Farid al-Atrash
Farid al-Atrash
Background information
Born	(1910-10-19)October 19, 1910
Origin	As-Suwayda, Syria
Died	December 26, 1974(1974-12-26) (aged 64)
Genres	Arabic, Egyptian classical, Instrumental
Occupations	Singer, Actor, Composer, Instrumentalist
Instruments	Singing, oud
Years active	1930s – 1974
Associated acts	Asmahan
Website	www.farid-el-atrache.com

Farid al-Atrash, or in French spelling Farid El-Atrache, (Arabic: فريد الأطرش‎; October 19, 1910 – December 26, 1974) was a Syrian-Egyptian composer, singer, virtuoso oud player, and actor.^[1][2] Having immigrated to Egypt in childhood, Al-Atrash embarked on a highly successful career spanning more than four decades — recording 500 songs and starring in 31 movies. Sometimes referred to as 'King of the Oud', he is one of the most important figures of 20th Century Arab music.^[3]

Early life[link]

Farid Al-Atrash was born in Suwayda, Syria to the Druze Atrash family who fought the French Colonial armies.^[4] His father was Syrian and mother Lebanese.^[5] As a child, Al-Atrash emigrated with his mother and siblings to Egypt, escaping the French occupation. Later, they were naturalized by the Egyptian government as citizens. Al-Atrash's mother sang and played the oud, which spurred his musical interest at an early age.

As a child and young adult, Farid Al-Atrash sang in school events. He studied in a music conservatory and became an apprentice of the renowned composer Riyad as-Sunbaty. In the 1930s, Al-Atrash began his professional singing career by working for privately owned Egyptian radio stations. Eventually, he was hired as an oud player for the national radio station and later as a singer. His sister, Asmahan, was also a talented singer, and for a while they worked together. In 1941, they starred in their first successful movie Intisar a l-Shabab (انتصار الشباب - The Triumph of Youth, 1941), in which Farid himself composed all the music.^[6]

Musical career[link]

Al-Atrash had a long and colorful music career lasting four decades. He composed musically diverse songs, and was a highly regarded composer, singer and instrumentalist. Al-Atrash maintained that although some of his music had western musical influence, he always stayed true to Arab music principles. Although the majority of his compositions were romantic love songs, he also composed several patriotic and religious songs.

One of Farid Al-Atrash's most unusual and distinguishable traits was his voice. High and mellow at the start of his career, it evolved into a wider, deeper sound. A person not familiar with his work would find it hard to believe the singer in "Ya Reitni Tir" (1930s) and "Adnaytani Bil Hajr" (1960s) were the same singer. His singing style was deeply passionate.

In many of his songs, and nearly all of his concerts, Al-Atrash would sing a mawal, which is a slow voice improvisation of a few poetic lines. These improvisations sometimes lasted up to 15 minutes. The mawal was a favorite of his fans. Some of the most famous songs include "Rabeeh" (Spring), "Awal Hamsa" (first whisper), "Hekayat Gharami" (story of my love), "Albi Wa Moftaho" (my heart and its key), "Gamil Gamal", "Wayak", "Ya Zahratan Fi Khayali" (يا زهرة في خيالي - "Flower of my imagination), "Bisat Ir Rih" (flying carpet), "Ya Gamil Ya Gamil", "Ya Habaybi Ya Ghaybeen", "Eish Anta", and "sa3a bi 2orb el habib" (an hour in company of the beloved).

Film career[link]

Farid Al-Atrash starred in 31 Egyptian musical films from 1941 to 1974. His last movie, Nagham Fi Hayati(نغم في حياتي, Songs in my life) was released after his death. All his films except the last two were black and white. They ranged from comedies to dramas, or a combination. He composed all the songs in his movies including the songs sung by other singers, and instrumentals (usually belly dance routines). His earlier films would include approximately ten songs, but overall the films would average about five songs each. Some of Al-Atrash's famous movies include Intisar al-Shabab (انتصار الشباب - The Triumph of Youth, 1941), Yom Bila Ghad, Ahd el-Hawa, and Lahn al-Kholoud (لحن الخلود - "Eternal Lyric", 1952).

Personal life[link]

Quick success brought the young man a lifestyle of nightclubs, love affairs, and gambling. Soon Farid was in debt and found himself abandoned by his disapproving mother. During this difficult period of his life, he also endured the death of his sister and fellow performer Asmahan. Farid found comfort in a relationship with the belly-dancer Samia Gamal, for whom he was motivated to risk all he owned. In 1947 he produced and co-starred in a movies with Samia directed by Henri Barakat; Habib al-'Oumr ("The love of my life," 1947), which became a huge success. After this came Afrita Hanem ("Madame la diablesse," 1949). Five films later, the unmarried couple broke up. Farid continued to work with other film stars in numerous successful movies in which he always had the romantic lead role of a sad singer. He even repeatedly chose his character's name to be "Wahid," meaning lonely.^{[citation needed]}

Al-Atrash refused to get married, claiming that marriage kills art. In his films, the audience remembered his leading ladies and his beautiful songs more than the story lines.

Prior to the 1952 military coup d'état against King Farouk I, Al-Atrash became friends with Farouk's consort, Queen Nariman, a relationship that continued after the Queen's divorce and the coup that cost Farouk his throne. The former queen's family did not accept Al-Atrash, and the separation from Nariman sent the singer into a long depression, the start of health problems that worsened from that point on until his death.

As Al-Atrash became older, he reconsidered his opinion of marriage and proposed to Egyptian singer named Shadia, but at the last minute he backed out. By now his health was poor, and he feared that he would leave her a young widow. He often played out that scenario and sang about it in his romance movies.^[7]

Farid Al-Atrash was a very close friend to musician Abdel Halim Hafez.

Death[link]

Al-Atrash suffered from heart problems throughout his last 30 years. In the last few years of his life, he became physically thinner, and his singing voice became raspy as his sickness intensified. Although he was struggling with his health, he continued to make movies and perform in concerts until he died.

On Monday 24 December 1974 the doctors told Al-Atrash that after 2 days he could go home. This was because they noticed that Farid did not like the hospital, or the drugs and the food that the hospital provided for him. On December 26, 1974, Farid Al-Atrash died in Beirut, Lebanon at Al Hayek hospital, shortly after arriving from London. Al-Atrash is buried in Cairo, Egypt alongside his sister and brother.^{[citation needed]}

Legacy[link]

Over his lifetime, Farid Al-Atrash starred in 31 movies and recorded approximately 350 songs. He composed songs for top Arab singers, foremost his own sister, Asmahan, as well as Wadih El-Safi, Shadia, Warda, and Sabah. He is widely considered to be one of the four 'greats' of Egyptian and Arabic music, along with Abdel Halim Hafez, Mohammed Abdel Wahab and Oum Kalthoum.^[8]

Filmography[link]

Farid and his sister Asmahan

1. Nagham Fi Hayati (1975)
2. Zaman Ya Hob (1973)
3. Hob al kabir, -Al (1969)
4. Khouroug min el guana, El (1967)
5. Hikayet el omr kulluh (1965)
6. Ressalah min emraa maghoula (1963)
7. Yomun bala ghaden (1962)
8. Shatie el hub (1961)
9. Min agl Hobbi (1960)
10. Maleesh Gheirak (1958)
11. Inta habibi (1957)
12. Wadda'tu hubbak (1957)
13. Izhay ansak (1956)
14. Oussit Hobi (1955)
15. Ahdil Hawa (1955)
16. Risalat Gharam (1954)
17. Lahn hubi (1954)
18. Ayza atgawwez (1952)
19. Lahn al khouloud (1952)
20. Ma takulshi la hada (1952)
21. Taa la salim (1951)
22. Akher kedba (1950)
23. Afrita hanem (1949)
24. Ahebbak inta (1949)
25. Habib al omr (1947)
26. Bolbol effendi (1946)
27. Gamal wa Dalal (1946)
28. Ma akdarshi (1946)
29. Shahr el asal (1946)
30. Ahlam el chabab (1943)
31. Intisar al-chabab (1941)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Farid El Atrache at the Internet Movie Database
• Farid El Atrache Discography and Music
• Oud taqsim clips

Al-Atrash family عائلة الأطرش
Ethnicity	Lebanese and Syrian origins
Current region	Jabal al-Druze
Information
Place of origin	Syria
Notable members	Sultan al-Atrash Farid al-Atrash Asmahan
Name origin and meaning	Atrash is Arabic for deaf.

The Atrash family (Arabic: الأطرش‎ al-Aṭrash) is a famous Druze family. It is traditionally considered the source of leadership in Jabal ad-Duruz.

The name has the alternate spellings (with the prefix of al, al-, el or el-) of Atrache, Attrache, Attrasch Atrach, Attrach and Attrash, and is Arabic for "deaf". However, this is just a folk etymology, as the family name, like that of the other equally famous Druze family, the Jumblat, is Kurdish in origin^{[citation needed]}. It finds its roots in the Artushi/Hartush tribe of Kurds that spread from the environs of Lake Van into northern Syria, albeit in its metathetic form^{[citation needed]}.

History[link]

The family is claimed to be descended from the Prince Fakhreddin al Ma'ani, and migrated in the beginning of the 18th century, from Lebanon to Jabal ad-Duruz in southern Syria.^{[citation needed]}

They grew in importance and in 1869, Ismail al-Atrash led them to overthrow the al-Hamdan family by force. However, they were weakened by the peasant revolution of 1888.

In 1909, Zuqan al-Atrash led an unsuccessful rebellion, and was executed in 1910. The al-Atrash family led their fellow Druze in fight against the Ottomans once again during the Arab Revolt until 1918 and the French in 1923 and 1925–1927, headed by Sultan al-Atrash (son of Zuqan al-Atrash).Their influence started to wane after unification and independence of Syria, especially with the death of Sultan Pasha al-Atrash.

Some members of the Atrash family emigrated from Syria to Egypt in the 1920s.^[1] Fleeing the French occupation of Syria, 'Alia al-Mundhir al-Atrash, from the House of Sultan al-Atrash, and her three children, Fuad, Farid, and Amal al-Atrash (later known as Asmahan) were sponsored by Egypt's prime minister Saad Zaghloul and later became naturalized citizens.^[2] After successful musical careers, Asmahan, Fuad and Farid al-Atrash were buried at the Fustat Plain in Cairo.^[3][4]

Notable members[link]

• Sultan al-Atrash, leader of the Syrian Revolution.
• Zaid al-Atrash, fighter and poet. Brother of Sultan Pasha.
• Mansour al-Atrash, Syrian politician. Son of Sultan Pasha.
• Nayla al-Atrash, actress.
• Farid al-Atrash, singer and virtuoso oud player.
• Asmahan, female singer.
• Salim al-Atrash, first governor of the State of Jabal al-Druze.^[5]

References[link]

Sources[link]

• Zuhur, Sherifa (2000), Asmahan's Secrets: Woman, War, and Song, University of Texas Press, ISBN 978-0-292-79807-6 

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Hind Rostom
Hind Rostom
Born	(1929-11-11)November 11, 1929 Alexandria, Egypt
Died	August 8, 2011 (aged 81) Cairo, Egypt
Occupation	Actress
Spouse	Hassan Reda Dr.Mohammad Fayad

Hind Rostom (Arabic: هند رستم‎) (November 11, 1929 – August 8, 2011) was one of the most popular Egyptian actresses.

Life and careers[link]

Rostom was born in Alexandria, Egypt on November 11, 1929 to a middle-class Turkish father and an aristocratic mother.^[1] She started her career at the age of 16 with the film Azhaar wa Ashwak (Flowers and Thorns). Her first true success was in 1955 when the famous director Hassan Al Imam offered her a role in Banat el Lail (Women of the Night). Her famous films include Ibn Hamidu in 1957, Youssef Chahine's Bab El Hadid (Railway Station) with Farid Shawki in 1958, Salah Abu Seif's La Anam (Sleepless) with Faten Hamama, Omar Sharif, and Rushdy Abaza in 1958, Sira' fi al-Nil (Struggle in the Nile) with Omar Sharif and Rushdy Abaza in 1959, and Chafika el Koptia (Chafika the Coptic Girl) in 1963. Rostom was known as the queen of seduction in Egyptian cinema, and the "Marilyn Monroe of the East". She decided to retire acting in 1979 because she wanted the audience to remember her at her best.

Rostom once more turned down an offer of one million gineih (Egyptian pounds) for her biography in December 2002. The offer was made by an Egyptian satellite channel to portray her life as a drama series. She was asked to submit a complete history of her past achievements, and work experiences with prominent actors of the past, such as Farid Shawki, Faten Hamama, Yousif Shahin, Shukri Sarhan, and Shadia. The actress stated that she refused to sell her life as a means of entertainment and felt that her personal life was of her concern and no one else. Rostom made a statement when she turned down belly dancer Fifi Abdo's invitation to attend a party held in Hind Rostom's honour.

On August 8, 2011, Rostom died in a hospital in Al-Mohandeseen because of a heart attack.

Marriages[link]

• Hassan Reda, a film director and father of her only daughter "Basant".
• Mohammad Fayad, a physician.

Death[link]

Hind Rostom died on 8 August 2011, aged 81, due to a heart attack after being hospitalised for a few hours in Mohandesseen, Cairo.

Filmography[link]

Selective

• 1949: Ghazal El Banat (غزل البنات)
• 1950: Baba Amin (‏بابا أمين‎)
• 1954: El sittat maarfoush yiktibu
• 1955: El Gassad
• 1955: Banat el lail
• 1957: Inta habibi
• 1957: Ibn Hamidu
• 1957: Bab el hadid (‏باب الحديد‎)
• 1958: La anam
• 1958: Ismail Yasseen fi mostashfet al-maganin
• 1959: Sira' fi al-Nil
• 1960: Bayn el samaa wa el ard
• 1963: Chafika el Keptia
• 1965: El Rahiba
• 1967: El khouroug min el guana
• 1971: Madrasatee al-hisnaa
• 1972: Wakr al-ashrar
• 1979: Hayati azaab

References[link]

• An interview with Hend Rostom. (Arabic)
• Al-Ahram's article. (Arabic)

External links[link]

• Hind Rostom at the Internet Movie Database.

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