Mohammed Abdel Wahab
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''Mohamed Abdel Wahab'' ( ar, محمد عبد الوهاب), also
transliterated Transliteration is a type of conversion of a text from one script to another that involves swapping letters (thus '' trans-'' + '' liter-'') in predictable ways, such as Greek → , Cyrillic → , Greek → the digraph , Armenian → or ...
''Mohamed Abd El-Wahhab'' (March 13, 1902 – May 4, 1991), was a prominent 20th-century Egyptian singer, actor, and composer. He is best known for his Romantic and
Egyptian patriotic songs 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 ...
. He was known for his Egyptian nationalist and revolutionary songs like "Ya Masr tam El-Hanna" (O Egypt, happiness is here), "Hay Ala El-Falah" (The call of
duty A duty (from "due" meaning "that which is owing"; fro, deu, did, past participle of ''devoir''; la, debere, debitum, whence "debt") is a commitment or expectation to perform some action in general or if certain circumstances arise. A duty may ...
), " El Watan El Akbar" (The Greatest Homeland), "Masr Nadetna falbena El-nedaa" (Egypt Called us and we Have Answered), "Oulo le Masr" (Tell Egypt), "Hob El-watan Fard Alyi" (Patriotism is my Obligation), "Sout El-Gamaheer" (Voice of the Masses), "Ya Nessmet El-Horria" (O The Breeze of
Freedom Freedom is understood as either having the ability to act or change without constraint or to possess the power and resources to fulfill one's purposes unhindered. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving on ...
), "Sawae'd men Beladi" (Compatriot Hands). He also composed the national anthem of
Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya bo ...
which was adopted from 1951 to 1969 and again since 2011.


Life

Mohamed Abdel Wahab was born in 1902 in
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 ...
, Egypt, in a neighborhood called Bab El-Sheriyah, where there is now a statue of him. He began his singing career at an early age and made his first public performances at age seven at local productions. He was 13 when he made his first recording. Mohamed Abdel Wahab was a very close friend to compatriot singer
Abdel Halim Hafez Abdel Halim Ali Shabana ( ar, عبد الحليم علي شبانة), commonly known as Abdel Halim Hafez ( ar, عبد الحليم حافظ,) (June 21, 1929 – March 30, 1977), was an Egyptian singer, actor, conductor, businessman, music teach ...
.


Film career

In 1933, Abdel Wahab began composing his own style of
Egyptian film The cinema of Egypt refers to the flourishing film industry based in Cairo, sometimes also referred to as Hollywood on the Nile. Since 1976, the capital has held the annual Cairo International Film Festival, which has been accredited by the Intern ...
musical after visiting Paris and familiarizing himself with French musical film. He introduced a lighthearted genre of musical film to Egyptian culture eventually composing eight musical comedies between 1933 and 1949. His films portrayed Western social elite and included music that veered off from the traditional Egyptian tune. He starred in his 1934 film ''The White Flower'' which broke records in attendance and still plays frequently in Egyptian theaters. In 1950 Abdel Wahab left film to focus on being a more profound singer.


Contribution to Egyptian and Arabic music

Abdel Wahab composed more than 1820 songs. Abdel Wahab is considered to be one of the most innovative Egyptian musicians of all time, laying the foundation for a new era of Egyptian music with his use of non-local rhythms and refined
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playing. Despite the fact that Abdel Wahab composed many songs and musical pieces of classical Arabic music, he was notably criticized for his orientation to Western music. In fact, he introduced Western rhythms to Egyptian songs in a way appropriate to the known then very classical forms of Egyptian songs. For example, in 1941, he introduced a
waltz The waltz ( ), meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom and folk dance, normally in triple ( time), performed primarily in closed position. History There are many references to a sliding or gliding dance that would evolve into the wa ...
rhythm in his song "El Gandol," and, in 1957, he introduced a
rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...
rhythm in
Abdel Halim Hafez Abdel Halim Ali Shabana ( ar, عبد الحليم علي شبانة), commonly known as Abdel Halim Hafez ( ar, عبد الحليم حافظ,) (June 21, 1929 – March 30, 1977), was an Egyptian singer, actor, conductor, businessman, music teach ...
's song "Ya Albi Ya Khali". He composed some of the best hits of Nagat El Saghira, including four poems by
Nizar Qabbani Nizar Tawfiq Qabbani ( ar, نزار توفيق قباني, , french: Nizar Kabbani; 21 March 1923 – 30 April 1998) was a Syrian diplomat, poet, writer and publisher. He is considered to be Syria's National Poet. His poetic style combines sim ...
. Abdel Wahab played
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before the prominent Egyptian poet,
Ahmed Shawqi Ahmed Shawqi (also written Chawki; ar, أحمد شوقي, , ; ; 1868–1932), nicknamed the Prince of Poets ( ar, أمير الشعراء ''Amīr al-Shu‘arā’''), was an Arabic poet laureate, to the Arabic literary tradition. Life Raised ...
, and acted in several movies. He composed ten songs for
Umm Kulthum Umm Kulthum ( ar, أم كلثوم, , also spelled ''Oum Kalthoum'' in English; born Fatima Ibrahim es-Sayyid el-Beltagi, ar, فاطمة إبراهيم السيد البلتاجي, Fāṭima ʾIbrāhīm es-Sayyid el-Beltāǧī, link=no; 31 Dece ...
. He was the first Egyptian singer to move from silent-era acting to singing. Abdel Wahab also composed songs for the Lebanese icon
Fairuz Nouhad Wadie' Haddad ( ar, نهاد وديع حداد, ; born November 21, 1934), known as Fairuz ( ar, فيروز, ; also spelled Fairouz, Feyrouz or Fayrouz), is a Lebanese singer. She is considered by many as one of the leading vocalists a ...
whom he famously called "Our Ambassador to the Stars" and stated in the 1950s that he was the leader of her fan club in Cairo.


Death

Mohamed Abdel Wahab died in his hometown
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 ...
, Egypt of a stroke on May 4, 1991.


Legacy

Abdel Wahab was fundamental in establishing a new era of
Egyptian music Music has been an integral part of culture of Egypt, Egyptian culture since antiquity in Egypt. Egyptians, Egyptian music had a significant impact on the development of ancient Greek music, and via the Greeks it was important to early European m ...
in his homeland and across the Arab world. He also left a mark on the Western world by exposing Egyptian music to Western classical and popular traditions. He composed
Libya, Libya, Libya "Libya, Libya, Libya" ( ar, ليبيا ليبيا ليبيا ), also known as "" ( en, "O my country!"), is the national anthem of Libya since 2011; it was previously the national anthem of the Kingdom of Libya from 1955 to 1969. It was composed ...
, the Libyan national anthems.


Tribute

On March 13, 2012, Google celebrated his 110th birthday with a
Google Doodle A Google Doodle is a special, temporary alteration of the logo on Google's homepages intended to commemorate holidays, events, achievements, and notable historical figures. The first Google Doodle honored the 1998 edition of the long-running an ...
.


Filmography

;As actor: * ''The White Rose'' (1933) * ''Doumou' el Hub'' (''Love's Tears'') (1936) * ''Yahya el Hub'' (''Long Live Love'') (1938) * '' Yawm Sa'id'' (''Happy Day'') (1939) * ''Mamnou'a el Hub'' (''Love Is Forbidden'') (1942) * ''
Rossassa Fel Qalb ''A Bullet in the Heart'' ( arz, رصاصة في القلب, translit. Rossassa Fel Qalb) is a 1944 Egyptian drama film directed by Mohammed Karim starring Egyptian actresses Raqiya Ibrahim, Faten Hamama, musician Mohamed Abdel Wahab and ...
'' (''A Bullet in the Heart'') (1944) * ''Lastu mallakan'' (''I'm No Angel'') (1947) *'' Ghazal Al Banat'' (''The Flirtation of Girls'') (1949)


Honours


Egyptian national honours


Foreign honors


References


External links

*
Biography
Selected Mohammed 'Abd al-Wahhab compositions from YouTube Web site: * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Abdel Wahab, Mohammed 1901 births 1991 deaths Egyptian composers 20th-century Egyptian male singers Egyptian nationalists Musicians from Cairo Singers from Cairo Egyptian oud players EMI Classics and Virgin Classics artists 20th-century composers Egyptian male film actors National anthem writers Singers who perform in Egyptian Arabic