For this portfolio, I explored a bit of Arabic popular music.
My research turned me to Assi El Helani’s
“Lebnani”. Mohammad El Helani, known popularly as Assi El
Helani, is a current Lebanese artist. Assi was born in Jdaydeh, which is just
about 20 minutes outside of Beirut. Of poorer origins, he has 13 brothers and
sisters in his family of which he is the third youngest. His mother was a member
of the Ali Shirwan tribe and his father was a member of the Malekshahi tribe.
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| Assi El Helani |
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| Oud |
On the musical side of things, Assi studied for five years
at the Higher Institute of Music in Lebanon where he majored in Oud performance
and Arab vocal techniques. Currently, he is a judge on the show “The Voice:
Ahla Sawt” and is very involved in humanitarian issues.
His song, “Lebnani” was released in 2008 right after the
2008 Lebanese elections in which an independent candidate, Michel Suleiman, won.
(Suleiman is currently the president of Lebanon). According to a couple of
sources, the song was an instant hit for it was a source of Lebanese pride and
nationality.
In a very catchy and upbeat song, the lyrics go:
غطي الشمس بفي جبينك“Cover the sun (light) with the shade of your brow
بيحقلك وطنك دينك
Your country and your religion are your rights
لو هالدني سألت مينك؟
قلن انك لبناني
If this world asked, "Who are you?" Tell them that you're Lebanese”
It is very interesting to note that even though I do not know a lot of Arabic, and I certainly cannot claim to understand the Levantine dialect, as I was listening to the song, I could pick out certain words that I recognized. Additionally, one does not need to know any Arabic to watch the video and understand the motif of national pride in the music. Without understanding most of the words, I could still feel that sense of nationalism evoked through the stunning images of Lebanon and the heartfelt lyrics.
sources:
http://www.thearabicstudent.com/2009/11/assi-el-helani-lebnani-w-lyrics.html
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