|
A World of Sound: The Middle East
By Sarah Godcher Murphy
Berklee.edu Correspondent
June 14, 2002
 |
| Photo by Justin Knight |
|
The Middle Eastern ensemble, led by vocalist Christiane Karam (above), skillfully recreated the music of the Middle East, with its intricate rhythms and distinctive "maqams," or modes. The group was composed of 10 students from Lebanon, Egypt, Cyprus, Azerbaijan, Greece, and Brazil. They performed three songs, using authentic instrumentation, including "nay" (flute), "ud" (lute), "riqq" (tambourine) and "darbouka" (hand drum).
"Hibbi Daane," which means "my lover invited me," was originally a poem in Arabic, set to music by Egyptian composer Sayyed Darwish. Karam's performance of the song contained a vocal improvisation known as a "layali" in which the singer modulated through various maqams. The final maqam in the series, the "bayati," segued into the key of the song that followed, "Aala Baladil Mahboub," or "to the country of my beloved."
The group also performed "Alf Layla Wa Layla," which means "one thousand and one nights." "Alf Layla," written by Egyptian composer Baligh Hamdi, is based on the tale of Scheherazade. Over the years, the song has become very popular among belly dancers because of the diverse rhythms and scales. To illustrate this tradition, the ensemble invited the belly dancer Najmat to join them on stage.
[  Print-friendly Version ]
| 
