Kamal Ibrahim Suleiman, better known as Kamal Tarbas, (, born 1 January 1950,
Omdurman
Omdurman (standard ar, أم درمان ''Umm Durmān'') is a city in Sudan. It is the most populated city in the country, and thus also in the State of Khartoum. Omdurman lies on the west bank of the River Nile, opposite and northwest of the ...
,
Sudan
Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...
) is a Sudanese singer-songwriter. He has contributed to the development of popular music in Sudan in the 1970s by his personal, down-to-earth way of singing, backed by orchestras with western musical instruments.
Life and artistic career
Tarbas grew up in an Islamic mystical environment and started working as a carpenter. Starting his career as a singer in the late 1960s, he developed his own Sudanese musical sub-genre, known as "''al-fann al-shaabi''" (the people's art) that has been described as "earthy populism" and down-to-earth. Further, he became known during the "Golden Years" of popular music in Sudan as "King of Sudanese Folk" music for his "laid-back voice," accompanied by Sudanese tom-tom rhythms and orchestras with western musical instruments.
After a military coup in 1989, the imposition of ''sharia'' law by the Islamist government of Omar al-Bashir brought about the closing of music halls and outdoor concerts, as well as many other restrictions for musicians and their audiences. Despite this development, Tarbas has appeared on stage in support of Sudanese football teams and with other popular singers, such as
Mohammed al Amin
On May 15, 2006 the United States Department of Defense acknowledged that there were three Mauritanian captives held in Guantanamo.Gulf Emirate of
Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the capital and second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the centre of the Abu Dhabi Metropolitan Area.
...
up to the present.
On the
compilation album
A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...
''Two Niles to Sing a Melody'' with songs by famous Sudanese musicians of the 1970s, he was featured with his song "Min Ozzalna seebak seeb" (Whoever humiliated us will cry). Another of his popular songs is "Gana El Baby" written by poet Othman Awad that likens his beloved to a
papaya
The papaya (, ), papaw, () or pawpaw () is the plant species ''Carica papaya'', one of the 21 accepted species in the genus ''Carica'' of the family Caricaceae. It was first domesticated in Mesoamerica, within modern-day southern Mexico and ...
fruit.
Further, he founded the Dar Karouma Centre for Music, named after the Sudanese musical pioneer Abdel Karim Karouma, in 1985. Also, Tarbas is known for his distinctive style of appearing on stage dressed in elegant abaya cloaks and large sized white
turban
A turban (from Persian دولبند, ''dulband''; via Middle French ''turbant'') is a type of headwear based on cloth winding. Featuring many variations, it is worn as customary headwear by people of various cultures. Communities with promine ...
s, measuring up to 9 meters. For this appearance and "shameful" personal coduct, he was criticized by members of the Union of Sudanese Musicians after a meeting in 2015.
Selected discography
; Albums
* 1985: ''Ya kamar Bain''
* 1985: ''Gana El Baby''
; Singles
* Hban Qsay
* Ma Mank
* Ashan Baridk
* Gay Tftsh Al Mady
* Sayek Dalaloh
* Tany
* Nseem Shabal
See also
*
Music of Sudan
The rich and varied music of Sudan has traditional, rural, northeastern African roots and also shows Arabic, Western or other African influences, especially on the popular urban music from the early 20th century onwards. Since the establis ...
*
List of Sudanese singers
This is a list of singers and musicians from Sudan, in alphabetical order.
* Salah ibn Al Badiya (1937-2019)
* Al-Nour Al-Jilani (1944-2022)
* Mahmoud Abdulaziz
*Sharhabil Ahmed
* Nancy Ajaj
* Hafiz Abdulrahman
*Alsarah (1982–present)
*Moham ...
discogs
Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the la ...