Ba Olek Eh - Amina's Daily Blog
(tell you what)
(The January 1-17 page crashed and if you go there, you need to navigate to home page and click ba olek eh from there to get to most current page. I'm not a computer expert and can't fix it.)
Carnival of Stars Belly Dance Queen
February 18, 2012
Saturday
BDUC
This morning we walked the few short blocks to the Convention Center and
the first person we saw was Sahra. She was waiting for a boom box
for her class. One didn't arrive so she asked me if I would drum for the
class. Yes! I was totally excited about drumming for the class and for
Sahra. Shadee of Diamond Pyramid lent me a drum and then
class started. She was to teach how to use Saidi movements in Oriental
dance. Of course Sahra was totally organized with handouts and had lots
of history and other facts to share about Saidi. So with this great base
for the Saidi class she started the movement portion of the class.
This was so much fun. I wish I could drum for dancers like this all the
time. It gives you a great perspective on how dancers operate and it really
makes you aware of how drummers really have to watch the dancers. Some
dancers and some drummers are not aware of each other and that is not
good. But the dancers and drummers who do connect make this dance so very
special.
I've been fortunate to have played with great drummers like Yousef
Mustafa, Reda Darwish, Loay, Susu and Tony Lammam and have
watched them watch and react to the dancers. It's fantastic when the dancers
and the drummers connect. It's magical. But when the dancers are unaware
of the drummers or their drumming, it's pretty sad. Then the drummers
just give up, don't pay attention and the dance can't go anywhere in their
dance. Just remember that even if you don't watch or see the drummer while
you are dancing, you need to establish a spiritual, musical connection.
Follow and react to the extra slap or pop and soon you will be interacting
and having an exciting conversation with the drummer while dancing. Remember,
it's always a two way street. And, it goes without saying that this is
also true for melodic musician and/or singer as well. Yes, it was fun
trying to catch the extra hip hits with the drum and to see how a drummer
can really enhance the movement and the dance.
Immediately after Sahra's class I was a slave to the judge's table. It
was fun and interesting to see a new crop of contestants and also to see
contestants from past years competing again. What was most interesting
was hearing the new trends in music, styles of dance and seeing the new
fashions in costuming. Also Tonya had thoughtfully left various
samples of little chocolates on the tables to give us sustenance and breakfast.
She knows the way to my heart and why I like judging.
In the evening they had the judge's gala. This is where the judges get
to or maybe I should say, HAVE TO, perform for the audience which was
comprised mostly of the contestants. Yikes! That's not fair - a bunch
of old bags having to dance for a bunch of young pretty things who are
still in shape. What would be better, more fair and more appropriate would
be a film showing of the judges dancing when they were in their prime
- not now. But, I must say that Sahra did a wonderful show. She out Fifi'd
Fifi. She, Sahra, is getting better and better every time I see
her. Does it sound like I belong to a Sahra fan club? Well, if there is
one, I'm in it. We missed Leila Farid in this gala because
Atlantis had her working too hard teaching and judging and she
physically just couldn't be at three places at one time. (Also she doesn't
qualify as an "old bag".) So Leila did her performance as a
finale to the evening. She chose to dance in and among the audience rather
than on the stage. This was a good move as it was up close and personal
and lots of fun. She got everyone including all the men in the audience
up there dancing with her. It was a great way to end a great evening and
we all left wanting more and revved up for Sunday's events.
Ganal hawa-Love came to us (me) - Abdel Halim Hafez
hawa - love, air
We- and
reimsh - eyelash
asmara- tanned, dark
shabaka - net
da habibi - da - it, habibi, my beloved
shaghal - to be preoccupied
yaba yaba - Oh my father (yama=oh my mother)
fein - where
gareh - wound
geideed - new
fareh - happiness
bokra - tomorrow
ayaam - days
wareenee - show me - i=me
mash - walk
ana - I, me
omree - life
ma-ak - with you - ma- with, ak-you Home
February 17, 2012
Friday
This beautiful morning
I set two alarms to make sure I got up at 5:30 a.m. Yes, 5:30 a.m. That
was stupid. I should have stayed up all night since my internal clock
had me up watching movies until after 4 a.m.. One of my favorite times
is 5 a.m. when the sun is hinting of coming up over the horizon and the
little birds on the tree outside of my window are waking up and just starting
to chirp. This morning because I needed to be dressed and waiting for
the SuperShuttle, I wasn't really paying attention to the birds. Outside
of the birds though, it sure is quiet at 5:30 a.m.. There were no phones
ringing, carpenters hammering, Fed Ex trucks rattling and clanging while
delivering Amazon packages, no buses snorting or tennis balls being rhythmically
batted back and forth in the neighboring tennis court. There were none
of the familiar noises and usual distractions and I found that after I
had dressed and washed last night's dishes, I still had time to start
my airport book while waiting for the 6 a.m. shuttle.
I was hoping that we wouldn't get caught in the Obama traffic jam
on the way to the airport. I heard that the freeway would be a parking
lot in order to get Obama out of San Francisco. Well, there were no traffic
problems and all went smoothly. We arrived at SFO with plenty of time
for me to apply my make up in the rest room before waiting for my flight.
SuperShuttle really does have it down to a science in timing trips and
after doing all the obligatory TSA security checks there wasn't much of
a wait before boarding the plane. And then the fun began. There were no
cars in a traffic jam on the freeway, but Air Force One was making the
planes line up and wait to make sure that the blue skies of San Francisco
were completely clear of other traffic so our Prez could have a smooth
incident free flight to his next destination. No problem. I like airport
books.
The plan was that I would arrive at LAX and take a shuttle to the garment
district and have lunch, shop a little and meet up with Kim and
Hana in the adjoining fabric district. They were driving and I had
very generously let them transport my carryon suitcase so I would have
both hands free to shop. We all had left San Francisco around 6 a.m. and
that would give me a lots of extra time to have lunch and shop first since
I only had an hour flight - not their 5-6 hour drive. Well, because of
airport security and nonsense like Obama's airplane traffic jam , we pretty
much arrived in LA about the same time. I think I got there less than
an hour before them and that was great as I wanted to check out a few
dress shops before meeting up. By the time I had walked through the garment
district and parked myself in front of one of my favorite fabric shops
with some fresh mangos and chile for lunch. Kim and Hana were there too.
So off we went searching for the ultimate fabric that would make us look
like great dancers.
The fabric district sure is inspiring. It's so inspiring that we have
enough fabric to last until at least next year. Well, actually we still
have fabric left over from last year. But this is a new year. It's the
year of the Dragon and things will get done this year. For sure! Ya reet!
Insha'allah!
The evening was spent at the BDUC warm-up party with plenty of
food, drinks and dancing. It was a great opportunity to visit with old
friends and dance acquaintances in a party setting. After seeing Tonya
and Atlantis, I was particularly happy to see Leila Farid
who lives in Cairo. Last year after the January 25 revolution Leila came
to San Francisco to help out in a benefit for the musicians in Cairo.
She looked great then and she looked great now. She was exactly the same
as last year except now she has a little tummy. She's expecting a little
baby and is six months pregnant. It should be a little baby because her
stomach is so little. But what's a little tummy to a belly dancer? When
she performed it just enabled us to see the stomach movements better.
It was a great show and this baby will be born dancing and playing music
for sure!
El Helwa Di - Sayed
Darwish
Helwa - beautiful
dee - this
cu cu cu cu - crowing, bird noises
allah - God
yallah - let's go
sabah - morning
mafish - no more
nur - light
amal - hope
saber - patience
rab - God, lord
shams - sun Home
February 16, 2012
Thursday
The H word
Ya Habibi. I guess anybody who has heard an Arabic song has heard the
words "Ya Habibi".
Tonight in performance class we worked on "Alf Leila wa Leila".
The first words in the song are Ya Habibi. Oh my darling. We are still
working on the H word. Hobb for love, Habibi for Beloved, Habeytak for
love you and so on. Even maHabish for don't love.
This is a fun little project and even though we are basically using the
same "H" words as we did last Thursday, we are reinforcing the
listening process and the class is becoming more comfortable with acting
out the words of love with their body and their expressions. I will probably
continue on with this theme for awhile before I switch to the agony and
torture words. There are still many many words that talk of love and tenderness
and it's fun to see everyone's gestures looking more and more real and
natural.
Tomorrow morning I'm going to Los Angeles and Long Beach for BDUC
so I will be away from the computer for a few days. Plan on being back
online again by Tuesday morning. Insha'allah.
Ahwak - Abdel Halim Hafez
Ahwak - I love you
we - and
lau - if
ansak - forget you, ak=you, m.
ansa - I forget
rohi - my soul, i=my
tensani - you've forgotten me, t=you, i=me Home
February 15, 2012
Wednesday
It's colder inside than outside
Our rehearsals for Aswat are held in a large beautiful wooden building
in Oakland that used to be a church that became a Shriner's Hall
and is now the Islamic Cultural Center of Northern Californa. Because
of it's history it has beautiful stained glass windows, mosaic tilework,
great carved wooden pillars and beams and many other beautiful features
such as antique furniture and grand fireplace mantles. On Wednesday nights
we practice in a banquet hall that seats several hundred people.
It's pretty cold with no heat and although there are two large fireplaces
in the room, they do us no good since we're not allowed to light fires.
Not everyone shows up on Wednesday evenings - could it be because it is
so cold in there? Katie and I by default have become the Wednesday
night drummers. Husain and Younes sit on the other side
of the room and help direct us with their violin bows and eyebrow twitches.
Sometimes even Omar, our director, guides us also, but he usually
changes his mind about the rhythms enough that we don't always pay attention
to him. Also we don't get too set in our drum rhythms because Susu
and Faisal will change the rhythms to suit themselves when they
come on Sunday.
Since it had been warm today, I was wearing open-toed shoes. This was
a big mistake as it was freezing inside. Everyone who had a hat or muffler
remained bundled. Of course coats stayed on also. Fortunately I was able
to wrap my feet in the pillowcase that housed my drum and I made a mental
note to wear fur boots next week. Katie as usual was wearing gloves while
she drummed. I just let me fingers grow cold and stiff. I really was wondering
how the violinists could work, but then I noticed that Angela also
was wearing gloves. Yes, this is really what you would call suffering
for your art. Or dedication. Or stupidity. Next week Amer is bringing
a space heater.
After practice we hung out in the parking lot enjoying the warmer weather.
Ana Mush Arefni - Abdel Basit Hamouda
ana - I, me
mush - negative
arefni - know myself
la - no, not
dee - this, it
abuS - look
roHi - my soul - i-my
la-etni - found myself, ni=myself Home
February 14, 2012
Tuesday
Happy Valentine's
Horacio and Beata came tonight with two of their Poms,
Mimi and Ruby. They had just adopted yet another Pomeranian,
a boy, who will need to stay in the States for a while and recover from
an operation. He will then wait for someone to take him to Germany. Horacio
and Beata can't wait for him as they have to get leave in the morning.
This means that they will have a total of five - yes five Pomeranians.
I know these dogs are little, but five? Horacio and Beata's laps don't
seem to be large enough for five.
We spent the evening talking about music and the great sound - the big
sound - that only seems to come from Egypt. This sound really comes from
the percussion section. I know that they also have multiples of other
instruments such as the violin, but the percussion section seems to be
unique to Egypt's bands. On the Arabic dish music channels the bands from
other countries like Lebanon also have a great percussion section, but
they don't seem to have the number or loudness of the dufs like in Egypt.
If one duf sounds good, then five or six naturally will sound better.
It really is the more the merrier.
In Aswat we have six percussion instruments and only two of them
are dufs. It may sound good and maybe a little loud for our classic music
ensemble, but for that Cairo band sound the duf section really needs to
be deafeningly loud and synchronized. At one time Susu and I tried
to get that sound, but we never could get it loud enough.
Perhaps we can get that sound with our up and coming planned show. I was
thinking of calling it Tarabiya Two - Trance and Dance! I'm not
sure yet what all we'll do in the show. It's still in the works in my
head and in Susu's. Probably like my costumes it will get planned and
will evolve until it finally turns into something that we didn't really
plan at all but will actually be better. Who knows. We'll start our rehearsal
schedule soon.
Meet Foll - Ahmed Adaweya
meet - one hundred
foll - jasmine
we - and
ashra - ten
gamalak - your beauty, ak-your, m.
lau - if
aaool - I say
ma - negative Home
February 13, 2012
Monday
Don't think - just dance
I woke up feeling like I had to start from square one regarding my costume.
Obviously I need a costume that I can move in. I can't just waddle onto
the stage and just stand there and smile. So I guess I'll have to rethink
the costume or think of something else. I'm really not a very good seamstress
although I have made dozens of costumes. All my costumes seem to start
with one idea in mind and by the time they are done, they look totally
different than what was originally envisioned. Many times they turned
out better because of my mistakes. This time, though, I'm so glad I did
a trial run-through at Pachamama. Now I know how to fix the problem
of not being able to move.
Yes, scissors were invented for a reason and I guess I'm just going to
have to take that first step and start cutting. Rose gave me the
courage to do this, but then Rose is a master sewer and I'm only a sewing
wannabe. I guess if I cut too much or if it doesn't work, I always
have other costumes I can use. Like the red off the rack assuite dress
that I originally planned to use. I'm just glad that I didn't invest too
much on this costume. Well, we'll see. And just when I thought that I
had free time on my hands.
But on a better note, as usual, I enjoyed my classes tonight. I wonder
if the class gets as much out of class as I do. I really do like choosing
various pieces of music and working on them. Tonight we worked on trying
to bridge the dance movement and take it from the body and give it to
the audience. Why are some dancers so much better or memorable than others
when they may essentially be doing the same thing? It's all about personalizing
the movement and making it alive and your own and then giving that musical
emotion to your audience. Sometimes inhibitions may get in the way. But
more likely the mind gets in the way. There's a time to think and then
there's a time to dance and when you dance, your body already should be
on automatic and be responding in an immediate fashion. The thinking and
analyzing should be past tense so you and your audience can just enjoy
the present.
En Rah minnik ya ain - Shadia
rah - go
ya ain - oh my eye
min - from
albi - my heart, i-my
yaHebb - (he) loves
marra - once, one time
mahebish - doesn't love
marritein - twice, two times
min gheir - without
saharu - keep him awake - u-him
el layali - all night
baed - far Home
February 12, 2012
Sunday
Can't move
It was just another day of sewing, dancing and music. Started the day
by trying to finish my costume for BDUC. I wanted to have it finished
by this evening because I needed to try it out on stage before performing
at BDUC.
Luckily I have my own private health spa and performance opportunity called
Georges Lammam's night at Pena Pachamama. Unfortunately
last night instead of sewing I got involved in a mystery book. Hate those
books - can't do anything until I figure out who did it. Well, sleep got
in the way and I never did find out who did it. But in my dreams I got
inspired on how to finish the costume. Only problem was - I had a private
in the morning and then Aswat rehearsal and then Pachamama. So,
I frantically sewed until my private arrived and then that was that. Sigh!
That's why God invented safety pins.
Aswat was good as usual except that the commute to Oakland was bad today.
It was Sunday afternoon and the bridge was a "parking lot".
It reminded me of why I quit all my part-time jobs in the East Bay. But
I really do enjoy being part of a rehearsed ensemble and if it's in Oakland,
maalesh. Our group is getting bigger and bigger and better and better.
And at least the percussion section is relatively six percussionists small
with two great percussionists leading us - Susu and Faisal.
I can't even count how many oud players we have. Now there are two kanuns
and Fathi el Gerah has joined the violin section. It was an enjoyable
way to spend Sunday afternoon, but I was anxious to leave to try to get
to Pachamama early enough to work on my costume.
Of course finding parking in North Beach at dinnertime is impossible and
I even thought about using a lot. Pay to park? That's a new concept. But
such a San Francisco tradition. Luckily and finally I found a place only
a bunch of blocks away. It was raining and I had too much stuff to carry
and drag to also use an umbrella so I decided that water is only water
and who cares if I get wet. Certainly no one but me and water can be quite
refreshing - like taking a cold shower. When I got to Pachamama, the Flamenco
show was still in progress. Hurray!!!! That meant that I could go downstairs
and sew. No matter that everything was wet.
Pachamama used to be a speakeasy during prohibition times so there are
numerous secret rooms and passages below street level enabling former
customers and unsavory characters to get away or escape if the place gets
raided. I am sure that a lot of clubs in North Beach are also similarly
honeycombed and connected. There's a lot of San Francisco history here
- especially at Pachamama. So I found a private little niche in the basement
and to the sound of clacking flamenco heels, yelling and singing and the
constant dripping of water - there seemed to be leaks somewhere in this
underground beehive- I furiously sewed while bus boys and cooks bustled
through every few minutes carrying things and wondering what I was doing.
Suddenly there was quiet and then more clacking of heels. But this time
they were the sound of heels running down the stairs. The Flamenco show
was over and it was time to change the club to Arabic night. Oh well,
that's why God invented safety pins. I would just attach and hold up my
costume with safety pins and see if it would hold up long enough to survive
a short set at BDUC.
Fortunately it did, but I couldn't move. The dress was so tight that my
knees felt like they were getting friction burns when I moved. I'm so
glad I tried this costume out. All will be well now at BDUC. I'm glad
that God also invented scissors. Just cut one little slit up the back
and all will be well. I think.
Horus - a Shaabi song
We get all the words from the underground
Get outa my way -
We said alot of things (kulu marra)
Shuga buga (boogie woogie)
We bring the word to the bees
and whoever wants to be with me, start to sing
Halawa (sweet) ya basal (onion head?)
We said a lot of things
We've done a lot of things
Kulimaada ala fada - based on the proverb of our town,
whatever happened is gone
The past is over with/done with. Home
February 11, 2012
Saturday
Collections
This morning I started working on decorating a costume I would use at
BDUC...I think. A few days ago when I was in the mall with Cathy
I bought a little red and black dress. Well, I really bought two little
red and black dresses - exactly alike. If one looked good on me, two would
look better.
Although I already decided I would wear my black Assuite dress for the
show at BDUC, I didn't know if I wanted to wear the red one there also.
I'm doing two performances and hadn't decided if I would wear the same
one for both shows or have two costumes. Vanity said two costumes for
two shows. And then vanity also said don't wear the red one -it's an "off
the rack" and one should never take the chance of maybe wearing the
same dress as another dancer - especially since chances are the other
dancer would be younger, prettier and with a better "Barbie"
figure. Vanity said, it's better to wear something no one else has. Well
- no one has an exact copy of my black Assuite as: 1) It's an antique
(old) and 2) It's an original design, one of a kind (home made). And for
sure, no one else would be wearing a costume made out of two dresses bought
at "Forever 21". I don't think. Anyway, not the way I'll be
wearing the two dresses and a crinoline petticoat left over from a Mexican
folklorico costume. So, I'm set! Two original designed costumes. No "ready
mades" for me.
Later in the day after my classes were over, Gregory and I went
to the annual Tribal Arts Show at Fort Mason. This is a fun thing
to do - kind of like going to the museum - but since all the items also
have price tags, it can be pretty frustrating or depressing for two inveterate
collectors. Even armed with a checkbook and credit cards we can't really
do much collecting at this show as most of the art exhibited has museum
price tags. When we first started going years ago we found a couple of
things within our budget - a New Guinea drum with a snake skin head and
an antique Chinese child's chair. There was a great terra cotta Maya incense
burn that I fell in love with. Also there was an unrealistically painted
wooden tiger from Ghana with a hollow belly that doubled as a toy chest.
It was at least 5 or 6 feet long. It could have solved a lot of my storage
problems.
A while back Gregory bought a wooden funerary figure - not from this show
- from the island of Palawan which is an island in the Philippines where
my mother was born. We have another funerary piece from New Guinea and
these two pieces are just waiting to become a collection. If there's three,
then it's a collection? At the show we found another funerary piece from
the island of Luzon (where I was born). But listed at $12,000 we weren't
even thinking of making an offer. I wonder if these items really do get
bought and sold at these shows. Or are the exhibitors just there to network
and deal and trade with each other?
I didn't really see too many red dots and most of the items sold were
really tribal influenced modern made jewelry. This of course interested
Gregory since this is what he loves collecting. Most of these small ticket
items were still out of our price range, even the earrings, and it was
interesting to see how the styles in tribal jewelry have changed from
year to year. Anyway we went home refreshed and inspired and maybe a little
lucky that we couldn't start another collection. Of course we did manage
to score a couple of books. Those don't count or take up much room.
Kulu aal kulu - Ahmed Adaweya
Kulu aala kulu - everything on top of everything
kulu - all, everything
lama - when
shufu - see him
we - and
hua - he
fakirna - fakir=think, na=us, we
eh - what
mish - negative
ainak - ain=eye, ak=you, m.
ruh - go
ool - tell
marra - time
marra tanya - another time
barra - outside
meen - who
lau - if
aref - know
maalimeen - bosses, maalem - boss
alby - alb=heart, i=me or my
masra - stage Home
February 10, 2012
Friday
Alf Leila wa Leila
Horacio and BeataCifuentes dropped by tonight. They looked
great, energized and happy. Although they were still suffering a bit from
jetlag, since they just arrived from Berlin, they looked great, energized
and happy. They had just finished teaching day two of their four day workshop
marathon. They brought Mimi and Ruby. Ruby is the new addition
to their Pomeranian garden. She's so cute!
Horacio told me that two of his ballet friends, a married couple, organized
a party for him and Beata. It will be a reunion with all of Horacio's
fellow dancers from the San Francisco ballet world. He's pretty excited
about seeing them. I told him that a dancer and his wife lived across
the street from me and we realized that these were his friends Rusty
and Anita who were holding the party in his honor. I've met them
before and knew that Rusty likes to do woodwork as a hobby. He knew Daria's
mom and had helped Daria's mom, Effie, remodel her kitchen. Small
world! Elizabeth Street is truly a special street where belly and ballet
merge.
Next year if Horacio and Beata bring all their Poms with them to San Francisco
- they have four little Pomeranians now - maybe we can arrange a special
show. At my end of Elizabeth Street is the famous "Dog Park"!
Madame Mimi, the veteran dog dancer can share the stage with her troupe
- Teddy, Susu and Ruby. We can produce a special show called "Oriental
Fantasia".
Maybe Rusty can construct a miniature "Fantasia" sized stage
and I can help Horacio construct a few colorful costumes - how about pink
tutu's with "I Dream of Genie" veils.
I can just see it with Mimi starring with her chorus of dancers. Horacio used to work at the Pasha when he lived in San Francisco. I'm sure I can convince the Pasha Band to play the music score. Beata can hold the hoops and lead the "Oriental Fantasia Troupe" through their tricks of hopping, shimmying and turning on their hind legs and finally do an impressive finale finish with a grand jete' of fluffy furry dancers flying through the air and through the hoops onto the wagging laps of their adoring dog fans. Why this could turn into an annual event.
I wonder if next year Horacio and Beata will adopt yet another Pom to
add to the troupe. And Elizabeth Street will go down in history as the
street of belly, ballet and "Oriental Fantasia".
Horacio told me that he taught an Om Kalthoum compilation and mentioned
using danceable pieces from "Alf Leila wa Leila". So,
guess what our vocabulary words will be today? You guessed it. This song
is so great it starts out with Ya Habibi. Yes! the "love" word
that I was missing from yesterday's love song. It's really a great danceable
song and Ya Habibi is found throughout the song.
In fact, we danced to it a bit last night while I was trying to find another
suitable Om song to dance to at BDUC. Since I am teaching "How
to Dance to Om", I am obligated to use her music in performance.
Atlantis changed the time limit of the judge's dances from four
to seven minutes and it totally turned me around. I had already mentally
resigned myself to a short three and a half minute Om piece which was
a little part of a song that could be faded out. And now, as if given
a reprieve, I am given a whole three extra minutes. Enough time to actually
dance something! Hah! If I can find something that so inspires me! I can't
even get going until I've danced at least half an hour. Seven minutes?
Yay!! Hurray!! Whoopee!! Well, I guess seven is three more than four.
I guess I got spoiled dancing to good live music most of my life with
NO time constraints. But, Alf Leila is a big contender and I have a great
Nur Mhana in concert version of the song. Now, to just figure out
how to butcher this beautiful song to nothing...to seven minutes. Pleeeeze!
I bet Om would throw a fit! Four minutes? Seven minutes? It probably took
her a couple of hours to warm up to the song.
Alf Leila we Leila
- for Om Kalthoum
ya Habibi - ya=oh, my sweetheart, i=my
il - the
leil - night
we - and
samah - sky
ngm, nigumo - star, its stars, o=he or it
amaro - moon, it's moon, o=he or it
sahar, sahran - stay awake all night
wenta - we=and, enta=you, m.
wana - we=and, ana=I or me
hayati - my life, i=my
kol - everything
kollina - all of us, na=us
hobi - my love
hawa - love, air
yis'eena - quench thirst
aieesh - life, live
aiyoon - eyes
shams - the sun
ta-ali - come on, come here
baed - after
sana - a year
mosh - negative
abli - before
ezzay - how
ezzayak - how are you? Home
February 9, 2012
Thursday
Love me
Today I decided to use a song for performance class that spoke of love.
That's pretty easy since it seems that 99.99 % of all Arabic songs speak
of love. I wanted a song that used the root word Hubb or Hobb meaning
love with it's many different variations of the word within the song.
After all, almost all Arabic songs use the word Habibi, my darling. Well,
I finally chose the song "Hebbina" because it was a simple
song and with the love word in the title, it was obviously about love.
And, wouldn't you know it, there wasn't a single Habibi in the song.
So tonight, wanting the class to hear that the root word for love would
appear throughout a song in various different permutations, I chose "Hebbina",
love me. Too bad that the word Habibi didn't appear in the song. But I
know that I'll have plenty of other opportunities to find Habibi within
other songs for other classes.
Tonight's project seemed to be pretty simple - listening for all possible
variations of Hubb/Hobb, but I just wanted to open the ears and minds
to listening for and hearing and knowing the different conjugations of
the word Hubb/Hobb while dancing.
As an experiment each person was to mime the word each time a variation
of the word came up. Well, I chose a word that was too simple. They all
passed with flying colors but it was nice to see that they were making
themselves aware of that root word and also were mentioning other vocabulary
words that they heard in the song.
An interesting observation by all of us in class is that the song, in
it's simplicity made everyone dance differently. I thought it was only
me, as I had experienced the song when it was actually a "pop"
song, but without realizing it, everyone else followed the general mood
of the song and danced accordingly. Very simple and light hearted.
Although Farid lived and worked in Egypt, his roots were in the Levant
and consequently often included vestiges of his roots in his movies (such
as Debke dancing or images of cedars [of Lebanon]). Below is a link and
hope you'll see for yourself. It also includes the English translation.
Please remember that translations are poet and not word for word.
Next week I will continue with this project but since the class is becoming
more are accustomed to hearing certain vocabulary words I may make the
assignment a little harder.
Hebbina - Farid
el Atrache
hebbina - love us, or love me
habbaynaki - I loved you
lau - if
ma - negates something
ayounik - your eyes - ik=you (ayn, s.)
azaab - suffer, torture
hob - love
we - and
ana - I or me
hayatik - your life - ik-you
hayati - my life - i-my
min - from
il - the
rouh - soul
mush mumkin - impossible (mush = negative)
layl - night
ghani - sing
idalalu - (idellaae) to be coy, spoiled
hilween - beauties (pl.)
hibbi - love
sahari - stay awak all night
hobb - love
min zaman - from the past,
hilwa - beautiful (s.)
ghazal - deer, or a beautiful woman
albak - your heart, alb=heart, ak=you m. Home
February 8, 2012
Wednesday
Carpal tunnel? No, it's triangle thumb or dahola shoulder.
Aswat practice went pretty smooth tonight. Not all the musicians showed
up but that was OK as we were working on various songs one section at
a time. Omar, our director, pretty much left us percussionists
alone to decide what rhythms to play.
Tonight it was just Susu, Najwa, Sandy and me. Before we started
practicing, I took out my triangle and got a lesson on how to play a couple
of rhythms on the triangle. Najwa, who also plays congas and bongos, said
she had a triangle in the trunk of her car. She took it out. Hers is bigger
than mine. Probably the "professional" model. This is good.
If Susu and Faisal can do a drum duet, how about Najwa and me doing
a triangle duet.
Playing rhythms on the triangle can be pretty challenging. It's really
not as easy as it sounds - striking, hitting, rolling, tinking - inside,
outside, open, closed, open end, closed corner and so on. I had already
done a tutorial on you tube but having a lesson, hands-on from Susu really
made a difference. I felt so uncoordinated at first, but finally I got
the hang of it. Sort of. This'll take some time.
Some people laugh when I tell them I play tambourine in a band. Yes, a
tambourine really is a musical instrument. And it really is a hard instrument
to play...especially for me. In Egypt it is actually considered a more
prestigious instrument to play. Much higher in the music instrument scale
than the plain old tabla. Everyone can play the tabla - or so they think.
Originally Arabic classic music takhts (small music ensemble with nai, kanun, violin, oud, riq) only had a tambourine (riq)...the tabla appeared on the scene much later. I'm not saying I'm a better musician than the drummers I know, I'm just trying to defend the tambourine as a musical instrument. It's not just the rhythm, it's the technique.
So now, if people laugh when I tell them I play the tambourine, what will
happen when I tell them I also play the triangle? Play the tambourine
and the triangle? That should be good for roars of laughter. I think the
triangle will be my new obsession - I really like hearing the sound of
laughter. I like making people happy.
We may be a lot of percussionists in Aswat - there are 6 of us
- but there are even more oud players in Aswat - at least 7 or 8 of them.
It's like everyone can play the oud (it's equivalent to everyone here
plays the guitar). But the oud players end up having to play the same
thing reading off the sheet music, and we privileged, free spirtited percussionists
get to use different instruments and play different parts to make the
arrangements sound ALIVE!! We have used bongos, dufs, tars, bendirs, cymbals,
the tabla/derbekki, the dahola, the riq, clave's, el cajon, castanets,
spoons, shakers and more.
Tonight I also brought my dahola to practice. This is the large size drum
that looks like a tabla but is larger. It plays the bass sound and usually
is not played with as much ornamentation. The ornamention and crispier
sounds are left to the riq and tabla. Sandy tried playing the dahola for
a while and noticed that the larger size makes the arms and shoulders
work differently. In other words, one may be in shape to play the tabla
for hours but the dahola can really wear you out in a few minutes. Different
muscles.
It really is interesting to see how a little instrument like the triangle
or a couple of inches different between the tabla and the dahola can make
a person feel out of shape. Wonder how long one needs to practice these
instruments to get in shape. For me, it might be forever!
Du'ul
mazaher - Farid el Atrache
mazaher - plural of mazhar - a large duf with cymbals-like a huge riq
yalla - come on
ya - oh
beit - house
ta'alu - come here, u=m.
wallah - exclamation, and God
ooli - tell me, i - me
ain - eye
hasud - evil eye
aris - bridegroom
arusa - bride
amar - moon
halawa - sweet
hosn - good
gamal - beauty Home
February 7, 2012
Tuesday
Hakim
Tonight the Aswans worked on "Ya Ho" by Hakim.
I can't even count how many songs I've choreographed with Hakim's music
- since the '80's. Too many to even think about. Hakim's music is catchy
and fun and seems to appeal to all crowds. It's perfect for choreographies.
I particularly like to choreograph in the style that I call "controlled
chaos". First we usually have a pretty straightforward choreography
and then we redo it with staging and directions. Usually somewhere in
the middle I like to have the dancers go off in various individual directions,
even do what might look like solos and then magically merge together in
tight formation. This type of choreography works best with either four
or five dancers.
From Wikipedia: "Yaho, released in 2000,
went over the million mark at homeland. Its original version was a huge
success in the Middle East, having sold over 1 million copies, and brought
him to the attention of Ark 21/Mondo Melodia founder Miles Copeland
III who first heard Hakim on a late night radio show on the BBC in
London then spent the next day tracking him down and scouring record stores
to get his hands on Hakim's CDs. The result was signing with both Hakim
and TGU. The U.S. version of Yaho was somewhat different from the Egyptian."
Ya
Ho - Hakim
eh - what
leh - why
meen - who
aiwa - yes
ana - I, me
hua - him
ayoonu - his eyes, u=his
omri - my life, i=my
murr - bitter, bitterness
rohi - my soul, i=my
we - and
asal -I ask Home
February 6, 2012
Monday
Chocolate
Georges called this morning and it's all set. We will be playing
for the Melody Cafe's grand opening next month. Next month is the
soonest we can schedule the opening because a lot will be happening in
the next few weeks. There will be a Valentine's show at Pachamama
this coming weekend and Horacio and Beata will be teaching
a week long intensive. My daughter Cathy is visiting for the next
two weeks so I'll be busy with her. Mohamed Shahin will be teaching
a weekend workshop, I'll be in Long Beach for the Belly Dance of the
Universe Competition to perform, teach and judge for three days and
Georges will be going on another sea cruise. The following weekend I'll
be back at Al Masri with Mohamed and the week after that
Debbie and I will be teaching our workshop Alaa Wahda we Noss.
That will be the same weekend we will do the grand opening plus another
performance at Pachamama. Meanwhile life will go on as usual with scheduled
classes and Aswat rehearsals.
Cathy came to class tonight bearing gifts of sequinned tops and chocolate.
Swiss Chocolate! She must time her visits to know how long a bar of chocolate
will last as she always seems to bring the appropriate number of bars.
I love the brand of chocolate she brings. "Budget". She always
brings some good stuff but as she said, those brands can be found here
for less than in Switzerland. Kind of like chocolate covered macadamia
nuts are less here than in Hawaii. But the "Budget" brand chocolate
isn't even available here. There's something about Swiss and European
chocolate. Somehow it tastes better! And "Budget" chocolate
is really tasty. Did you know that most Swiss chocolate is consumed by
the Swiss themselves? Did you know that the Swiss consume more chocolate
per capita than anywhere else in the world? Like between 25 and 26 lbs
of chocolate per person annually. Since Gregory doesn't really
like chocolate, if we moved to Switzerland does that mean that I would
consume 50 plus lbs. of chocolate a year? How in the world will I ever
be able to lose weight with relatives who visit from Switzerland at least
twice a year bearing gifts of chocolate?
Shokalatah - Chocolate - Samy
Ali
we - and
dam - blood
shokolatah - chocolate
galia - special, expensive
dallalik - you're spoiled, ik = you, f.
ya - oh
Helwa - sweet
idalaae - spoil yourself
keda ho - like this
laken - but
masr - Egypt
romoush - eyelashes Home
February 5, 2012
Sunday
I'm here
On the way to Aswat practice Husain played another piece
that "the boys" recorded. This time it was Turkish with Meteh
singing "Mavi Mavi". Husain said this recording didn't
take as long as the "Ansak" one. Hopefully everyone is
getting comfortable with the recording equipment. Again it was done with
the drum apps from a keyboard. This time played by Younes. Press
Play. Susu may come in sometime to overdub it. Overall I'm pretty
impressed with the quality of the recording - even the percussion as is.
At Aswat we had our full percussion section section show up. People, not
apps. It's a pretty good group - Faisal, Susu, Sandy, Najwa,
Katie and me. The only problem is that we may end up sounding like
a Cairo band - heavy on the dufs and percussion - and not like a classical
Aswat orchestra. I think we need to do some serious thinking and set the
arrangements.
I am thinking of bringing in my dahola plus what I call the "bag
of tricks". The bag consists of cymbals, tura (larger cymbals) clave's,
fruit (shakers), a triangle and more. Faisal got excited at the thought
of me playing malfoof on the triangle. Yikes! Now I have to learn how
to do it. I thought I could just "tink" it once in a while,
but there are prescribed rhythm
patterns and I need to learn them.
I remember hearing Michaelle Goerlitz do a triangle solo once and it was so amazing I never forgot it. I guess a master percussionist can make music and rhythms out of anything. This may sound weird but maybe there's a career out there for me as a triangle player. I might get it out of default. How many triangle players do you know?
At our next Aswat concert Omar will include a drum duet with Susu
and Faisal and probably the rest of the percussionists will back them
up. I want to do the cymbal part. I can be spontaneous but worry a little
about being able to memorize a pattern. Sometimes I freeze.
Later Mohamed Amin joined Susu, Husain and me at Al Masri
for a night of music and dancing. The evening was fun with Mohamed playing
the nai and Husain mostly playing the violin and singing. I asked him
to play the oud for a couple of songs but realized later that it was too
much for him to have to switch instruments. Next time I guess he will
just play violin unless Younes joins us. While we were playing my daughter
Cathy walked in. She just arrived from Switzerland and wanted to
beat jetlag by staying awake a few more hours. "Cathy, here I am!"
Husain looked. "Cathy?" He thought it was Jawahare. Years ago
Cathy and Jawahare were always mistaken for each other. I didn't
realize it was still the case. What do you think?
We'll be back at Al Masri as a group May 6, but I am scheduled to join
Mohamed at Al Masri for his live music night on February 26.
Ana ho - Here
I am - Hassan al Asmar sings with Fifi
ana - me, I
ho - here
wenta - and you, we = and, enta = you
sahartak - you stay awake at night
layalli - nights
eidek - your hands, eid=hand, ek=you
omri - my life
maak - with you = ma= with, ak=you Home
February 4, 2012
The Melody Cafe
I talked to Assam today about how to find musicians for his place.
He wants Susu and Georges Lammam and a few others. He said
that Loay Dahbour bought a ticket and will be coming back in a
couple of weeks, but he won't believe it until Loay actually does set
foot at SFO. We'll see.
Assam has an interesting menu with a few dishes that aren't usually found
in Arabic restaurants - especially the salads - and he has hopes to also
have interesting music to match his cuisine. But the truth is that his
place is kind of teeny and I don't know how he can realistically support
his plan. As I mentioned before in a past blog, the space doesn't seem
right. But, since there is a desire, it may just work. What he has going
in his favor is the food really is good and he is a very nice person.
I want to ask him how he came up with the name of his place. "The
Melody Cafe". I guess it's a nice name. It conjures up visions of
music. But not in the exotic way. I wonder why he didn't use an Arabic
word. But, maybe it's because this is America and it's good to use American
words. Why, just one block away there is another Middle Eastern eatery
- a restaurant and a take out place - called "Good Frikkin Chicken"!
The food there is really good and the chicken really is good frikkin chicken.
So, I guess "The Melody Cafe" will have good music. I hope there
is a good Arabic underground grapevine that lets people know where the
good food is and the good music. I sure hope when he gets going that the
music will be as good as his food and his
desserts.
Sittu bes Basbousa - song for Ahmed Adaweya
Sittu - grandma
bes - only
basbousa - a cake
sokar - sugar
we - and
asal - honey
nayem - sleep
ayez - want, m. - aiza - want, f.Home
February 3, 2012
Ahwak
Tonight Susu stopped by to pick up her car. She lent it to me last
Sunday night when I when I was stuck in San Rafael without a car. After
our show in San Rafael my ride and the rest of the Pasha Band was
going to another club to party but I had to get back to San Francisco
to play with Mohamed Amin at Al Masri. Susu was kind enough
to lend me her car and leave it to chance to find a ride back to Petaluma.
So tonight we spent some time planning a future show at the MCCLA
and were happy that we both were on the same page. We just need to find
a good name to match the theme of our next show. The last show at the
MCCLA was called "Tarabiya" and it was a success - we
sold out and then some - and hopefully outside of the "Cairo heat"
problem everyone enjoyed the music, dancing and concept of
"Tarabiya". Following is one of our short pr blurbs: "Tarabiya
is an invitation to experience a shared state of mystical ecstasy. A crew
of talented Bay Area belly dancers and musicians take the stage for an
evening inspired by joyful state of consciousness that is Tarab! Musicians:
Jalal Takesh, Amina Goodyear, Sandy Hollister, Younes El Maqboul, Husain
Dixon Resan, Faisal Zedan. Dancers: Ahava, Dannhae, Hana Ali, Nicole,
Zahara."
For me, the best thing about "Tarabiya" was the fact that the
melodic musicians expressed a desire to continue to work together and
create more music - tarab and more - for listening and dancing. Since
that show they/we have performed at numerous venues and occasions including
Aswat shows, parties, at Al Masri, weddings, my studio for rehearsals
and most recently at recording sessions at Husain's. For now the core
group is Husain, Younes, Jalal, Susu and me with Faisal (Abu Safi)
and a couple of others lurking in the wings. They are such a versatile
group and when Susu and I approach them with our ideas they will be more
than able to conform. I already told Husain about it and already he has
some great ideas. I just need to find a catchy title and talk to the MCCLA
about securing a date. Then it will be hard trying to choose the music.
There's always too much music to choose from and we may have to take a
vote to find the best blend of romantic and upbeat percussive. One of
my favorite romantic songs is Ahwak. I wonder if it would get voted in.
Ahwak - composed
by Mohamed Abdel Wahab for Abdel Halim Hafez
Ahwak - I love you
lau - if
ansak - forget you
ansa - I forget
tensani - you've forgotten me, the t = you & the i = me
rohi - my soul, the i = my
wa - and
azab - torture, torment, longing
damooi - my tears, the i= my
faker - to remember
fakrak - remember you, ak=you, m.
dunya - world Home
February 2, 2012
Forget you
Talked to Georges Lammam about maybe doing a grand opening party
at the Melody Cafe. Between his schedule and mine we don't have
too many options and were maybe thinking about doing it the Saturday night
that Debbie and I do our workshop. We were planning a video night
that we could maybe move earlier and therefore could fit both events in.
Need to seriously think about this and see how it would impact the workshop
and also the Pachamama show the following night. In the meantime,
I guess we need to figure out who would want to play at the Melody Cafe
on other Saturdays.
Tonight I decided to use "Ansak" for performance class.
Actually, I wanted to use dancing to Jalal's kanun taqsim in Husain's
recording of "Ansak" as the dance assignment for the night because
of the good rhythm behind it. It's important to know how to layer movements
with layered music, including in the taqsim.
I think the class really liked the song and Husain's recording. I, myself,
think that it's a CD in progress. Husain needs to mix the kanun in a little
better and hotter and I would love to hear some vocals added. I think
tomorrow "the boys" will be trying out another song - a Turkish
one - with Meteh. Probably "Mavi Mavi". They want
to work with songs that they know in their sleep so they can concentrate
on the science of recording.
So, I put up some of the words to "Ansak" on the whiteboard.
I think that it helped the class in knowing how to dance to the song.
Also we read the translation a couple of times and talked about a couple
of words. I need to standardize some gestures to accompany some of the
words. The only problem is that some of the gestures that I've already
standardized are a bit silly or comical and only meant for the class to
associate the Arabic with the English translation. If used in the dance
it would look like one is doing a comedy or a Hawaiian dance. I don't
really think that gestures should be used for all the words, but I do
think that they help when I use them. Maybe I should develop a complete
glossary of "signing" to Arabic words with the "signing"
being the English translation. That kind of reminds me of an Egyptian
movie I saw starring Nour el Sharif who played the part of a deaf
mute. It was already hard enough for me to follow the story in Arabic
with no English subtitles and then I had to figure out the Egyptian "signing".
Ansak - Forget you - for Om Kalthoum
da - it
kalam - talk
ya salam - a greeting, oh my god, that's great, an exclamation
mosh mumkin - impossible - mush = negative, mumkin = possible
abadan -never
adatan - usually
mustaheel - impossible
albi - my heart - i = my
albak - your heart - ak = you, m. - ik = you, f.
wehob - and to love - we = and, hob = love
hobak - your love - ak - you
youm - day
ayam - days
wala - not, or not
leila - night
ana - I, me
noum - sleep
fein - where
ansak - forget you - ak = you
azaab - suffering, torture
ma ansash - can't forget - ma ------sh makes it negative
maak - with you - ak - you Home
February 1, 2012
A miscellaneous day
The day started with Assam from the Melody Cafe asking me to help
him find musicians to play at his place on Saturday nights. Me? Help him?
I can't even help myself. Well, ok, I told him I would see what I could
do. It's a great place - energy wise, but a lousy set-up for a show since
originally he and Loay found this place with the dream of having
a cafe with live music on the weekends. Since they started from scratch,
I don't know why they didn't plan the space properly. This seems to be
the case with so many of these "clubs".
Cafe Ruins (before Amira)
Amina at Amira (facing half of the audience - the other half is behind)
Nizar, Susu and Wayne on Amira stage facing the the other wall
I remember Amira and it's beginnings. It originally was called
Cafe Ruins and was half the size of Amira. The space stopped at
the stage. Later when Ezam decided to expand, he broke the wall
behind the stage and left the stage in the middle bisecting the two rooms.
This meant that the musicians literally were seated facing a blank wall
and the dancer kept having to make 180 degree direction changes and either
always danced with her back to one half of the audience or danced to the
same blank wall the musicians faced and not face the audience at all.
Amina doing "floorwork" on a table
Kan Zaman had no stage area and the dancers just danced around:
sometimes precariously balanced on a railing, sometimes on the bar, sometimes
on a customer's table but with no actual physical spot to call her own.
So she would just have to keep moving and dancing from table to table.
I remember the best thing about this place was to keep moving meant to
keep collecting tips.
Anke dancing from chair to table to rail
I mention those two "clubs" because they wanted entertainment
from the beginning, but then did not allot space for it. Those are only
two examples of many more just like them.
Other "clubs" that planned entertainment from day one also had
problems because of the space constraints. Usually these "clubs"
were long hallways and the dilemma of where to put the musicians and/or
dancers was just that - a dilemma. (Definition: Dilemma, a situation in
which somebody must choose one or two or more unsatisfactory alternatives.)
Why? Most of these places want to fit in as many customers/tables as possible
- obviously - and also most of these places seem to be long and not square.
If square, then it seems that doorways, bathrooms, kitchens, counters
get in the way. So here it is, the Melody Cafe probably planned in order
to give Loay a job drumming (even though he still is in Jordan)
and Assam an opportunity to play (keyboard?) and sing and there is no
ideal space to accommodate this entertainment. But I should be fair. It
most probably has to do with the planning and codes department at City
Hall. If that isn't the case, then did they go "out to lunch"
to properly plan the space? No, I am sure that City Hall was the culprit.
However, now. What to do? The only logical place to have a "stage
area" at the Melody Cafe is to be between the kitchen and the bathroom
facing the counter. Well, when we play there - and I am sure we will -
maybe next time soon with Georges Lammam - we surely will feel
right at home. Speaking of at home. Ayman has a new home. Temporarily.
His place caught on fire over the holidays - watch out for those electric
heaters - and now he lives at the very top of Nob Hill just one half block
from Grace Cathedral. We got together for Arabic today and, wow,
what a view! He's on the 10th floor and has a wall of floor to ceiling
windows with a spectacular view of the bay, Yerba Buena Island, the bridge,
the downtown high rises including the Transamerica pyramid and some rolling
hills to the south of SF. Amazing. I guess the contractors can just take
their sweet time renovating his place. And his cats seem to love it. I
don't really like heights, but they can sun themselves precariously perched
on the rail of his balcony 10 floors up from the street. Cats will be
cats and they sure like heights. Yikes!
We spent our time working on "Baed Anak" - listening
to it - reading the lyrics in Arabic - reading the transliteration and
translation in English - talking about the words and their root words.
It's interesting how a word can look alike in Arabic and if one little
symbol is placed signifying a double consonant, then the word means something
else. And I thought it was hard enough when the words sounded alike -
to me - but because it was spelled with an s instead of an S or an h instead
of an H, or a t instead of a T etc. that it was a different word. But
if the word is spelled the same and only a shadda (a symbol to double
the consonant) is the difference and then the word is not only different
but also pronounced differently. Yikes!!!! I will be teaching a choreography
to this song at BDUC and really wanted to have it completely inside
my body by then. At this rate - yes the music will be, but the words?
I don't think so. I wish I were better at languages or better at studying.
Or how about - just studied a little bit. And this event is only couple
of weeks away. My only consolation or rationale is that probably as dumb
and lazy as I am, I might know more about the words than the people in
the class.
On the way to Aswat tonight Husain played a recording of
"Ansak" that he, Jalal and Younes recorded
the yesterday. Absolutely beautiful. Husain has a little recording studio
at his place and "the boys" spent the day recording. Husain
used a drum and riq app from a keyboard and he's quite a talented percussionist.
Younes asked me what songs I would like recorded and now I will have to
seriously think about that request. I think that this demo CD is just
the tip of the iceberg as far as making recordings. But these recordings
will serve as great "demo/pr" material for getting future jobs.
Notice, I mention "the boys". Maybe they will have to be made
to understand that there are also "the girls" in this group.
But for now, let them play around and do all the work. Then when it comes
time to have fun and perform - they'll have to call "the girls".
In the meantime, I have the best - or final edited copy of the music and
will try it out in class tomorrow.
Aswat practice was good and our director Omar Abbad had new material
for our upcoming concert in June. Of course it included Abdel Wahab's
music. We concentrated on "The Wheat Song". This song
brings back so many memories because it is one of the first songs I danced
to at the Bagdad. Yes, it's really called "The Wheat Song"
and they do use the English translated title rather than an Arabic name.
The reason I used to dance to this song was not because I was crazy about
it although I liked it OK. It was because it was the only song I could
pronounce since it was in English. I didn't want to sound dumb and felt
it was better to give the name of a song than say, "Oh, play anything."
That was always a dead giveaway that I didn't know anything. Of course,
on reflection, I'm sure the musicians wondered why I chose this song rather
than other more interesting dance songs as this wasn't really known as
a dance song.
I finally learned my lesson and although I will probably by playing riqq
or duf at the concert I also had a tabla with me. I got smart finally.
Always have a drum in the car. Susu had the flu and Faisal didn't
show up so that left Katie and me to hold down the iqa (rhythm).
Of course they had the songs listed on our Aswat web that we would be
practicing. Of course I forgot to listen to the music thinking I could
depend on the other drummers. Well, of course they chose a song that wasn't
on the web yet but fortunately it was that song "The Wheat Song"
and I knew it. It's amazing how a song can come back like yesterday when
I haven't even heard it for 30 or so years. Just like riding a bicycle,
I guess.
After practice we hung around the parking lot of the ICCNC playing
"Ansak" real loud on my car CD player. With the doors open and
all of us huddled around the car - Jalal, Husain, Younes, Amer
(the bass player who might join the group) and me, I felt that we needed
some barbecue and a few six packs while watching out for the police to
break up the party. What I think they were really doing was waiting for
our maestro, Omar, to leave the building to notice how good they are.
Well finally abandoning that idea since Omar seemed to be busy Husain
and Younes decided to go to the Tenderloin for some Hindi food and more
bonding. Unfortunately I couldn't go bond with them as dinner was waiting
for me at home. So I left and the two limo boys went off in style. Maalesh.
Baed Anak - Away from you - for Om Kalthoum
niseet - forgot
noum - sleep
aHlaam - dreams
layaali - nights
leil - night
ayam - days
Hayaati - my life - i = me, my
azaab - torture, torment, suffering
domoua - tears
aHbaab - lovers, beloved
ghalabni - defeated me - ni = me
ghalibni - destroyed me - ni = me
shou', shouq - longing
sohud - a sigh that you do all night - stay awake
dawibni - wore me out, melted me - ni = me
saharni - kept me awake - ni = me
mahma - no matter Home
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December Blogs: Arabian Knights Band, Lebanese dancers Nadia Gamal, Amani, Nabila Metwalli, Zar, Mohamed Fawzi, Ismail Yasin, Taheyya Karioka, Leila Murad, Sabah, Badia Masabni, Shadia, Adriana, Dina, Do'a, Fifi, Lucy, Angelica's Bistro, Sabriye Tekbilek, "At Night they dance", Husain Resan, Ahmed Adaweya, Jalal Takeh, Younes el Maqboul, Susu Pampanin, Faisal Zeidan, Sami Aly, Abdel Basit Hamouda, Kulu aal Kulu, Samiramis, Naz Minassian, Zildjians, Georges Lammam, Bagdad, Casbah, Al Masri, SFSU, Pasha, Soheir Zaki, Hossam Ramzy, Capp Street Music Cener, Hoda el Artiste, Jad Elias, Cairo Cats, Daria, Gregangelo, Dalal, El Valenciano, Soraiya Zaied, Mohamed Abdel Wehab, Ya Msafer Wahedek, Om Kalthoum, Pachamama, Pak Oriental Rugs, SOMA, MCCLA, Tarabiya, Dance Brigade, Brava Theater, York Theater, Tony Lammam, Dannhae, Kim, Hana, ART, Grapeleaf, Powell Station, King Tut, Ramadan, Sherihan, Mohamed Ali Street, Fawazeer, Sharia al Fan, Omar Khorshid, Firsan al Kurdi, Michael Jackson, Reda Darwish, MultiKulti, Sausan, Mohamed Amin, Nieman Marcus, Saks, Designer Consigner, PETA, Shik Shak Shok, Lessa Faker, Nagwa Fouad, Merryland, Seahorse, Rebecca, Sherry Brier, Arab Cultural Center, Elias Lammam, Linda,Walgreen's, Angela Ramzy, Arab Film Festival, Khader Keileh, Vince Delgado,Coralee, Shaabi, Andak Albi, Nass el Ghiwane, Gnawa, Djemaa el Fna, Rolling Stones, Sufi, Karim Nagi, Debbie Smith, raqs Egypt, BDUC, Chakib, Rachid Halihal, Deborah Kapchan, Rai, Maha Marouan, University of Alabama, lila, Museum of the African Diaspora, Michael Frishkopf, "Music and Media in the Arab World, "Traveling Spirit Masters", Mitchell's Ice Cream, Blum's, Atlantis, "Wahedeh we Noss" , Aswan Dancers
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October Blogs:Arab Film Festival, "Hawi", Mohamed Ali, Karim Nagi, "Hobi Eh", "Ghanilli Shwaya Shway", George Wasoof, Farma Sirhan, Om Kalsoum, Ibrahim el Batout, Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts, Dannhae, Hana, Fairmont Hotel, Faisal Zeidan, Jalal Takesh, Husain Resan, Younes el Maqboul, Abdel Halim Hafez, Mohamed Abdel Wehab, Nadia Hamdi, Marcela, "Fakkarooni", Abdel Wehab Mohamed, Raqs Egypt, Georges Lammam, Steve Jobs, Debbie Smith, Khader Keileh, Skyline College, Vince Delgado, Coralie, Loay Dahbour, Ozlem, Real Doner, Susu Pampanin, Georges and Tony Lammam, Leyla Lanty, Carnival of Star, Mahmoud Reda, Nabila Mango, SF City Hall, Hassania, Skyline College, "Ana Hurrah", Kan Zaman, Aswat, DJ Raffy, Mina House, Nadia Lutfi, "Abi foq il shagara", "Ganal Hawa", Nicole Ibrahim, Kim, Al Masri, Sausan, Bagdad, Aswan Dancers, Firqet Aswan, Devi Ja, Aswan Cultural Center, Jazayer, Mimi Spencer, "Lailet Hob", "Alf Leila wa Leila", Gawaher al Fan, Ahmad Rami, Tarabiya, "Zahma Dunya Zahma", "Du'ul Mazaher", Mahmoud el Leithy, "Eh il Hakaya", ART, "Mass Culture and Modernism in Egypt", Ahmed Adaweya, Michael Jackson, Cassanova, Travolta, Pasha Restaurant, Arabian Knights, Jacques al Asmar, Reda Darwish, El Valenciano, Cairo Cats, George Dabai, Fadil Shahin, Yousef Kouyoumjian, The Farm, Sir Lawrence Washington, Tropical Heat Wave, Tropical Outer Space, Sunset Scavengers, Carnaval, El Faro Taqueria, Marlene, Cole Valley Gym, Karem Mahmoud, Adela Chu, Tower Market, "Habibi Lasmar", Fee Youm we Leila", Hossam Ramzy, Chalo Eduardo, Jacque Barnes, Jose Lorenzo, Laura, Amr Diab, "Habibi Nur el Ain", Aisha Ali, "Procrastination", Zawaya, Omar Abbad, Curves, Hakim, Saad el Soghayer, Edwina aka Qamar el Moulouk, Habibi, Santa Fe Folklore Museum, SF Free Folk Festival, SF City Hall, Mayor Ed Lee, "Ya Zalemni", Riad al Sombati, "Salama", Munira al Mahdiya, Cleopatra, Mark Antony, Dancing Drums - Live at the Giza Club, Sahar Hamdi, "Daret el Ayam", Samir Sumaidaiie Iraqi Ambassador, "Secret Ballot", gildedserpent.com, Faruk Sarsa, Naemet