The music of Jaffna, a Philadelphia-based acoustic quartet, follows this model in both its composition and orchestration. Best described as World Fusion, their music combines the instruments of India and the Middle East with rhythms and melodic lines from just about everywhere people compose and perform music. Roger Mgrdichian, who works by day for Jefferson's Medical Media Services, elaborates:

"Jaffna is an amalgam, a spread out collection of different things based on our interests."

Mgrdichian says Jaffna's desire to do this has come about, in part, as a conscious attempt to work against the current music industry trend: "treating music as product." The group has instead emphasized the cathartic qualities of music. Their live performances are a study of relaxed intensity. While the musicians play their intricate, intertwined melodic lines and rhythms, their audience can be seen sitting back or dancing, contemplating the compositions, finding themselves meditating on the music in their ears.

The acoustic instrumentation of Jaffna is a major key to this effect. Instruments exotic to the occidental ear -- tabla, oud, darbuka -- combine with the guitar to create a mix that is warm and room-sized. In this, Jaffna is a classic example of the chamber orchestra.

Jaffna's first CD, "Acoustic Allies", was released independently in 1996. The band, composed of Mgrdichian (oud, sarod), Branavan Ganasan (percussion), Raji Malik (guitar, sarod), and Joseph Tayoun (dumbek, yashiki), is presently working on a follow-up at Philadelphia's own Turtle Studios. Even on home turf, the recording process can be challenging, as Mdgrichian explains:

"One of our band members lives in North Carolina now, so recording has come about in sections. Our earlier recordings were done together on two tracks. The one we're working on now is much more complex and has been recorded over a longer period using lots of new digital technology."

"Raji, our guitarist, just spent three months in India studying sarod with a master. He now knows exactly what he wants to do. He wants to teach."

• 2 Jaffna recordings -- playable with an MP3