While London has given birth to a new fusion sound, fuelled by mixes from the city's Indian, Pakistani and Jamaican communities, Paris has nourished its own musical melting pot, centring on Arab and North African sounds. Over the past few years singers and musicians from a broad range of different countries, linguistic and ethnic communities have come together in France, adopting the country as a second home or growing up here as second-generation immigrants. Through a process of integration or cohabitation, these artists have turned France into an exciting musical and cultural laboratory, spilling over with new North African sounds.

L'Orchestre national de Barbès have wasted no time in establishing themselves as one of the pioneering acts on France's new fusion scene. The majority of the ONB's members come from Bougnoules Connexion, a provocatively-named collective who got together in the Paris suburbs and decided to put a festive spin on integration, putting their message across through music, sculpture and art. (One of the Connexion's most famous slogans, printed on a jerrycan-shaped flyer, read: "Before they had oil … Now they've got ideas!") Bringing together an eclectic mix of nationalities - from Moroccans, Algerians, Arabs and Kabyles to "100% French" musicians - the ONB "builds a bridge" across a broad span of musical genres, linking them through "trance". The ONB, who take their name from Barbès (Paris's most North African neighbourhood) have built up a strong following of fans in recent years, attracting increasingly mixed audiences to their lively diwans. (A diwan is a long jam-style session of totally improvised music, but in southern Algeria the term also refers to a specific musical genre passed down, like Morocco's Gnawa tradition, from African slaves).

Drawing their energy and creative inspiration from the same traditional sources as the ONB, the group Diwan de Béchar revolves around a core of six singer/musicians who span generations and musical genres, cooking up an infectious mix of urban Raï, traditional rural music and French chanson. Diwan de Béchar carry on the 'tradition' started by immigrant Algerian workers from Béchar (the former French base of Colombéchar in the South Sahara) who, when working in Paris in the 1970s would get together once a week to sing and dance to music from their homeland. Needless to say, the Béchar crew was soon joined by scores of other worker/musicians from other Algerian towns.

Another prime example of the new fusion sound is Identités, the latest album by Idir, the most popular singer/musical activist to have emerged from Kabylia (north-east Algeria). Confirming the vitality of the Franco-Maghreb connection, Idir has collaborated with a wide variety of singers and musicians, recording with everyone from Breton folk heroes such as Dan Ar Braz and Gilles Servat, French music stars Maxime Le Forestier, Manu Chao and Zebda to the Ugandan singer Geoffrey Oryema. This, he claims, "anchors" his identity "in the Paris suburb where I live." Idir also performs regular concerts with Amazir Kateb, son of the famous Algerian author Kateb Yacine and founder of the Grenoble-based fusion group Gnawa Diffusion. Cutting across national and ethnic divides to bring together Berber, Arab, Breton and Galician musicians, Idir says Amazir is "close to simple people and the people's musicians. He's on a constant quest for genuine emotion."

We also strongly recommend listening to the work of Zenzila, a group based in Lyons who stand up for "zenzel" (cultural fusion) and Paris-based outfit Seba who took the innovative step of selling their album at local Arab grocery stores. Then there's Sawt el Atlas, a Franco-Moroccan group from the suburb of Blois, who sing in French, Arab and "francarabe" and cook up a vibrant musical mix of Raï, dub, reggae, rock and chanson. Toulouse-based outfit Zebda need rather less introduction, having scored a major chart hit with their single Tomber la chemise in the summer of '99. Playing an infectious fusion of traditional Kabyle music, Occitanian flavours and reggae, these committed 'community activists' rail against the twin evils of racism and social exclusion. Zebda made the French headlines after calling one of their recent albums Le bruit et l'odeur (an ironic reference to a speech Jacques Chirac, then French prime minister, made in 1995 about the "noise and smell" coming from immigrant homes).

While Southern French rap stars IAM have celebrated the cultural and ethnic fusion of their hometown Marseilles, newly-fledged rap posse 113 have enjoyed phenomenal success in the north, racking up impressive record sales in the first half of 2000. The members of 113, who hail from the Paris suburbs of Vitry, Orly, Choisy and Créteil, tackle the usual rap themes - drugs, unemployment, urban gangsters and ghetto blues - but the group bring a note of festive detachment to their work thanks to their upbeat music. 113's latest album, Tonton du bled, raises topical issues such as the cultural divide between France and its immigrant population and the double identity of young people growing up in immigrant families.

France, proclaim 113, is a multi-coloured, multi-ethnic nation, just as Algeria once was - and, if you have any doubt about that, just take a listen to the work of Lili Boniche. This veteran singer and guitarist, released on ACP (French fashion designer Jean Touitou's independent label renowned for its experimental, electro releases) is one of the last surviving figureheads of the Judeo-Arab tradition pioneered by the likes of Line Monty and Reinette l'Oranaise (the legendary Jewish diva from Oran who sang in 'classical' Arabic). The Judeo-Arab tradition, which fuses infectious rhythms, festive melodies and occasionally risqué lyrics, survived being uprooted to France after Algerian independence in 1962 and these days young singers also perform it in "francarabe" (a mixture of French and Arabic).

Enrico Macias, another major star of "francarabe", made a spectacular comeback on the French music scene in 1999 when he teamed up with the brilliant classical musician, Taoufik Bastanji ,and reworked his uncle Cheikh Raymond's Arab-Andalusian classics. Macias has played a major role in bringing French and North African music together, performing with Oranese Raï star Cheb Mami and having his work remixed by France's leading DJs and electro stars. Rachid Taha, the former frontman of Carte de Séjour (the group who scored a hit with their radical 'world' reworking of the Charles Trenet classic Douce France), has also been instrumental in pioneering a Franco-Maghreb crossover. Following the success of his provocative single Voilà voilà (written as a reaction against Jean-Marie's far-right party "le Front National" sweeping the board in national elections), Taha is currently back in the music news with Made in Medina. Recorded between studios in Paris, London, Marrakesh and New Orleans, Taha's innovative new album is dominated by rock guitar riffs, husky vocals and a mix of traditional Arab sounds.

Tunisian singer Amina has also played a major role in laying the foundations of the new French fusion scene. Honing her singing talent performing at the Carthage music festival before moving to Paris, where she has worked with the likes of 'world' music producer Martin Messonnier and Senegalese bass-player Wassis Diop, Amina has forged an exciting new sound mixing together Middle Eastern melodies and machines. The voluptuous Tunisian star has also pursued a successful acting career, starring in several films including Bernardo Bertolucci's Tea In The Sahara.

And - last but definitely not least! - there's handsome young Raï singer Faudel who, following in the footsteps of Raï king Khaled, represented France in New York in August, performing a major concert in Central Park. Faudel is a prime example of France's new fusion generation. Born and brought up in the Paris suburbs, the young singer grew up on a mix of traditional Arab music and French chanson and when asked who his major influences are, Faudel replies: "Charles Aznavour [with whom he recently teamed up on French TV] and Cheikha Rimitti" - the grandmother of Raï who divides her time between Barbès and Oran! What more fitting symbol could there be of the new French fusion sound than a man who cites Aznavour and Rimiti in the same breath?

Véronique Mortaigne

Abdy, a recent signing to the V2 label, is typical of the young fusion generation currently emerging on the French music scene. Born in Morocco, but growing up in France, Abdy has always been plugged into two different musical cultures, so for him the mix of Western sounds and Oriental rhythms comes naturally. Abdy received a formal music training, studying at the local Conservatoire for several years before going on to form his own group, Abdy Jazzy-Raï. Abdy then launched a solo career, recording his debut album, Galbi, with the renowned musical arranger Safy Boutellah. Following in the footsteps of Turkish pop wonder Tarkan (whose 'look' has obviously influenced him), Abdy went on to launch Finek, a single aimed at the dance charts. But unfortunately for Abdy, the musical balance between East and West can be hard to find and his heavily pop-oriented album appears to be struggling to find an audience.

France's burgeoning fusion scene is not overpopulated with female talent. In fact, Assia is one of the rare female singers to have made a name for herself. Born in Algeria but raised in France, Assia grew up listening to the traditional Arab châabi her parents played at home and received a classical French music education at the Conservatoire. After releasing a first single in 1996 and providing backing vocals for French rap stars Stomy Bugsy and Doc Gyneco, Assia finally got round to releasing her debut solo album, Chercheuse d'or, in May 2000. The album spawned two tracks (Ghir Dini and Wine) in Arabic, but, ironically, Assia finally managed to break into the French charts with Elle est à toi - a song which is, frankly, a million miles from her Arab roots!

Algerian Rap

The year 2000 has also seen the arrival of two major Algerian rap groups, Intik and MBS. Intik - the group's name is Algiers slang for "everything's cool!" - got together during the teenage revolt in Algeria in 1988. But it took another ten years before Youcef and his three sidekicks managed to get their rap heard across the Mediterranean. In 1998 Imhotep, the 'sound master' of French rap group IAM, invited Intik to perform at the "Logique Hip Hop" Festival in Marseilles. This appearance was enough to help Intik break out of the Algiers underground and the foursome went on to sign a record deal with Columbia/Sony. Intik's eponymous new album puts across a fervent plea for freedom.

Fellow Algiers rappers MBS (aka "le Micro Brise le Silence"), launched their career with two self-financed albums released on independent labels, but the group have just brought out their third album on Island/Universal. Since getting together six years ago, MBS have sent out a hard-hitting rap message denouncing fundamentalism, terrorism and violence. MBS's songs take an in-depth look at the bleak future facing Algerian youth and, like Intik, express the frustration and revolt of their generation through hip hop.

Valérie Passelègue

RECOMMENDED LISTENING - ALBUMS:

l'ONB Poulina 1999 Virgin
Diwan de Béchar1999 Samarkand/Night and Day
Idir Identités 1999 Sony
Gnawa diffusion Bab El Oued-Kingston 1999 Sonodisc/Musicsoft
Zenzila Le mélange sans appel 2000 Naïve
Seba Ewa 2000 Naïve
Sawt El Atlas Donia 2000 Small
Zebda Essence ordinaire 1998 Barclay
113 Les princes de la ville 1999 Small
Lili Boniche Live à l'Olympia 1999 East West
Enrico Macias Hommage à Cheikh Raymond 1999 Trema
Amina Annabi 1999 Mercury
Faudel Baïda 1997 Mercury
Rachid Taha Made in médina 2000 Barclay
AbdyGalbi 2000 V2
Assia Chercheuse d'or 2000 Virgin
Intik 2000 Sony Music
MBS Le micro brise le silence 1999 Island