Ali Hassan Kuban (1929, Gorta, Egypt – 2001) was a

Nubian Nubian may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Nubia, a region along the Nile river in Southern Egypt and northern Sudan. *Nubian people *Nubian languages *Anglo-Nubian goat, a breed of goat * Nubian ibex * , several ships of the Britis ...

singer and bandleader. He was known as the "Captain" or (later) "Godfather" of Nubian music. Ali Hassan Kuban was born in Gorta, Egypt, a Nubian village near

Aswan Aswan (, also ; ar, أسوان, ʾAswān ; cop, Ⲥⲟⲩⲁⲛ ) is a city in Southern Egypt, and is the capital of the Aswan Governorate. Aswan is a busy market and tourist centre located just north of the Aswan Dam on the east bank of the ...

.Riedel, Martin & F. Hetze (2001)
Album notes
for '' From Nubia to Cairo'' by Ali Hassan Kuban [CD booklet]. Berlin: Piranha Musik (pir24). After his family moved to

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...

, he learned to play the

clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...

, and in 1949 he performed with the Opera of Cairo. He also played ''girba'' (

bagpipes Bagpipes are a woodwind instrument using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. The Great Highland bagpipes are well known, but people have played bagpipes for centuries throughout large parts of Europe, No ...

) with his own band during wedding celebrations. During the 1950s, Ali began adding Western instruments such as the saxophone, electric guitar, bass guitar, organ, trumpet and

accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German ''Akkordeon'', from ''Akkord''—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a reed ...

to his ensemble. By the 1990s, he was performing for international audiences at events such as

Midem Midem is the acronym for Marché International du Disque et de l'Édition Musicale, which is organised annually in and around the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès in Cannes, France. The trade show, organized by Reed MIDEM, a subsidiary of Re ...

(1993),

WOMAD WOMAD ( ; World of Music, Arts and Dance) is an international arts festival. The central aim of WOMAD is to celebrate the world's many forms of music, arts and dance. History WOMAD was founded in 1980 by English rock musician Peter Gabriel, ...

(1994), the

Montreal Jazz Festival The Festival International de Jazz de Montréal ( en, Montreal International Jazz Festival) is an annual jazz festival held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The Montreal Jazz Fest holds the 2004 Guinness World Record as the world's largest jazz fest ...

(1994), and

Central Park SummerStage Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

(1995).

Discography

;Albums * '' From Nubia to Cairo'' (1980), Shanachie – reissued 2001,

Piranha A piranha or piraña (, , or ; or , ) is one of a number of freshwater fish in the family Serrasalmidae, or the subfamily Serrasalminae within the tetra family, Characidae in order Characiformes. These fish inhabit South American rivers, ...

* ''

Walk Like a Nubian ''Walk Like a Nubian'' is a studio album released by Nubian singer and bandleader Ali Hassan Kuban. The album is produced by Sabah Habas Mustapha and recorded 1991 at Lunapark Studio in Berlin, Germany, and post-produced and remastered at Audio S ...

'' (1991), Piranha * '' Nubian Magic'' (1995),

Mercator __NOTOC__ Mercator (Latin for "merchant") may refer to: People * Marius Mercator (c. 390–451), a Catholic ecclesiastical writer * Arnold Mercator, a 16th-century cartographer * Gerardus Mercator, a 16th-century cartographer ** Mercator 1569 ...

– reissued 1999,

Blue Flame ''Blue Flame'' is a rocket-powered land speed racing vehicle that was driven by Gary Gabelich and achieved a world land speed record on Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah on October 23, 1970. The vehicle set the FIA world record for the flying mile ...

* '' Real Nubian: Cairo Wedding Classics'' (2001), Piranha * ''

The Rough Guide to Ali Hassan Kuban ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' (2002),

World Music Network World Music Network is a UK-based record label specializing in world music. The World Music Network website features news, reviews, live music listings, and guide sections on world music. It also features an online "Battle of the Bands" compet ...

– compilation ;Contributing artist * ''

The Rough Guide to World Music ''The Rough Guide to World Music'' is a world music compilation album originally released in the United Kingdom in 1994. The first of the World Music Network Rough Guides World Music series, it was co-released with an eponymous reference book. T ...

'' (1994),

* ''

The Rough Guide to the Music of North Africa ''The Rough Guide to the Music of North Africa'' is a world music compilation album originally released in 1997. Part of the World Music Network Rough Guides series, the album contains five Algerian tracks, five Egyptian, two Sudanese, and tw ...

'' (1997), World Music Network

References

External links

* 20th-century Egyptian male singers Egyptian people of Nubian descent 1929 births 2001 deaths Nubian people

Egyptian people of Nubian descent Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...

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