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Fahd Ballan

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Fahd Ballan
فهد بلان
Background information
Born(1933-03-22)22 March 1933
Al-Kafr, Mandatory Syria
OriginSuwayda, Syria
Died24 December 1997(1997-12-24) (aged 64)[1][2]
Al-Kafr, Syria[3]
GenresSyrian folk music, Arabic music
Occupation(s)Singer, actor[1]
Years active1957–1997[2]

Fahd Ballan (Arabic: فهد بلان; 22 March 1933 – 24 December 1997)[4] was a Syrian Druze singer[5] and actor, known for performing "Mountain songs" (Arabic: الأغاني الجبلية).

Fahd Ballan traveled to Egypt and worked with Farid al-Atrash.[6] He married actress Mariam Fakhr Eddine and had an acting career. Most of his songs are performed in a Hourani dialect typical of Southern Syria and Northern Jordan. In addition to his songs in the Hourani dialect, he has also sung in the Egyptian dialect as well as in Classical Arabic.

Early life

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Fahd Ballan was born in 1933 in the village of Al-Kafr in Suwayda, Syria. His father, “Hamoud bin Ahmed Ballan,” farmer turned gendarme, had an affinity for music and was skilled at playing the rebab instrument, which he taught to Ballan.[5] His parents divorced when he was around 10 years old.

In the 1950s, he sang in weddings and festivals in Suwayda.

Beginnings in Damascus

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He moved to Damascus in the late 1950s to work in the Syrian Radio choir. In 1958, he sang his first song Ya batal al-ahrar ("O Hero of the Free") composed by Suhail Arafa in celebration of the unification of Syria and Egypt.[7]

In the early sixties, Ballan began a collaboration with artist Shaker Barikhan after the two met while working at Aleppo Radio. Barikhan would go on to compose for Ballan numerous songs including Aah Ya Gleby ("Oh, my heart"),[8] a duetto with singer Sahar.

He collaborated with Syrian composer Abdel Fattah Sukkar, a collaboration which produced his most successful work, notably Washrah laha ("And Explain to Her") and Larkab Haddak Yal Motor ("I'll Ride Next to The Engine").[9]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Fahd Ballan from Arabic Wikipedia[circular reference]
  2. ^ a b "Singer of manhood - 15 years of absence Fahd Ballan, a unique phenomenon in the Syrian song". Alba'ath media website. 2012-09-01.
  3. ^ "فهد بلان.. مطرب الرجولة". alwehda (in Arabic). Archived from the original on 12 January 2019. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
  4. ^ "هل الفاء جمعت بين "فريد الأطرش" و"فهد بلان"؟". esyria (in Arabic). 26 December 2009. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
  5. ^ a b Zuhur, Sherifa (2001). Colors of enchantment: theater, dance, music and the visual arts of the Middle East. American University in Cairo Press. p. 296. ISBN 978-977-424-607-4.
  6. ^ Zuhur, S. (2003). "Building a Man on Stage: Masculinity, Romance, and Performance according to Farid al-Atrash". Men and Masculinities. 5 (3): 275. doi:10.1177/1097184X02238527.
  7. ^ Admin. "سهيل عرفة بدأ بـ"يا بطل الأحرار".. ورحل على "لا تحزني يا شام"". فينكس | FENEKS (in Arabic). Retrieved 2024-03-03.
  8. ^ Rabih.Farran. "المطربة السورية سحر: قتيلة مليشيات حافظ الأسد". alaraby.co.uk/ (in Arabic). Retrieved 2024-03-03.
  9. ^ ""عبد الفتاح سكر" أبو الأغنية الشعبية التراثية الذي لا يتكرر!". music.esyria.sy (in Arabic). Retrieved 2024-03-03.

Bibliography

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Zuhur, Sherifa (2000) Asmahan's secrets: woman, war and song, University of Texas Press