Dawood Hussnei
Encyclopedia
Dawood Hosni also spelled Dawoud Housni,Dawood Hosny, was an Egypt
ian musician and composer born in 1870 in Cairo
to a Karaite Jewish
family. He composed the first Operetta in the Arabic language
.
origin. He was apprenticed to a bookbinder, Sukkar Bookshop at the age of ten; a customer, Sheikh Mohammed Abdu, encouraged him to study music and singing. His father did not want him to become a musician but he traveled to Mansoura, where he studied under the composer Mohammed Sahabaari. He learned composition and oud, and when he returned to Cairo, sang the compositions of Sheikh Mohammad Abdelrahim (known as al-Masloub). At the age of twenty, he composed in the forms of adwar, taqtaqa, and qasida
, imitating the singing style of Mohammed Uthman. In 1932 he was selected to record the works of Mohammed Uthman.
He was also the composer of the first Egyptian opera, "Shamshoon and Delilah".
Dawood Hussnei composed ensembles for many theatrical musicals for Ukasha, Muneera al-Mahdia, Naguib al-Rihani, Ali al-Kassar, and Muhammed Bahgat, such as "Marouf al-Askafee", "Sabah", "al Brensissah", "al Layalee al Milah", and "al Ghandoura". He was also a teacher to Umm Kulthum and Amal al-Atrash whom he called "Asmahan
".
Hussnei's first wife, Qamar ('Moon') died young. It is possible he composed the song 'Qamar al Layli' ('Moon of Many Nights'in the maqam
rast) in her honor. He married a second time, in 1920 and had two children, neither of whom became professional musicians. The last professional work Hussnei did was for a musical program for the National Radio Station. He died in 1937.
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
ian musician and composer born in 1870 in Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
to a Karaite Jewish
Karaite Judaism
Karaite Judaism or Karaism is a Jewish movement characterized by the recognition of the Tanakh alone as its supreme legal authority in Halakhah, as well as in theology...
family. He composed the first Operetta in the Arabic language
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
.
Biography
Dawood's father, Khidr Hossnei, was a jeweler; his mother was of bedouinBedouin
The Bedouin are a part of a predominantly desert-dwelling Arab ethnic group traditionally divided into tribes or clans, known in Arabic as ..-Etymology:...
origin. He was apprenticed to a bookbinder, Sukkar Bookshop at the age of ten; a customer, Sheikh Mohammed Abdu, encouraged him to study music and singing. His father did not want him to become a musician but he traveled to Mansoura, where he studied under the composer Mohammed Sahabaari. He learned composition and oud, and when he returned to Cairo, sang the compositions of Sheikh Mohammad Abdelrahim (known as al-Masloub). At the age of twenty, he composed in the forms of adwar, taqtaqa, and qasida
Qasida
The qaṣīdaᵗ , in Arabic: قصيدة, plural qasā'id, قــصــائـد; in Persian: قصیده , is a form of lyric poetry that originated in preIslamic Arabia...
, imitating the singing style of Mohammed Uthman. In 1932 he was selected to record the works of Mohammed Uthman.
He was also the composer of the first Egyptian opera, "Shamshoon and Delilah".
Dawood Hussnei composed ensembles for many theatrical musicals for Ukasha, Muneera al-Mahdia, Naguib al-Rihani, Ali al-Kassar, and Muhammed Bahgat, such as "Marouf al-Askafee", "Sabah", "al Brensissah", "al Layalee al Milah", and "al Ghandoura". He was also a teacher to Umm Kulthum and Amal al-Atrash whom he called "Asmahan
Asmahan
Amal al-Atrash , better known by her stage name Asmahan , was a Syrian Druze singer and actress. Having immigrated to Egypt in childhood, her family knew the composer Dawood Hosni, and she sang the compositions of Mohamed El Qasabgi and Zakariyya Ahmad...
".
Hussnei's first wife, Qamar ('Moon') died young. It is possible he composed the song 'Qamar al Layli' ('Moon of Many Nights'in the maqam
Arabic maqam
Arabic maqām is the system of melodic modes used in traditional Arabic music, which is mainly melodic. The word maqam in Arabic means place, location or rank. The Arabic maqam is a melody type...
rast) in her honor. He married a second time, in 1920 and had two children, neither of whom became professional musicians. The last professional work Hussnei did was for a musical program for the National Radio Station. He died in 1937.