Tony Kaldas
Encyclopedia
Tony Kaldas is a young Egyptian singer, trained for both opera and Arabic, classical and light singing. He was featured in concerts in Egypt.
Antoine Kaldas, famous as Tony, was born in Cairo
, Egypt
1984, in the heart of Cairo in Al Zaher, to a Greek-Egyptian mother and an Egyptian-Palestinian father. Since childhood, the family was keen to educate the children about famous singers and musicians from around the Arab world; voices of Asmahan
, Um Kalthoum, Abdel Wahab, Fairouz and Farid al-Atrash
were constantly heard in the house. The father was an engineer who loved art and enjoyed painting at home, but also admired various families of music, movies and theatre and filled his library with collections of books and records. The father's passion for poetry and reading also reflected in full collections of poetry for Ahmed Shawky, Hafez Ibrahim
, Nizar Kabbani and el Khayyam. The mother was a dedicated housewife, and mother of three who tended the children with good education. Her knowledge of many languages also introduced the English, French and Greek music and poetry to the house.
Tony was the last child, after an older brother and sister. During his early childhood his favorite activity was dancing to music and waking up early to play his favorite records, which helped him decide his own taste and favorites from the vast genres available at home. His father encouraged this talent by enrolling him in violin classes. Violin training was the critical element to learning to read scores; a key enabler for entry into professional singing later on.
French schooling was the standard in the family, and Tony joined the College des Frères. School enabled Tony to join a young Choir since early years, which was the first start into singing. Quickly, Tony's talent showed in the Choir and eventually he was assigned solo singing. His mentors encouraged him to seek ways to develop this talent further.
After finishing high school, Tony went to studying engineering, reducing the study of music to a part-time activity temporarily. Graduating with honors.
2004-2007 Musical Education
Tony decided to take his music education to a professional level, and was able to do that through joining the independent Open Course at the Cairo Opera House; following in the footsteps of his favorite singer Asmahan who used her Opera training as a unique capacity in Arabic singing unequalled till today. His first teacher Dr. Taheya Shams el Din discovered his special talent and gave him special attention and complex arias and operas to practice using his unique voice, which she identified to be bari-tenor or dramatic tenor – a voice that combines the high range of musical notes of a tenor, yet with the depth of a baritone voice. She supported him further by introducing him to various pieces of music and presenting him at the Opera House Open Course recitals and which led to his first public performance at Ghouri House as part of the Charles Aznavour
celebration sponsored by the Ministry of Culture.
2007–Present – Beginning of a New Era
Dr. Iman Moustafa took Tony under her auspices following Dr. Taheya, and started helping him discover new ranges in his voice, including exploration of his extreme upper range – the counter-tenor – which gave him stronger control over his voice range. Eventually, she gave him full support during his first public performances. Tony’s favorite singing style, however, tended away from opera and more towards classical Arabic and light which dominated his latest performances at the Opera House Gomhoreya Theatre and the Bibliotheca Alexandrina.
Other Interests
Besides singing, Tony learnt to play the guitar. He was able to demonstrate strong skill to both sing and play the guitar during one of his recent concerts.
Tony is also a big fan of literature. His library features a collection of classical literature books such as Homer, Dante and Shakespeare full works. Tony also reads in Sufism, poetry and philosophy, which all shaped his choice of singing lyrics and topics of his concerts. Gibran Khalil Gibran’s Sufi poems were of particular interest as featured in his concerts.
s of songs sung by the Arabic Super-stars :Fairuz, Abdel Halim Hafez
, Mohamed Abdel Wahab, Umm Kulthum, Nour el Hoda etc... and from the Worldwide he used to sing for Charles Aznavour
, Édith Piaf
, Mireille Mathieu
, Frédéric François
, Jacques Brel
, Elvis Presley
, Frank Sinatra
, Nat King Cole
, etc..
Biography
Early Years – 2004Antoine Kaldas, famous as Tony, was born 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...
, Egypt
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...
1984, in the heart of Cairo in Al Zaher, to a Greek-Egyptian mother and an Egyptian-Palestinian father. Since childhood, the family was keen to educate the children about famous singers and musicians from around the Arab world; voices of 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...
, Um Kalthoum, Abdel Wahab, Fairouz and Farid al-Atrash
Farid al-Atrash
Farid al-Atrash, or in French spelling Farid El-Atrache, was a Syrian-Egyptian composer, singer, virtuoso oud player, and actor. Having immigrated to Egypt in childhood, Farid embarked on a highly successful career spanning more than four decades — recording 500 songs and starring in 31 movies...
were constantly heard in the house. The father was an engineer who loved art and enjoyed painting at home, but also admired various families of music, movies and theatre and filled his library with collections of books and records. The father's passion for poetry and reading also reflected in full collections of poetry for Ahmed Shawky, Hafez Ibrahim
Hafez Ibrahim
Hafez Ibrahim was an Egyptian poet, called , means the Poet of the Nile. He was one of several poets that revived Arabic poetry during the latter half of the 19th Century. While still using the classical Arabic system of meter and rhyme, these poets wrote to express new ideas and feelings...
, Nizar Kabbani and el Khayyam. The mother was a dedicated housewife, and mother of three who tended the children with good education. Her knowledge of many languages also introduced the English, French and Greek music and poetry to the house.
Tony was the last child, after an older brother and sister. During his early childhood his favorite activity was dancing to music and waking up early to play his favorite records, which helped him decide his own taste and favorites from the vast genres available at home. His father encouraged this talent by enrolling him in violin classes. Violin training was the critical element to learning to read scores; a key enabler for entry into professional singing later on.
French schooling was the standard in the family, and Tony joined the College des Frères. School enabled Tony to join a young Choir since early years, which was the first start into singing. Quickly, Tony's talent showed in the Choir and eventually he was assigned solo singing. His mentors encouraged him to seek ways to develop this talent further.
After finishing high school, Tony went to studying engineering, reducing the study of music to a part-time activity temporarily. Graduating with honors.
2004-2007 Musical Education
Tony decided to take his music education to a professional level, and was able to do that through joining the independent Open Course at the Cairo Opera House; following in the footsteps of his favorite singer Asmahan who used her Opera training as a unique capacity in Arabic singing unequalled till today. His first teacher Dr. Taheya Shams el Din discovered his special talent and gave him special attention and complex arias and operas to practice using his unique voice, which she identified to be bari-tenor or dramatic tenor – a voice that combines the high range of musical notes of a tenor, yet with the depth of a baritone voice. She supported him further by introducing him to various pieces of music and presenting him at the Opera House Open Course recitals and which led to his first public performance at Ghouri House as part of the Charles Aznavour
Charles Aznavour
Charles Aznavour, OC is an Armenian-French singer, songwriter, actor, public activist and diplomat. Besides being one of France's most popular and enduring singers, he is also one of the best-known singers in the world...
celebration sponsored by the Ministry of Culture.
2007–Present – Beginning of a New Era
Dr. Iman Moustafa took Tony under her auspices following Dr. Taheya, and started helping him discover new ranges in his voice, including exploration of his extreme upper range – the counter-tenor – which gave him stronger control over his voice range. Eventually, she gave him full support during his first public performances. Tony’s favorite singing style, however, tended away from opera and more towards classical Arabic and light which dominated his latest performances at the Opera House Gomhoreya Theatre and the Bibliotheca Alexandrina.
Other Interests
Besides singing, Tony learnt to play the guitar. He was able to demonstrate strong skill to both sing and play the guitar during one of his recent concerts.
Tony is also a big fan of literature. His library features a collection of classical literature books such as Homer, Dante and Shakespeare full works. Tony also reads in Sufism, poetry and philosophy, which all shaped his choice of singing lyrics and topics of his concerts. Gibran Khalil Gibran’s Sufi poems were of particular interest as featured in his concerts.
Career
Tony sang cover versionCover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
s of songs sung by the Arabic Super-stars :Fairuz, Abdel Halim Hafez
Abdel Halim Hafez
Abdel Halim Ali Shabana commonly known as Abdel Halim Hafez , is among the most popular Egyptian and Arab singers and performers. In addition to singing, Halim was also an actor, conductor, business man, music teacher and movie producer...
, Mohamed Abdel Wahab, Umm Kulthum, Nour el Hoda etc... and from the Worldwide he used to sing for Charles Aznavour
Charles Aznavour
Charles Aznavour, OC is an Armenian-French singer, songwriter, actor, public activist and diplomat. Besides being one of France's most popular and enduring singers, he is also one of the best-known singers in the world...
, Édith Piaf
Édith Piaf
Édith Piaf , born Édith Giovanna Gassion, was a French singer and cultural icon who became widely regarded as France's greatest popular singer. Her singing reflected her life, with her specialty being ballads...
, Mireille Mathieu
Mireille Mathieu
Mireille Mathieu is a French chanteuse, and pop singer. Hailed in the French press as the successor to Édith Piaf, she has achieved great commercial success, recording over 1200 songs in nine different languages, with more than 120 million records sold worldwide.-Childhood to early...
, Frédéric François
Frédéric François
Frédéric François is a Belgian – Italian singer, born in Sicily, near Palermo.-Biography:In 1952, his family left his village to settle in Wallonia, Tilleur . When he was 12, he bought a guitar and sang at night in cabarets after work at the mine, with his father...
, Jacques Brel
Jacques Brel
Jacques Brel was a Belgian singer-songwriter who composed and performed literate, thoughtful, and theatrical songs that generated a large, devoted following in France initially, and later throughout the world. He was widely considered a master of the modern chanson...
, Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
, Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
, Nat King Cole
Nat King Cole
Nathaniel Adams Coles , known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American musician who first came to prominence as a leading jazz pianist. Although an accomplished pianist, he owes most of his popular musical fame to his soft baritone voice, which he used to perform in big band and jazz genres...
, etc..
- In 2005 Tony sang cover versions of Umm Kulthum and AsmahanAsmahanAmal 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...
many songs like: "Raq el habeeb, Gholbt asaleh, Fakarouny, Nawet adary alamy, Emta hataeraf, Layaly el ons, Ya layaly el bishr, etc..). He also sang cover versions of the Lebanese singer Majida El RoumiMajida El RoumiMagida El-Roumi was born in Kfarshima, Lebanon, on December 13, 1956. She is a Lebanese singer and a soprano, who started her musical career in the early 1970s when she participated in the talent show, Studio El Fan on Télé Liban and won the gold medal for best female singer...
many songs from her big repertoire like: Enta el mady, Matra'ak bi alby, Lawen maey el ayam, Beirut set el donya, Am yesaalouny, etc...) - In December 2006 he sang a concert of cover versionCover versionIn popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
s under the name of (Tony Kaldas sings Charles AznavourCharles AznavourCharles Aznavour, OC is an Armenian-French singer, songwriter, actor, public activist and diplomat. Besides being one of France's most popular and enduring singers, he is also one of the best-known singers in the world...
) at Chateau de Ghouri in Egypt. - Also he sang in some Opera Recitals many Arias from Aria Antiche and Opera Roles Like La TraviataLa traviataLa traviata is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on La dame aux Camélias , a play adapted from the novel by Alexandre Dumas, fils. The title La traviata means literally The Fallen Woman, or perhaps more figuratively, The Woman...
, ToscaToscaTosca is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900...
, and others. - in September 2007, he sang in a Common Concert with the soprano Maysa Orensa, a big repertoire containing Arabic, French, Italian, German songs at the Cairo Opera House
- In October 2007, he sang with the Egyptian singer Rania Shaalan in one of her concert in Gomhoreya Theatre - Cairo Opera House
- During 2006-2007, he did 3 religious songs and he wrote and sang a song about the Lebanese superstar Majida El RoumiMajida El RoumiMagida El-Roumi was born in Kfarshima, Lebanon, on December 13, 1956. She is a Lebanese singer and a soprano, who started her musical career in the early 1970s when she participated in the talent show, Studio El Fan on Télé Liban and won the gold medal for best female singer...
as a dedication to her voice. The song was called "Negma men negoum el sama" - 2008 was a year of success at the Jubilee 125 years of the Lebanese poet, painter and writer Khalil GibranKhalil GibranKhalil Gibran Jubrān Khalīl Jubrān,Jibrān Khalīl Jibrān, or Jibrān Xalīl Jibrān; Arabic , January 6, 1883 – April 10, 1931) also known as Kahlil Gibran, was a Lebanese American artist, poet, and writer...
. - On June 27, in The Opera House - Gomhoureya Theatre.
- On July 16 in Bibliotheca AlexandrinaBibliotheca AlexandrinaThe Bibliotheca Alexandrina or Maktabat al-Iskandarīyah is a major library and cultural center located on the shore of the Mediterranean Sea in the Egyptian city of Alexandria...
- Open Air Theatre. - 2008 Performed at Diwan Bookstore a Ramadan Night, a nostalgic night in September which was covered by the Daily News (Egypt)
- 2009 he performed on 2 occasions in Smash Club celebrating the Valentine's Day and Sham el nessim.
- June 2009, commemorating the Lebanese writer Mansour Rahbani in Sawy Culturewheel, covered by OTV, ON TV, ANA TV and Nile Live TV, and media presses Elaph and Radio stations.
- September 2009, he performed a big concert in Cairo Opera House singing for Fairuz, Halim and his own songs from Gibran Khalil Gibran words "You are my brother", "My soul"
- 2011, Tony celebrated 70 years on Besame Mucho song with the help of the Mexican Embassy in Cairo for the copyrights and the song renewed with Arabic lyrics and different arrangement mixing Jazz, Latin and Oriental.
- 2011, Tony released after the Egyptian revolution a song clip from the lyrics of the international Lebanese writer and poet Gibran Khalil Gibran for the religious tolerance and the song is the official work for the Peace day 2011 and showed on 25 channels around the world