Bakri Al Kurdi

Songs on the Oud (+ Radio Interview)

• An Interview from Aleppo Radio
• Lw Kan (If Only)
• Sabah Fakhri - Hazh Al A'bra (This Lesson)
• Sameer Helmy - Salma
• Al Qlb Mal (My Heart is Captivated)
• Mohamed Khairy - Trfoha Sahm (Her Glance is an Arrow)
• Sabah Fakhri - Wayhah (Alas for Him)
• Al Sabr (Patience)
• Lw Zarani El Habib (If My Beloved Visited Me)
• Mohamed Khairy - Eba'tli Jawab (Send Me a Reply)

• Lw Kan (If Only)
• Taqasim
• Layl Al Hwa (Love's Night)
• Jsmo Enthal (His Body is Consumed)
• Yli Sakan Qlbi (The Dweller of My Heart)
• Khayif Ya Rohi (I'm Afraid, Oh My Soul)

Location Issued

Artist Origin

More Info

This cassette features a Radio Aleppo interview with the artist Bakri Al Kurdi in which he discusses his artistic career. The program also includes a number of songs composed and performed by Al Kurdi and a group of notable artists, like Sabah Fakhri and Mohammed Khairi. We also find on the cassette a rare recording of Al Kurdi's most famous song, Al Alb Mal Lil Jamal (The Heart is Leaning Towards Beauty), performed here by him. Bakri Al Kurdi (1909-1978) was a Syrian composer and minstrel, born Bakir Mustafa Bakir in Jisr Al Shughour in the Idlib Governorate. He later relocated to Aleppo to pursue his education. Al Kurdi learned to play the oud from the famous qanun player Sami Sonduq. His love for the performing arts led him to spend six years in the theater as a singer and actor. However, at the age of 25, he decided to step away from singing to focus entirely on composing. During this time, he worked as a muezzin at the Malkhana Mosque in Aleppo. In the 1940s, Al Kurdi formed a partnership with poet Hussam Al Din Al Khatib, composing Aleppo-style qudud and creating music for a range of artists, including Nour Al Huda, Mary Gibran, Leila Nazmi, Mohamed Khairi, and Sabah Fakhry. When Aleppo Radio was established in 1949, Al Kurdi joined the station. There, he composed and broadcast the poem Salma 'and the song Al Qalb Mal Lil Jamal. These works brought him widespread recognition. Later, he stepped away from radio to dedicate himself to the role of muezzin at the Great Umayyad Mosque in Aleppo, where he remained until his passing