São Paulo – The Abu Ghid Folk Orchestra, from Egypt, is going to play a show in the city of São Paulo on Wednesday (21st). The group will play and sing Egyptian folk and Sufi-Islamic religious songs, and will do a single concert in Brazil. By the way, this is the first time that the orchestra performs in Latin America, according to Douglas Felis, a member of the group. "This is one first stroke just to get us to the beach," quips Felis, explaining that the orchestra intends to return to Brazil for a larger tour of several cities.
Although the music will consist of popular domain folk and religious songs, the group writes its own arrangements. The Abu Ghid Folk Orchestra has 15 members, but only five will be in the concert in São Paulo. In addition to Felis, who is the percussion player, there are Hossam Shaker, who plays the qanum, a type of wooden harp, Atef Metkal Kenawy, percussionist, Refat Farhat, flutist, and Mohamed El Sayed, who is a dancer. They perform wearing a type of Egyptian folk clothing named galabeia.
The group has existed for ten years now, says Felis, and its name – Abu Ghid – is a reference to an Egyptian village that is home to some of the members. Most of the songs performed are instrumentals. Some, however, are sung in Egyptian Arabic, which is the local dialect of the Arab African country. Felis believes that in Brazil, as is the case in all of the group’s performances, the show is going to attract all sorts of people, mostly those interested in Eastern music.
"This is a new type of music to Brazil. But Brazil is deeply linked to Egypt, to Africa, to all countries," he says. He believes that if European and North America music are successful in Brazil, there is no reason why the same should not hold true of Egyptian music. According to information disclosed by the Centro de Estudos Universais (Centre of Universal Studies – AUM), which will promote the event, the concert is a party of popular tunes from the Nile, gypsy rhythms from Luxor, traditional mystical flutes, and Ancient Egyptian lullabies.
The Centre of Universal Studies is a civil non-profit association whose main objective is to study, acknowledge and spread ethnic and cultural manifestations from Brazil and the world over. The Egyptian orchestra’s performance will take place under the project Dançando pela Paz (Dancing for Peace), which aims to promote peace through global ethnic songs and dancing.
Service:
Abu Ghid Folk Orchestra Concert
Date: April 21st 2010, 09:00 pm
Tickets: 50 real (US$ 28 – full) and 25 real (US$ 14 – half)
Place : Anhembi Morumbi Theatre, on Dr. Almeida Lima street, 1,134 – Brás – SP
Information: dancandopelapaz@ceuaum.org.br or (+55 11) 38473584
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
