Ali Abdi Feiruz, known as Ali Feiruz, ( so, Cali Fayruus) was a prominent Somali musician. He belonged to the

Habr Awal The Habr Awal, also contemporarily known as the Subeer Awal, and alternately romanized as the Zubeyr Awal ( so, Habar Awal, ar, هبر أول, Full Name: '' Zubeyr ibn Abd al-Raḥmān ibn ash- Shaykh Isḥāq ibn Aḥmad)'' is a major clan of ...

clan of the

Isaaq The Isaaq (also Isaq, Ishaak, Isaac) ( so, Reer Sheekh Isxaaq, ar, بني إسحاق, Banī Isḥāq) is a Somali clan. It is one of the major Somali clans in the Horn of Africa, with a large and densely populated traditional territory. Pe ...

clan family.

Biography

Feiruz was born in 1931 in

Djibouti Djibouti, ar, جيبوتي ', french: link=no, Djibouti, so, Jabuuti officially the Republic of Djibouti, is a country in the Horn of Africa, bordered by Somalia to the south, Ethiopia to the southwest, Eritrea in the north, and the Red ...

. He later moved to

Hargeisa Hargeisa (; so, Hargeysa, ar, هرجيسا) is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Somaliland. It is located in the Maroodi Jeex region of the Horn of Africa. It succeeded Burco as the capital of the British Somaliland Protector ...

, Somaliland in the late 1950s, and then on to

Mogadishu Mogadishu (, also ; so, Muqdisho or ; ar, مقديشو ; it, Mogadiscio ), locally known as Xamar or Hamar, is the capital and most populous city of Somalia. The city has served as an important port connecting traders across the Indian Oc ...

in 1973. Feiruz's career began with

Radio Hargeisa Radio Hargeisa ( so, Radio Hargeysa, ar, راديو هرجيسا) is a Somaliland public service broadcaster, Its headquarters are at Ministry of Information, Hargeisa. History Established in 1943 in the former British Somaliland protectorat ...

in the late 1950s. He was one of the first popular Somali ''kaban'' (

oud , image=File:oud2.jpg , image_capt=Syrian oud made by Abdo Nahat in 1921 , background= , classification= * String instruments *Necked bowl lutes , hornbostel_sachs=321.321-6 , hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded with a plectrum , ...

) players in the 1950s, and eventually began incorporating modern instruments into his performances in the 1960s, such as the guitar, violin and accordion. A prominent member of the Walaalaha Hargeisa and Hobolada

Waaberi Waaberi ( so, Waaberi), was a Somali musical supergroup. History The troupe was established by members of the Radio Artists Association. It was supported by the Somali government as part of the National Theatre of Somalia, and made tours thro ...

musical troupes, Feiruz composed, among other tunes, ''Ilaahayow waa kugu mahad'', a tune whose release coincided with the independence of the former British Somaliland

protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over most of its int ...

. As of 2012, this music still serves as the opening theme for the news segment of both ''

Radio Mogadishu Radio Mogadishu ( so, Radio Muqdisho, ar, راديو مقديشو) is the federal government-run radio station of Somalia.

'' and ''Radio Hargeisa''. Feiruz had a significant influence on newer generations of Somali musicians in the 1960s and 1970s. He died in Djibouti in mid-1994.Radio Mogadishu archive

Notes

References

Fanka Ka Bixi-Maayo, Waxaanu Ku Abuuran Yahay Dhiigayga, Waanan La God-GelayaaInterview with the late Abdullahi Qarshe (1994) at the Residence of Obliqe Carton in Djibouti"Magool: The Inimitable Nightingale of Somali Music," Bildhaan: An International Journal of Somali Studies: Vol. 14, Article 5.
1931 births 1994 deaths Somalian musicians Djiboutian emigrants to Somalia {{Africa-musician-stub

Biography

See also

Notes

References