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CD Review
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Shepherd Express, CD Review >>
Sayyed Darweesh was a kind of Egyptian George Gershwin, merging high culture with low, the cafe and the concert hall. The composer left behind an impressive stack of songs by the time of his death in 1923. He was only 31.
The Chicago Classical Oriental Ensemble, dedicated to preserving the Arabic, Armenian, and Sephardic Jewish repertoire of the early 20th century recorded 10 of Darweesh's songs for its latest CD. The keening, alternating male female voices, the elaborate lattice of Arabesque strings, and the throbbing heartbeat of table drums convey lyrics of sad passion, doomed love, unrequited lust and, occasionally, desire consummated. One song even calls on women to "Demand your rights and free yourself today." Darweesh's harmonically and poetically sophisticated songs deserve to be reconsidered. They receive sterling, period accurate performances on Soul of a People. 04/27/06 >> go there
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