guide to things to do in Abu Dhabi and what is on in January.