Sayed Mekkawy

Sayed Mekawy 1927-1997 Arabic سيد مكاوي Egyptian Singer And Composer Mekawy Was Born In Cairo Sayeda Zeinab District Of Al-Nasriya On May 8 1927. Sayed Mekawy Became Popular In Egypt And The Arab World His Music Has Become Part Of Arab Heritage. The Great Egyptian Composer And Singer Sayed Mekawi Died On April 21 1997 Aged 70. Throughout His Life He Remained Undaunted By Modern Innovations And The Attempts Of Rivals To Produce Another Type Of Music. When His Father Died Mekawy Cried For Days. Later The Pain Eased But The Tears Kept Flowing. Doctors Were Powerless Either To Diagnose His Condition Or To Stop The Tears. One Day However He Could No Longer See. This Affliction Did Not Prevent Him From Learning The Qur'an Or Becoming An Azharite Scholar. Having Been Trained In The Art Of Reciting The Qur'an Mekawy's Voice Could Soar Gruff But Powerful To Thrill His Listeners. He Sang Solo Using His Lute At Numerous Concerts Though This Is Not What Brought Him Fame Or Confirmed His Status As One Of The Most Gifted And Popular Composers Of Oriental Music. What Brought Him Fame However Was The Unforgettable Character Of Al-Missaharati The Man Who Announces The Pre-Dawn Meal During The Month Of Ramadan That He And Fuad Haddad Created In 1951. A Popular Figure During The Holy Month The Missaharati Was Given New Life By Haddad's Words And Mekawy's Music. Composed To The Beat Of The Traditional "Tabla" Drum It Stirs Up Feelings Of Patriotism Nationalism And Pride In Arab Muslim Culture. The Missaharati Represented An Entire Generation Expressing Its Suffering Frustrations And Dreams. When Al-Missaharati Was Aired For The First Time On The Radio It Instantly Became A Symbol Of National Aspirations. Forty Years Later It Continues To Help The Faithful Keep Vigil Exhorting Muslims To Rise For Their Pre-Dawn Meal. Touching His Audience To The Quick Mekawy In Fact Touched On All The Important Economic Social Intellectual And Political Issues Directly Concerning The Less Privileged Classes. Critical Of Any National Shortcoming He Was Prompt To Deride Bureaucracy In His Song Al-Lstemara Rakba Al-Humara "The Questionnaire On A Donkey" . But Ha'n Hareb "We Shall Fight" Which Came Out In 1956 And Al-Ard Bitetkalem Arabi "The Land Speaks Arabic" Composed After 1973 Were Also True Expressions Of Pride In His Country. More Than Anything However Mekawi Will Be Remembered For His Contribution To Egyptian Folklor Music And Especially The Operetta Al-Leila Al-Kebira "The Big Night" For Which He Wrote The Music To The Words Of Poet Salah Jahin. First Conceived For The Radio Describing The Last And Most Important Night Of The "Moulid" A Saint's Festival It Was Later Adapted For The Puppet Theatre And Aired On Television Becoming An Instant And Lasting Success With Children And Grown-Ups Alike. Mekawy Died On The 11th Anniversary Of Salah Jahin's Death. Of Salah Jahin He Used To Say "We Get Along Like "Assal" With "Tehina" Molasses And Sesame Paste Which Always Go Together . read less