Last night, I went to see Songs of the Sufi Brotherhoods at the Strathmore. It was a visit to three diverse areas of the Islamic world to study both song and spirituality. In true Sufi tradition, the two cannot be separated into componant parts. The music, poetry and dance are as essential to life as the spirtuality, healing and gratitude of the music is to the performance. One doesn't get one without the rest of the net. In all that connection is a great night of celebration and music.
The first performer was Hamza El Din, playing alone on an oud, and singing his own compositions of Nubian/Arabic music. According to his biography, he is the father of modern Nubian music, creating a hybrid of traditional African music with strains of Arabic song. The result is meditative and lyrical. His deep voice mixes well with the higher strained instrument, and added an overall depth to the sound of the poetry. Not speaking the language, I could only hear the words as another instrument, not hypnotic, but something more like centering.
The next performance was by Hassan Hakmoun, and, I have to say, was my favorite of the evening. There were three performers with him, playing an assortment of percussion instruments, and himself, singing and playing a sintir. At least I think it was a sintir. I am not really as up on my Moroccan music as I could be. Or my instruments.
This performance was incredibly varied. There were hypnotic rhythms said to be healing music usually played all night in one piece, and a distinctly blues sounding piece that gave thanks to parents in another. There was dancing, where steps became additional instruments for drumming, and the dance another form of chanting. Hassan Hakmoun spoke to the audience as well, introducing the pieces and the place they have in the culture and spirit of Morocco. It was very much as I imagine Morocco to be, full of spice and poetry and color, set against a solid beat.
The final performance was by Rizwan-Muazzam Qawwali. They were a large group, eight, or maybe nine in total. They sat on the floor in two rows, the back row had the tabla player and four clapping performers who sometime sang. The front row had the two harmonium players flanked by the two main singers. These guys are pretty amazing. They do a highly energetic style of music, heavy on the clapping and with the most amazing vocal dynamics I have ever heard. There is call and response with both the instruments and each other, to a background of heavy clapping. It is harmonic and hypnotic at the same time, with each piece going at least 15 minutes. I loved it, for its sound and excitement, but it lacked the diverse and subtle quality of Hassan Hakmoun and somehow, to me, that worked against them. Still, it was an amazing feat to perform as they did, and they rounded out the full style of Sufi music.
It was a good night. A new map to a new sound. New. Like me.
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