Nouhad Haddad (born November 21, 1935), famously known as
Fairuz is a
LebaneseThe Lebanese people are an ethnic group or nation of Levantine people originating in what is today the country of Lebanon, including those who had inhabited Mount Lebanon prior to the creation of the modern Lebanese state...
divaA diva is a celebrated female singer. The term is used to describe a woman of outstanding talent in the world of opera, and by extension in theatre, cinema and popular music. The meaning of diva is closely related to that of "prima donna"....
." "A cultural icon of the
Arab worldThe Arab World refers to Arabic-speaking countries stretching from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Arabian Sea in the east, and from the Mediterranean Sea in the north to the Horn of Africa and the Indian Ocean in the southeast...
," her songs are constantly heard throughout the region, and still spark Lebanese national pride..
She was born in Jabal al Arz (Cedar Mountain) to a Maronite
ChristianChristianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented by the revelations in the New Testament....
family, and converted to Greek Orthodoxy when she married
Assi RahbaniAssi Rahbani was a Lebanese composer, musician and producer. He was part of the Rahbani Brothers , with his brother Mansour Rahbani . He married Lebanese singer Nouhad Haddad, more famous by her stage name, Fairuz...
, one of the
two brothersThe Rahbani Brothers , Assi Rahbani and Mansour Rahbani , were Lebanese composers, musicians, songwriters, authors, playwrights/dramatists, philosophers, and poets...
who helped shaping her singing career. She is also the mother of the Lebanese singer and composer
Ziad RahbaniZiad Rahbani is a Lebanese composer and writer for radio shows and theater. His compositions are well-known throughout the Arab world.He is the son of the Lebanese diva Fairouz and the famous composer Assi Rahbani...
and the Lebanese director and photographer Rima Rahbani.
Fairuz is sometimes referred to as Our (
LebaneseThe Lebanese people are an ethnic group or nation of Levantine people originating in what is today the country of Lebanon, including those who had inhabited Mount Lebanon prior to the creation of the modern Lebanese state...
) Ambassador to the Stars, Neighbour to the Moon, and the Poet of the Voice.
1935-1950s - The early years
Nouhad Haddad, later known as Fairuz, was born on 21 November 1935 in 'Jabal al Arz', Lebanon into a Maronite
ChristianA Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic, religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, who Christians believe was the Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible, and the Son of God.The term "Christian" is also used adjectivally to...
family. The family later moved into a home in cobblestone alley called 'Zuqaq el Blatt' in Beirut. Living in a single room of a typical Lebanese stone house facing Beirut's Patriarchate school, they shared a kitchen with the neighbours. Her father, Wadi', worked as a typesetter in a nearby print shop and Lisa, her mother, stayed home and took care of her four children, Nouhad, Youssef, Hoda and Amal.
Nouhad was a shy child and did not have many friends at school. However, she was greatly attached to her grandmother who lived in Debbieh (Shuf area), where Nouhad used to spend the summer. Nouhad adored the simple village life. During the day, she helped her grandmother with house chores and fetched fresh water from a nearby water spring. She used to sing all the way to the spring and back. In the evening, Nouhad used to sit by the candle light with her grandmother who used to tell her stories from her voyage to the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
By the age of ten, Nouhad was already well known at her school for her beautiful voice. Legend goes that Fairuz's parents were said to be too poor to afford a radio, so young Nouhad spent her evenings listening to her neighbours' radio through the thin walls, thereby developing her amazing musical ear. She would regularly sing during school festivals and holidays. This is how she came to the attention of Mohammed Fleyfel, a well known Lebanese musician and teacher at the
Lebanese ConservatoryLe Conservatoire libanais national supérieur de musique or The Lebanese National Higher Conservatory of Music was founded in the 1930s by Wadih Sabra, composer of the national anthem of Lebanon. Sabra's goal was to establish an institute of higher learning for music. The Conservatoire, which is...
, who happened to attend one of the school's celebrations in February 1950. He was greatly impressed by her voice and performance and advised her to enroll in the conservatory, which she did. At first, Nouhad's conservative father was reluctant to send his daughter to the conservatory; however, he allowed Nouhad to attend classes at the conservatory on one condition, that her brother accompany her. Nouhad's family encouraged her even though they could not afford much, and one day her father surprised her with a radio.
Fleyfel cared for Nouhad's voice in a fatherly way. Additionally, he taught her verses recitation from the Quran (Recitative style known as Tajweed). One day, prominent Lebanese musician and head of the music department at the Lebanese Radio Station,
Halim El RoumiHalim El Roumi was a Lebanese musician. He was the father of the Lebanese singer, Majida El Roumi. He died in 1983.Born in Lebanon to Lebanese parents, Halim El Roumi started his artistic life as an amateur in 1935 and then enrolled in the High Institute of Arabic Music in Egypt where he acquired...
(the father of famous Lebanese singer
Majida El RoumiMajida El-Roumi was born in Kfarshima, Lebanon on December 13 1956. She is a Lebanese singer and a soprano who started her musical career in the early 1970s when she participated in the talent show, Studio El Fan on Télé Liban and won the gold medal for best female singer...
) happened to hear Nouhad sing. He was deeply impressed by her voice and noticed that it had a rare flexibility that allowed her to sing both oriental and western modes admirably. At Nouhad's request, El Roumi appointed her as a chorus singer at the radio station in
BeirutBeirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon with a population of over 2.1 million as of 2007. Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's coastline with the Mediterranean sea, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan Area, which...
and composed several songs for her. He chose for her the name Fairuz, which is the Arabic word for
turquoiseTurquoise is an opaque, blue-to-green mineral that is a hydrous phosphate of copper and aluminium, with the chemical formula CuAl
648·4. It is rare and valuable in finer grades and has been prized as a gem and ornamental stone for thousands of years owing to its...
.
A couple of months later, Fairuz was introduced to the
Rahbani brothersThe Rahbani Brothers , Assi Rahbani and Mansour Rahbani , were Lebanese composers, musicians, songwriters, authors, playwrights/dramatists, philosophers, and poets...
, Assi and Mansour, who also worked at the radio station as musicians. The chemistry was instant, and soon after, Assi started to compose songs for Fairouz, one of which was 'Itab (the third song he composed for her), which was an immediate smash hit in all of the Arab world, establishing Fairuz as one of the most prominent Arab singers on the Arabic music scene. Assi and Fairuz were married on January the 23rd 1955 , and Fairuz then converted to
Greek OrthodoxyThe Greek Orthodox Church is the body of several churches within the larger communion of the Orthodox Church, sharing a common cultural tradition and whose liturgy is traditionally conducted in Koine Greek, the original language of the New Testament....
(Assi's sect).
Fairuz had four children:
ZiadZiad Rahbani is a Lebanese composer and writer for radio shows and theater. His compositions are well-known throughout the Arab world.He is the son of the Lebanese diva Fairouz and the famous composer Assi Rahbani...
, a musician and a composer, Layal (died in 1987 of a brain stroke), Hali (paralysed since early childhood after
meningitisMeningitis is inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, known collectively as the meninges. The inflammation may be caused by infection with viruses, bacteria, or other microorganisms, and less commonly by certain drugs...
) and Rima, a photographer and film director.
Fairuz's first large-scale concert took place in 1957 as part of the
Baalbeck International FestivalThe Baalbeck International Festival is the oldest and most known cultural event in the Middle East and the eastern Mediterranean. Since 1955, hundreds of thousands of people from around the world have flocked to the city of Baalbek in the Beqaa Valley of Lebanon to attend the annual festival...
(where she was paid 1 Lebanese Pound only, and performed alongside the British prima ballerina
Beryl GoldwynBeryl Goldwyn - now Beryl Karney - is an English ballet dancer.Born near London, she started dancing at the age of three. She attended the Royal Ballet School and performed with the Royal Ballet in The Sleeping Princess , with Dame Margot Fonteyn, when the Royal Opera House reopened after the...
), sponsored by Lebanese president
Camille ChamounCamille Nimr Chamoun was President of Lebanon from 1952 to 1958, and one of the country's main Christian leaders during most of the Lebanese Civil War ....
. Musical operettas and sold-out concerts followed for years, establishing Fairuz as Lebanon's most beloved singer, and as one of the Arab world's most popular singers.
1960s - The establishment of a new star
Fairuz became the "First Lady of Lebanese singing" (Halim el Roumi) during the 1960s. At that period the
Rahbani brothersThe Rahbani Brothers , Assi Rahbani and Mansour Rahbani , were Lebanese composers, musicians, songwriters, authors, playwrights/dramatists, philosophers, and poets...
had written and composed for her hundreds of famous songs, most of their operettas, and 3 motion pictures.
In 1969, as popular as it was, Fairuz’s music was banned from radio stations in Lebanon for six months by order of the Lebanese government because she refused to sing at a private concert in the honor of the Algerian president
Houari BoumédienneHouari Boumediène served as Algeria's Chairman of the Revolutionary Council from 19 June 1965 until 12 December 1976, and from then on as President of Algeria to his death on 27 December 1978.- Background :Mohamed Ben Brahim Boukharouba was born near...
during his visit to Lebanon. Despite that, Fairuz's popularity soared even higher. Fairuz made it clear that she would not sing to any one individual, neither king nor president, but she would always sing to the people.
1970s - International fame and the Lebanese Civil War
In 1971, Fairuz's fame became international after her major North American tour, which was received with much excitement by the Arab-American and American community and yielded very positive reviews of the concerts.
On September 22, 1972, Assi suffered a brain hemorrhage and was rushed to the hospital. Fans crowded outside the hospital praying for him and lighting candles. After three surgeries, Assi's brain hemorrhage was halted. Ziad Rahbani, the eldest son of Fairuz and Assi, at age 16, gave his mother the music of one of his unreleased songs "Akhadou el Helween" (that he had composed to be sung by Marwan Mahfouz in "Sahriyyi" Ziad's first play) and his uncle Mansour Rahbani re-wrote new lyrics for it to be called "Saalouni n'Nass" (The People Asked Me) which talked about Fayrouz being on stage for the first time without Assi. Three months after suffering the hemorrhage, Assi attended the premiere performance of that musical "Al Mahatta" in Piccadilly Theatre in Hamra Street. Elias Rahbani, Assi's younger brother, took over the orchestration and musical arrangement for the performance.
Within a year, Assi had returned to composing and writing with his brother. They continued to produce musicals, which became increasingly political in nature. After the Lebanese Civil War erupted, the brothers continued to use political satire and sharp criticism in their plays. In 1977, their musical "Petra" was shown in both the Muslim western and Christian eastern portions of Beirut.
In 1978, the trio toured Europe and the Gulf nations, including a concert at the Paris Olympia. As a result of this busy schedule, Assi’s medical and mental health began to deteriorate. Fairuz and the brothers agreed to end their professional and personal relationship in 1979. Fairuz began to work with a production team helmed by her son, Ziad Rahbani, and Assi and Mansour composed for other artists such as Ronza.
During the
Lebanese Civil WarThe Lebanese Civil War was a multifaceted civil war in the nation of Lebanon in the Middle East. The war lasted from 1975 to 1990 and resulted in an estimated 130,000 to 250,000 civilian fatalities...
(1975-1990), Fairuz never left Lebanon to live abroad and did not hold any concerts there with the exception of the stage performance of the operetta "Petra", which was performed in both the Western and Eastern parts of the then-divided Beirut in 1978. However, during that time period, Fairuz held many very successful and record-breaking concerts and tours in numerous countries around the world.
She made her first European TV appearance on French TV on May 24, 1979, in a "Carpentier special show" called "Numero 1" dedicated to French star Mireille Mathieu. She sang one of her big hits "Habaytak Bil Saif" and was thanked and embraced after performing it by Mireille Mathieu.
1980s - A new production team
After the artistic divorce between Fairouz and the Rahbani Brothers in 1979, Fairuz carried on with her son, composer
Ziad RahbaniZiad Rahbani is a Lebanese composer and writer for radio shows and theater. His compositions are well-known throughout the Arab world.He is the son of the Lebanese diva Fairouz and the famous composer Assi Rahbani...
, his friend the lyricist
Joseph Harb-Early years:Born to a police officer, he moved quite often from Alnakoora to Soor to Tarazieh in Qadaa Jebayel where he, with his sister Josephine, went to Dar Elrahbat 'Nuns School' for five years. There he was the only boy in his class...
, and composer Philemon Wehbe. Together, Fairouz and Ziad forged new albums that yielded tremendous success reinforcing Fairouz's and the Rahbani's art as evolving art. Fairouz's works with Philimone Wehbe and Zaki Nassif in the 1980s and 1990s were a very repetitive retro style of singing which yielded no musical richness and which were more or less a failure. Philimone Wehbe, a very tradiional composer, had composed songs for Fairouz but under the direction and supervision of Assi Rahbani, and so the music of Philimone working alone with fairouz were not up to par. it proved that all: Fairouz, Philimone Wehbe, and Mansour Rahbani were quite mediocre without Assi Rahbani. Only when working with Ziad Rahbani, Fairouz is able to keep the standard of the work she and her husband achieved. Fairouz also attempted to fill the void of Assi Rahbani by singing for Riyad Al Sunbatti, an Egyptian composer who composed Um Kulthum's main songs. These are unlikely to be released.
This success was yet again prominent all over the world and Fairuz made yet again her second and final European Television appearance on French TV on the 13th of October 1988 in a popular show called "Du côté de chez Fred".
Fairuz who had scheduled a concert at the POPB of Paris Bercy concert hall three days later on the 16th of October was the main guest of French TV presenter
Frédéric MitterrandFrédéric Mitterrand is the French Minister of Culture and Communication. Throughout his career, he has been an actor, screenwriter, television presenter, writer, producer and director.-Biography:...
, today France's Minister of Culture (2009). This show is to this day considered to be a very rare and exciting archive showing the Lebanese Diva's rehearsals for her concert at Bercy in addition to the ceremony featuring the then French Minister of Culture Jack Lang awarding Fairuz the medal of "Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres" and a video montage of her previous movies and concerts. In that show, Fairuz also sang the three songs "Ya hourrié", "Yara" and "Zaali tawwal".
1990s-present
In the 1990s, Fairuz produced six albums (two Philemon Wehbe tributes with unreleased tracks included, a
Zaki NassifZaki Nassif is one of the first generation of Lebanese composers who accompanied the rise of Radio Liban in the 1940s, and continues today as a force in Lebanese folk music.-Biography:...
album, three Ziad Rahbani albums, and a tribute album to Assi Rahbani orchestrated by Ziad) and held a number of large-scale concerts, most notably the historic concert held at Beirut's Martyr's Square in September, 1994 to launch the rebirth of the downtown district that was ravaged by the civil war. She appeared at the
Baalbeck International FestivalThe Baalbeck International Festival is the oldest and most known cultural event in the Middle East and the eastern Mediterranean. Since 1955, hundreds of thousands of people from around the world have flocked to the city of Baalbek in the Beqaa Valley of Lebanon to attend the annual festival...
in 1998 after 25 years of self imposed absence where she performed the highlights of three very successful plays that were presented in the 1960s and 1970s.
She also performed a concert at the Las Vegas MGM Grand Arena in 1999 which was attended by over 16,000 Lebanese spectators. Ever since, Fairuz has held sold out concerts at the Beiteddine International Festival (Lebanon) from 2000 to 2003,
ParisParis is the capital of France and the country's most populous city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
(2002), the United States (2003),
AmmanAmman , sometimes spelled Ammann , is the capital city of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, a city of 2,525,000 inhabitants , and the administrative capital and commercial center of Jordan. It is also the largest city in Jordan. It is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world...
(2004),
MontrealMontreal is the second-largest city in Canada and the largest city in the province of Quebec. Originally called Ville-Marie , the city takes its present name from Mont-Royal, the triple-peaked hill located in the heart of the city, whose name was also initially given to the island on which the...
(2005),
DubaiDubai is one of the seven emirates and the most populous state of the United Arab Emirates . It is located along the southern coast of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula. The Dubai Municipality is sometimes called Dubai state to distinguish it from the emirate...
,
Abu DhabiAbu Dhabi is the capital of, and the second largest city in the United Arab Emirates. Abu Dhabi lies on a T-shaped island jutting into the Persian Gulf from the central western coast...
, Baalbeck, BIEL (2006),
AthensAthens , the capital and largest city of Greece, dominates the Attica periphery; as one of the world's oldest cities, its recorded history spans around 3,400 years....
,
AmmanAmman , sometimes spelled Ammann , is the capital city of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, a city of 2,525,000 inhabitants , and the administrative capital and commercial center of Jordan. It is also the largest city in Jordan. It is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world...
(2007)
DamascusDamascus is the capital and largest city of Syria. It is the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world and its current population is estimated at about 1,669,000...
, and
BahrainThe Kingdom of Bahrain is a small island country in the Persian Gulf ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. Saudi Arabia lies to the west and is connected to Bahrain via the King Fahd Causeway, which was officially opened on the 25th of November 1986. Qatar is to the southeast across the Gulf of...
(2008).
Fairuz now works exclusively with her composer son Ziad.
Her latest album,
Wala Keef, was released in 2002.
Her 2008 performance in Damascus caused considerable controversy in
LebanonLebanon , officially the Republic of Lebanon
[Republic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies...]
, given the tense relationship between
LebanonLebanon , officially the Republic of Lebanon
[Republic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies...]
and
SyriaSyria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south and Israel to the southwest....
. Several members of parliament publicly asked her to cancel the concert. She went to
SyriaSyria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south and Israel to the southwest....
where she was received by a crowd of 7000 fans, screaming her name at the borders, as her car passed into Syrian grounds. Mosques and prayers on radio were all held back as Fairouz's songs played day and night through almost every media outlet in the Syrian nation. Radio channels, TV channels, the Syrian satellite broadcasters, restaurants and cafes, and newspapers were all focused on Fairouz's legendary return after 20 years absence. However big this controversy has gotten, it seems it has not affected her popularity in Lebanon as she held the Orthodox Good Friday Prayer Mass in West Beirut as hundreds and hundreds crowded the church premises.
Live concerts
Fairuz has performed once or more in each of many countries around the globe including
SyriaSyria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south and Israel to the southwest....
,
JordanJordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in Western Asia spanning the southern part of the Syrian Desert down to the Gulf of Aqaba. Jordan shares borders with Syria to the north, Iraq to the northeast, Saudi Arabia to the east and south, the Gulf of Aqaba to the southwest,...
,
IraqIraq , officially the Republic of Iraq , also known as Mesopotamia, is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert.Iraq shares borders with Jordan to the west, Syria...
,
KuwaitThe State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab emirate bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south and Iraq to the north and west. The greatest distance from north to south is 200 km and from east to west 170 km . The name is a diminutive of an Arabic word meaning "fortress built near water." It has a...
, The
United Arab EmiratesThe United Arab Emirates is a federation of seven emirates situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Southwest Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman and Saudi Arabia. The UAE consists of seven states, termed emirates, which are Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm al-Quwain, Ras...
,
QatarQatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally ', is an Arab emirate in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the larger Arabian Peninsula...
,
BahrainThe Kingdom of Bahrain is a small island country in the Persian Gulf ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. Saudi Arabia lies to the west and is connected to Bahrain via the King Fahd Causeway, which was officially opened on the 25th of November 1986. Qatar is to the southeast across the Gulf of...
,
EgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Western Asia...
,
TunisiaTunisia , officially the Tunisian Republic , is a country located in North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and Libya to the southeast. Tunisia is located southwest of the island of Sicily and south of Sardinia. Its size is almost 165,000 km² with an estimated population of just...
,
AlgeriaAlgeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country located in North Africa. It is the largest country on the Mediterranean sea, the second largest on the African continent and the eleventh-largest country in the world in terms of land area.It is bordered by Tunisia in...
,
MoroccoMorocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country located in North Africa with a population of nearly 32 million and an area just under . Its capital is Rabat, and its largest city is Casablanca. Morocco has a coast on the Atlantic Ocean that reaches past the Strait of Gibraltar into the...
,
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
, The
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
,
SwitzerlandSwitzerland , officially the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 states named cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities...
,
GreeceGreece , officially the Hellenic Republic , is a country in southeastern Europe, situated on the southern end of the Balkan Peninsula....
,
CanadaCanada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
,
The United States of AmericaThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
,
MexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
,
BrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is a country in South America. It is the fifth largest country by geographical area, occupying nearly half of South America, the fifth most populous country, and the fourth most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Atlantic Ocean...
,
ArgentinaArgentina, officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America, constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires. It is the eighth largest country in the world by land area and the largest among Spanish-speaking nations, though Mexico,...
,
AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the continental mainland , the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans...
, and of course, her very own
LebanonLebanon , officially the Republic of Lebanon
[Republic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies...]
.
Fairuz has performed in many venues such as the
Royal Albert HallThe Royal Albert Hall is an arts venue situated in the Knightsbridge area of the City of Westminster, London, England, best known for holding the annual summer Proms concerts since 1941....
in London in 1962, the New York
Carnegie HallCarnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
in 1971, the
London PalladiumThe London Palladium is a 2,286 seat West End theatre located off Oxford Street in the City of Westminster.Ian Dury and Cass Elliot played their last shows at the Palladium.-Building:...
in 1978, L'
OlympiaParis Olympia is a music hall at 28, Blvd. des Capucines, in the 9th arrondissement Paris, France.Founded in 1888 by Joseph Oller, the creator of the Moulin Rouge, the Olympia is the oldest music hall in Paris and one of the most famous music halls in the world, today easily recognizable by its...
de Paris in 1979, London's
Royal Festival HallThe Royal Festival Hall is a 2,900 seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge. It is a Grade I listed building - the first post-war building to become so protected...
in 1986, the
Shrine AuditoriumThe Shrine Auditorium is a landmark large-event venue in Los Angeles, California, USA. It is also the headquarters of the Al Malaikah Temple, a division of the Shriners.-History:...
in Los Angeles (1971, 1981, and 2003), the
John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing ArtsThe John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts is a performing arts center located on the Potomac River, adjacent to the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C...
in Washington D.C. (1981 and 1987) among many others (for the complete concert chronology, see
Fairuz Concerts-1961:* North American Tour**UNESCO, USA**Montreal, Canada* South American Tour ** Argentina** Brazil* Damascus International Festival, Syria-1971:* North America Tour ** Carnegie Hall, New York City, New York** Symphony Hall, Boston, Massachusetts...
).
Fairuz has yielded record-breaking performances in almost every concert she has held around the world. Fairuz, Assi, and Mansour have become the most famous and dominant music production phenomenon in the
ArabArab people or Arabs are an ethnic group whose members identify along linguistic, cultural or genealogical grounds...
world, and their music has spread beyond the
ArabArab people or Arabs are an ethnic group whose members identify along linguistic, cultural or genealogical grounds...
world to
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus Mountains , and the Black Sea to the southeast...
, the
AmericasThe Americas, or America, are lands in the Western hemisphere or New World, comprising the continents of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions. America may be ambiguous in English, as it is more commonly used to refer to the United States of America...
, and
AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the continental mainland , the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans...
.
Of Fairuz's numerous concerts, few are officially released. They are the Damascus 1960, Olympia 1979 concert (audio and video released in the 80's), USA tour 1981, Jarash 1983, Royal Festival Hall London 1986, USA tour 1987, Baalbek 1998 (Video), Las Vegas 1999 concert (on DVD with make over and rehearsals), Beiteddine 2000 and Dubai 2001 (on DVD, it includes parts from concerts in 1997 and 2002 as well as rehearsals from 2001 and 2002 concerts, released May 2008). Pirated versions of other concerts exist: Kuwait 1966, Syria and Egypt 1976, Olympia 1979, Australia 1984, Syria 1985, Bahrain 1987, France 1988, Kuwait1989, Cairo 1989, London 1994, Beirut 1994, and parts of the four Beiteddine concerts (2000-2003), Parts of Dubai concerts (1990-2006), Paris 2002, Amman 2004, Canada 2005, parts of the play
Sah Ennawm which was performed in Beirut (2006), Athens 2007 and Bahrain 2008.
Theatrical works
Musical plays or operettas were the cornerstone works of the Rahbani Trio, Fairuz, Assi and Mansour. The Rahbani Brothers produced 25 popular musical plays (20 with Fairuz) over a period of more than 30 years. They were possibly the first to produce world-class Arabic musical theatre.
The musicals combined storyline, lyrics and dialogue, musical composition varying widely from Lebanese folkloric and rhythmic modes to classical, westernized, and oriental songs, orchestration, and the voice and acting of Fairuz. She played the lead roles alongside singers/actors
Nasri ShamseddineNasri Shamseddine was a Lebanese singer and actor. His recordings remain very popular in the Arab world. He performed in several films and was associated for many years with the Lebanese singer Fairuz....
,
Wadih El SafiWadih El Safi is an Lebanese singer, songwriter, and actor. He is a Lebanese cultural icon, and is often called the "Voice of Lebanon". Wadih El Safi started his artistic journey at the early age of seventeen when he took part in a singing contest held by the Lebanese Radio and was first among...
, Antoine Kerbaje, Elie Shouayri (Chouayri), Hoda (Fairuz's younger sister), William Haswani, Raja Badr, Siham Chammas (Shammas), Georgette Sayegh and many others.
The Rahbani plays expressed patriotism, unrequited love and nostalgia for village life, comedy, drama, philosophy, and contemporary politics. The songs performed by Fairuz as part of the plays have become immensely popular among the Lebanese and Arabs around the world.
The Fairuz-Rahbani collaboration produced the following musicals (in chronological order):
- Ayyam al Hassad (Days of Harvest - 1957)
- Al 'Urs fi l’Qarya (The Wedding in the Village - 1959)
- Al Ba'albakiya (The Girl from Baalbek) - 1961)
- Jisr el Amar] (Bridge of the Moon - 1962)
- Awdet el 'Askar (The Return of the Soldiers - 1962)
- Al Layl wal Qandil] (The Night and the Lantern - 1963)
- Biyya'el Khawatem (Rings for Sale - 1964)
- Ayyam Fakhreddine (The Days of Fakhreddine - 1966)
- Hala wal Malik (Hala and the King - 1967)
- Ach Chakhs (The Person - 1968-1969)
- Jibal Al Sawwan (Sawwan Mountains - 1969)
- Ya'ich Ya'ich (Long Live, Long Live - 1970)
- Sah Ennawm (Did you sleep well? - 1970-1971 - 2007-2008)
- Nass min Wara' (People Made out of Paper - 1971-1972)
- Natourit al Mafatih (The Guardian of the Keys - 1972)
- Al Mahatta (The Station - 1973)
- Mais el Reem (The Deer's Meadow - 1975)
- Elissa - 1979 (Never performed due to the separation of Fairuz and Assi)
- Habayeb Zaman - 1979 (Never performed due to the separation of Fairuz and Assi)
Most of the musical plays were recorded and video-taped. Eighteen of them have been officially released on audio CD, two on DVD (
Mais el Reem and
Loulou). A pirated version of
Petra and one pirated live version of
Mais el Reem in black and white exist.
Ayyam al Hassad (
Days of Harvest) was never recorded and
Al 'Urs fi l’Qarya (
The Marriage in the Village) has not yet been released (yet a pirated audio record is available).
Discography
Fairuz possesses a large repertoire of around 1500 songs out of which nearly just 800 have been released. She has also been offered prestigious awards and titles over the years (see
Fairuz Awards and Recognitions-1963:* Medal of Honour, awarded by King Hussein of Jordan.* Order of Cedars, awarded by Lebanese President Fouad Chehab;-1988:* Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres, awarded by French President François Mitterrand-1997:...
).
Around 85 Fairuz CDs, vinyls and cassettes have been officially released so far. Most of the songs that are featured on these albums were composed by the
Rahbani brothersThe Rahbani Brothers , Assi Rahbani and Mansour Rahbani , were Lebanese composers, musicians, songwriters, authors, playwrights/dramatists, philosophers, and poets...
. Also featured are songs by Philemon Wehbe,
Ziad RahbaniZiad Rahbani is a Lebanese composer and writer for radio shows and theater. His compositions are well-known throughout the Arab world.He is the son of the Lebanese diva Fairouz and the famous composer Assi Rahbani...
,
Zaki NassifZaki Nassif is one of the first generation of Lebanese composers who accompanied the rise of Radio Liban in the 1940s, and continues today as a force in Lebanese folk music.-Biography:...
, Mohamed Abd El Wahab, Najib Hankash and Mohamed Mohsen.
Many of Fairuz's numerous unreleased works date back to the late 1940s, 1950s and early 1960s and were composed by the
Rahbani BrothersThe Rahbani Brothers , Assi Rahbani and Mansour Rahbani , were Lebanese composers, musicians, songwriters, authors, playwrights/dramatists, philosophers, and poets...
(certain unreleased songs, the oldest of all, are by Halim el Roumi). A Fairuz album composed by Egyptian musician Riad Al Sunbati (who has worked with
Umm KulthumUmm Kulthum . . Various spellings include Om Koultoum, Om Kalthoum, Oumme Kalsoum, and Umm Kolthoum. In Turkish, she is named Ümmü Gülsüm. She was an Egyptian singer, songwriter, and actress...
) was produced in the 1980s which are unlikely to be released because they deviate so much from Fairouz's lifetime work with Assi Rahbani. There are also fifteen unreleased songs composed by Philemon Wehbe, which will also not see light as Fairouz was never wholly convinced with Philimon'es works int he 1980's when he worked alone without direct supervision from the Rahbanis, and 24 unreleased songs composed by Ziad Rahbani in the 80's.
Fairuz has also released an album on
Folkways RecordsFolkways Records is a record label that documents folk and world music. It is now owned by the Smithsonian Institution.-History:The Folkways Records & Service Co. was founded by Moses Asch and Marian Distler in 1948 in New York City. Asch sought to record and document sound from the entire world....
, entitled
Lebanon: The Baalbek Folk Festival.
Films
Fairuz and the Rahbanis have also had their share of movie production. They produced three films,
- Biyaa El Khawatem (The Ring Salesman) in 1965 (based on the musical),
- Safar Barlek (The Exile) in 1967,
- Bint El Haress (The Guardian’s Daughter) in 1968.
The three films drew large audiences across the Arab world, world theatres, and further introduced Fairuz to the Arab and world audience.
These films are released for sale.
Television
Lebanese Television has featured appearances by Fairuz in the following television programmes:
- Al Iswari (The Bracelet)
- Day'it El Aghani (Village of Songs)
- Layali As'Saad (Nights of Happiness)
- Al Quds fil Bal (Jerusalem in my Heart)
- Dafater El Layl (Night Memoirs)
- Maa Al Hikayat (With Stories)
- Sahret Hobb (Oriental Evening)
- Qasidat Hobb (A Love Poem), also presented as a musical show in Baalbeck in 1973
Other television programmes have been recorded for Syrian TV, though neither these nor the ones mentioned above are released for sale.
Documentaries
- Fairuz in America - 1971
- Fairuz - 1998
- Alone They Remain - 1998
- Arrab El Maw’ed (Time is Upon Us - 1999)
- We Loved Each Other So Much (We Hielden Zoveel Van Mekaar) - 2003
- Kanit 7kayi - It was a story an interview with Fairuz with clippings of Interviews with Assi for his 23 years memorial - 2009
See also
- Timeline of Fairuz
-1935-1950s:1935* November 21, Nouhad Haddad is born in 'Jabal Al Arz' village, Lebanon to Wadi Haddad and Lisa El Boustani.1946* Mohammad Fleifel notices young Nouhad's talents...
- Fairuz Concerts
-1961:* North American Tour**UNESCO, USA**Montreal, Canada* South American Tour ** Argentina** Brazil* Damascus International Festival, Syria-1971:* North America Tour ** Carnegie Hall, New York City, New York** Symphony Hall, Boston, Massachusetts...
- List of Fairuz awards
- Rahbani brothers
The Rahbani Brothers , Assi Rahbani and Mansour Rahbani , were Lebanese composers, musicians, songwriters, authors, playwrights/dramatists, philosophers, and poets...
- Ziad Rahbani
Ziad Rahbani is a Lebanese composer and writer for radio shows and theater. His compositions are well-known throughout the Arab world.He is the son of the Lebanese diva Fairouz and the famous composer Assi Rahbani...
External links