Music dialogue in Cairo
Sunday, July 1, 2007
SURROUNDED by a panoramic view of the ancient monuments of Cairo and Salah Eddin citadel, seven top oriental musicians are due to engage in a three-day musical dialogue on July 6.
At least 1,000 Egyptians from the country's cultural community and music fans interested in non-commercial music are expected to attend the performances featuring oriental compositions and improvisations, all held under the umbrella of the Dozan Modern Oriental Music Festival.
"It is a good opportunity for music fans to listen to a collection of different compositions during a condensed period," novelist and columnist Dr Sahar al-Mougy says.
"We can't easily get hold of such music in an era when low-quality Arabic pop music overwhelms the market," she adds.
The festival programme includes three major concerts by the musicians: Raed Khoshaba (Iraq), Khaled Jubran (Palestine), Barbaros Erkose (Turkey), Youssra al-Dahaby (Tunis), Andre Hajj (Lebanon), Abdo Dagher and Hazem Jahine (Egypt). They are scheduled to perform solo performances as well as joint recitals and improvisations.
One of the most recognised participants is Palestinian Jubran, a composer and master of the oriental instruments of buzuq, a long-necked, fretted lute, and oud, a pear-shaped, stringed instrument, similar to a lute used in traditional Arabic and Middle Eastern music.
He is also the founder of al-Urmawi Centre for Mashreq (Eastern) Music, a Palestinian institution promoting innovation in Arab music and developing the skills of young Arab musicians.
Jubran is dissatisfied with the status of music in the Arab world, believing that festivals and public performances at cultural centres are a way for non-commercial musicians to reach people.
Arabic and oriental music, he says, currently reflect the deteriorating state of the Arab nations. "If a society is prosperous, music will echo this prosperity, and vice versa. Eighty per cent of Arab listeners listen to commercial pop songs through video clip channels."
The festival is set to conclude with compositions and joint improvisations by renowned violinist and composer, Abdo Dagher, accompanied by the young, talented, composer and oud player, Hazem Jahine.
Dagher, who is accredited internationally, has given Egyptian music a unique flavour using sophisticated musical phrases and symphonic patterns, where traditions combine with the contemporary.
Master of the traditional art of monodic (non-harmonised) Arabic music, he categorises his music as "classical Egyptian" and plays in Europe regularly.
Jahine is an exceptional Egyptian oud player, composer and instructor. He is the founder of of the Egyptian band, Eskenderella, a group reviving Egyptian musical heritage.
DPA
At least 1,000 Egyptians from the country's cultural community and music fans interested in non-commercial music are expected to attend the performances featuring oriental compositions and improvisations, all held under the umbrella of the Dozan Modern Oriental Music Festival.
"It is a good opportunity for music fans to listen to a collection of different compositions during a condensed period," novelist and columnist Dr Sahar al-Mougy says.
"We can't easily get hold of such music in an era when low-quality Arabic pop music overwhelms the market," she adds.
The festival programme includes three major concerts by the musicians: Raed Khoshaba (Iraq), Khaled Jubran (Palestine), Barbaros Erkose (Turkey), Youssra al-Dahaby (Tunis), Andre Hajj (Lebanon), Abdo Dagher and Hazem Jahine (Egypt). They are scheduled to perform solo performances as well as joint recitals and improvisations.
One of the most recognised participants is Palestinian Jubran, a composer and master of the oriental instruments of buzuq, a long-necked, fretted lute, and oud, a pear-shaped, stringed instrument, similar to a lute used in traditional Arabic and Middle Eastern music.
He is also the founder of al-Urmawi Centre for Mashreq (Eastern) Music, a Palestinian institution promoting innovation in Arab music and developing the skills of young Arab musicians.
Jubran is dissatisfied with the status of music in the Arab world, believing that festivals and public performances at cultural centres are a way for non-commercial musicians to reach people.
Arabic and oriental music, he says, currently reflect the deteriorating state of the Arab nations. "If a society is prosperous, music will echo this prosperity, and vice versa. Eighty per cent of Arab listeners listen to commercial pop songs through video clip channels."
The festival is set to conclude with compositions and joint improvisations by renowned violinist and composer, Abdo Dagher, accompanied by the young, talented, composer and oud player, Hazem Jahine.
Dagher, who is accredited internationally, has given Egyptian music a unique flavour using sophisticated musical phrases and symphonic patterns, where traditions combine with the contemporary.
Master of the traditional art of monodic (non-harmonised) Arabic music, he categorises his music as "classical Egyptian" and plays in Europe regularly.
Jahine is an exceptional Egyptian oud player, composer and instructor. He is the founder of of the Egyptian band, Eskenderella, a group reviving Egyptian musical heritage.
DPA
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