ALBUM REVIEW: The Ayoub Sisters, Decca Classics, Out Now - Classical crossover between north of the border and the Middle East
Trailblazing Scottish/Egyptian sisters Laura and Sarah Ayoub have managed in two years what some musicians achieve in a lifetime.
Their debut album, simply called "The Ayoub Sisters" topped the classical album charts as soon as it hit music shops across the UK.
Having shot to fame after uploading their version of the Mark Ronson/Bruno Mars hit "Uptown Funk" on social media site Youtube, the Ayoub Sisters have joined the likes of Katherine Jenkins, Russell Watson and Australian/British string quartet Bond as exponents of the "classical crossover" genre.
Laura said: "We were classically trained from a young age which has allowed us to explore other genres and play things by ear.
"People like to hear our interpretations of music, from Scottish to Arabic, and that covers a huge span of people.
"But the new thing for us has been people from all over the world listening to our music, whereas before it was just our parents, friends of our parents, friends of ours, school teachers and pupils."
With freshness, originality, virtuosity and originality, the Ayoub sisters perform 12 pieces of music on their debut album, demonstrating their startling variety and versatility on each one.
From the Hungarian folk dance "Csardas" and Johann Strauss II's "Die Fledermaus Overture", to George Michael's "Mother's Pride" and their "calling card" number, "Uptown Funk".
But the real Ayoub sisters emerge on tracks such as "Melodies from Scotland", a blending of seven of their home country's most instantly recognizable songs, including "Auld Lang Syne, Flower of Scotland and The Bonnie Banks O' Loch Lomond".
Sarah said: "We're Bearsden girls and went to school in Milngavie, both near Glasgow.
"My mum had enrolled herself for music lessons and I said 'I want to do that'.
"When I picked up music faster than her, me and Laura were enrolled at a music school to learn an instrument because the younger you are, the easier it is to pick up.
Laura added: "We were accustomed to listening to classical music and going to classical concerts from a young age.
"But when I was offered a place at the Royal College of Music, that was the next step for me because whilst I was still getting access to more academic subjects, I was also getting the grades for studying music."
Sarah, who spent four years at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in Glasgow, said: "I was fortunate enough to be offered a place on both the piano and cello courses.
"So it was really quite a luxury to be in a music department that was a lot smaller where I had more one-to-one tuition. "
To balance what the Ayoub sisters described as "our small contribution" to the rich culture of their country of birth, Laura and Sarah also pay homage to their Egyptian roots with "Call to Prayers", harmonising the Islamic and Coptic Christian faiths of their parents' homeland.
Laura said: "Call to Prayers was a chance for us to send a message that these two faiths work extremely well together and can thrive in unity together, without one overshadowing the other or conflicting with each other.
"Musically speaking, both sounds are great when in harmony together and we hope the composition reaches as many people as possible because it's probably the most important track on the album."
Next for the sisters is their debut BBC Proms performance with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra on Glasgow Green this Saturday.
Following that is a series of recitals across England, including a performance at Windsor Castle next month, before Laura and Sarah fly to their parents' homeland for a concert at the Cairo Opera House in January 2019.
Sarah said: "In May, we played for the first time as the Ayoub Sisters in Egypt and we didn't know what the reaction would be.
"But it was so positive and quite overwhelming, with a feeling that we'd finally come home, despite us playing western classical music.
"We can't forget of Egyptian heritage as both of our parents come from Cairo and so we take every opportunity to promote that.
"But the album track 'Melodies from Scotland' is our small contribution to the country which is a huge part of our story.
"There's a lot more where that comes from and we'll continue to try and tap into our Scottish heritage because there's so much for us to tap into."
Laura said: "The next stage of our careers is to spread our music as far and as wide as possible, to build on our audience base and refine things as we still develop as musicians.
"Classical crossover, as a genre, is really having its moment and that are groups that have nailed this genre by using classical instruments to play non-classical music.
"The concept has been around for a while, but people are reinterpreting it in different ways and so any opportunity that we have to show how we define classical crossover is great."
Expect plenty more classical crossover from the Ayoub Sisters in the years to come.