tabadoul orchestra : Aziza (HD) 26.09.2013 Kulturkirche Köln

tabadoul orchestra : wahab screening

after having presented its first live-program and cd "world wide wahab", the cologne-based multinational tabadoul orchestra takes another big step forward:
in september 2013 they join forces with the acclaimed libanese visual artists mazen kerbaj and raed yassin to premiere the video-concert "wahab screening".


Mohamed Abdel Wahab, who died in 1990, was one of the most significant and innovative composers of the Arab world. He is regarded as the inventor of the Arab film-musical and also introduced western intruments like electric guitars, -pianos and -organs to the Arab music, thus developing a completely new style. Furthermore, the use of Latin-american dance rhythms like Beguine, Rumba or ChaCha in the context of the traditional Egyptian string orchestra, his innovative way of orchestration and composition techniques as well as a life´s work of more than 1.000 compositions lifts Mohamed Abdel Wahab clearly out of the ranks of usual Egyptian musicians. Mohamed Abdel Wahab is considered, after Sayed Darwish, as the crucial pioneer and innovator of Arab art music. From a contemporary perspective he could even be described as an early Frank Zappa of Arab music...


Between 1933 and the 1950s Abdel Wahab starred in seven musical films where he acted, sang and composed the film music. Unusual for their time, these films introduced a romantic hero who was light-hearted and sophisticated.They portrayed a westernized urban elite society and featured non-traditional music. These films are still immensely popular in the whole Arab world. The video work of Kerbaj/Yassin uses footage from these films and blends it with mazen kerbajs unique live-painting technique.

wahab screening is supported by akademie der künste der welt, sk stiftung kultur, funkhaus europa


video editing: Hein-Godehart Petschulat

www.tabadoul.de