RAPPERS, folk artists and dancers from across the Muslim world will entertain hundreds of revellers at an all-day musical extravaganza.

For the fifth year, the Muslim Education Centre of Oxford (MECO) is hosting its day-long Oxford Muslim Music Festival on Sunday, November 1.

The event is the only one of its kind in the country.

Members of the audience will also be able to sample foods from across the Muslim world.

MECO chairmann and event organiser Dr Taj Hargey said: “MECO is the only Muslim organisation in Britain that openly celebrates the rich and wonderful musical heritage of the Islamic world every year.

“For this reason, MECO has boldly pioneered these annual live concerts featuring talented Muslim artists and is fully committed to bringing Islam’s inspirational sacred music and devotional songs to a wider and appreciative audience of both Muslims and non-Muslims.

“Unlike some Muslims who have been wrongly conditioned by a fundamentalist clergy and a fashionable ideology into believing that music is reprehensible and impermissible in Islam, MECO has furnished irrefutable textual proof that the Holy Qur’an itself does not support such a bizarre ban.”

He added: “We feel this will be a real contribution by the Muslim community in Oxford to the cultural vitality of the city.”

Among the eight acts showcasing their skills will be the all-female Muslim rap group Poetic Pilgrimage, lute player Sahria Saad from Iran, and the Sudanese Sufi choir Burhaniyah.

Other artists from Algeria, Somalia, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh will also entertain festival-goers.

Dr Hargey said: “The highlight for me will be a Sufi musician coming over from Turkey called Latif Bolat.

“The music is very popular with Muslims in the UK and features chanting, singing and some Sufi dancing.”

He said music helped unite Muslims and non-Muslims and encouragedharmony and understanding in society.

He said: “When I first heard Britain’s Got Talent contestant Susan Boyle, her voice touched me deep inside my spirit.”

“I think music affects people irrespective of their faith and background.”

l The event runs between 3pm and 11pm at the Holywell Music Room in Holywell Street, Oxford.

Tickets are £10 for adults and £5 for children.

Muslim snacks and drinks will also be on sale.