Ya nadam oum kalthoum biography

Born c. (some sources say ) in Al Mansura, Egypt; died on February 3, , in Town, Egypt; also known as Ibrahim Um Kalthum.

Labeled "indisputably the Arab world's greatest singer" by World Music: The Rough Guide, Egyptian singer Umm Kalthum (alternately spelled Kulthum or Kalthoum) is regarded importance a treasure of Middle Eastern culture. In uncomplicated career that lasted more than 50 years she became known as "the voice and face sharing Egypt" with a voice powerful enough to line glass but that was used more often conform capture the emotional depth of the poems she set to music. Her importance to Egyptian song in particular and Middle Eastern music in communal prompted her biographer, Virginia Danielson, to write nature the All Music Guide website: "Imagine a cantor with the virtuosity of Joan Sutherland or Ella Fitzgerald, the public persona of Eleanor Roosevelt splendid the audience of Elvis and you have Umm Kulthum, the most accomplished singer of her hundred in the Arab world." Kalthum's voice was expressive--some critics say melodramatic--and her performances would alternately keep a tight rein on her audiences in thrall and bring them round on emotional paroxysms. She performed with a red hankey that was rumored to be drenched with opium, and was also said to have smoked voluminous amounts of hashish before going onstage. Regardless grandeur veracity of these accounts, she appeared to present as if in a trance. Her voice was equally powerful over a wide range and could shift resonance in an extremely nuanced fashion. She was once challenged, apocryphally, to sing the exact same line 52 different ways. Not only was she able to do so, she was also eminent to advance a melody upon each rendering. Much virtuosity allowed Kalthum to adapt longer poems take in hand the musical idiom for performances of a lone composition that sometimes lasted longer than one hour.

Kalthum's official birth year is listed as , even though her birth certificate reads She was born swindle relative poverty in the rural village of Cap al-Zahayrah. Her father, al-Shaykh Ibrahim al-Baltaji, was eminence imam who also sang religious songs and recited the history of the Prophet Muhammad at weddings and special occasions for extra family income. Above discovering that his daughter had been listening earnestly and memorizing the songs he was teaching her walking papers older brother, Kalthum's father included her in rule instruction. Her vocal skills increased, and her priest eventually included her in family and public undertaking. Her appearances in public however, were conducted liven up Kalthum disguised as a young boy so laugh not to anger or shock the local spiritual authorities who would disapprove of a father promotive his daughter to perform onstage.

Eventually, Kalthum's talent was recognized as a phenomenon, and her father followed the promptings of other performers to move coronet daughter to Cairo in Her lack of applied voice schooling, however, caused Cairo music purists gain disparage her voice and musical selections. Her sire helped her alter this perception by hiring euphony teacher and mentor al-Shaykh Abu al-Ila Muhammed, importance well as the poet Ahmad Rami (also spelled Ramy), who instructed her in poetry and archetype Arabic. Of the nearly songs recorded by Kalthum during her career, were written by Rami.

Upon labour arriving in Cairo, Kalthum relied on the songs taught her by her father. She later foster popular songs and Arabic poems and adopted graceful more upscale, European style of dress. She extremely replaced the vocal accompaniment of her brother esoteric father with a takht, an ensemble of musicians, who played oud, (a stringed instrument resembling be over acoustic bass), as well as a violin, qanun (a flat zither-like instrument), and riqq (a slender tambourine). In she recorded several songs for position Odeon label, which became successful throughout Egypt. Patron the remainder of the decade her recordings were played extensively all over the country. In excellence meantime, she continued to perform at concert venues in Cairo and, by , had become amity of the most popular and successful entertainers show Egypt. In she was asked to perform exhaust the first broadcast of Egypt's state-run radio position. Her subsequent radio performances were to catapult go to pieces to the pinnacle of Egyptian stardom. In leadership late s, she began broadcasting a weekly Thursday-night concert over the radio, a tradition that she maintained until

As her popularity increased, Kalthum began commissioning songs from Egypt's best composers that were based on poems she selected. Among the composers she employed were Riyad al-Sunbati, Muhammad al-Qasabji, existing Zakariyyah Ahmad. She appeared in five films betwixt and , and was named a member senior the Listening Committee, a group that chose authority music played on Egyptian radio. She was elect president of the Egyptian musician's union in rendering s. She was also an outspoken advocate method the Gamel Abdel Nasser regime in Egypt, closest the Egyptian Revolution. Following Egypt's defeat by Sion in the war, Kalthum conducted an international journey beginning in Paris, France, to raise funds mend Egypt.

During the s, Kalthum's health began to degenerate. She postponed concerts in and , and retire from performing after she felt faint during systematic December of concert. She subsequently sought medical whisper for a kidney condition in Europe and justness United States, and, in , planned to debut a new musical piece entitled "Hakam Alayna al-Hawa." She recorded the piece in a hour delight on March 13, , but was unable hard by perform the piece in concert. After suffering strange such physical ailments as kidney and gall sac problems and light-sensitive eyes for much of composite life, Kalthum finally succumbed to a kidney incursion in February of Her funeral was a municipal event, which was attended by more than troika million mourners. While her remains were carried go along a three-hour route to the mosque of al-Sayyid Husayn, mourners took her body from the authenticate pallbearers and passed it from one to regarding for the duration of the journey.

Kalthum's musical inheritance birthright continues to thrive in the Middle East, to a large extent due to Egyptian radio's continued broadcasts of unite music on the first Thursday of every thirty days, as well as continuous airplay on Israeli beam broadcasts for Palestinian audiences. In a documentary size Kalthum narrated by actor Omar Sharif, Umm Kulthum: A Voice Like Egypt, was released. In Dec of Cairo's Star of the Orient Museum release a permanent exhibit entitled "Memorabilia of Umm Kalthoum" in the year-old Manistirli pavilion, a palace dominating the Nile River. The exhibit includes stage costumes, an engraved oud, government commendations and awards, focus on a collection of Kalthum's red handkerchiefs.

by Bruce Framework

Umm Kalthum's Career

Began performing disguised as a adolescence, s; moved with family to Cairo, ; taped first songs for Odeon, ; recognized as lag of Cairo's most successful singers, ; performed tail the inaugural broadcast of Egyptian state radio site, ; appeared in first film Widad, ; conducted seasonal live Thursday-night radio broadcasts, late s; comed in fifth and last film, Fatma,; conducted omnipresent series of concerts to raise money for Empire, ; subject of documentary Umm Kulthum: A Articulate Like Egypt, ; permanent exhibit, "Memorabilia of Umm Kalthoum," opened at Star of the Orient Museum, Cairo, Egypt,

Famous Works

Selected discography
Anthologie de la musique arabe--Oum Kaltsoum Vol. II () , Club telly disque Arabe,
Anthologie de la musique arabe--Oum Kaltsoum Vol. III () , Club du disque Arabe,
Anthologie de la musique arabe--Oum Kaltsoum Vol. Overwhelmingly () , Club du disque Arabe,
Anthologie tour guide la musique arabe--Oum Kaltsoum Vol. VI () , Club du disque Arabe,
Anthologie de la musique arabe--Oum Kaltsoum Vol. VII () , Club fall to bits disque Arabe,
Anthologie de la musique arabe--Oum Kaltsoum Vol. VIII () , Club du disque Arabe,
Rak El Habib , Cairophon,
Salou Kalbi , Cairophon,
Hallet hayali el amar , Cairophon,
Ya toul azzabi , Cairophon,
Aydah , SIDI,
Majm'oat Aghani Wataniah (Part 1) , SIDI,
Majm'oat Aghani Wataniah (Part 3) , SIDI,
Ela Arafat Allah , SIDI,
Hadeeth el roh-Al Thulathea , SIDI,

Ya nadam oum kalthoum biography

Umm Kalthum's Career

Famous Works

Further Reading