“Jaltoun” by Tariq Al-Nasser: Songs from Hauran
Jordanian musician Tariq Al-Nasser (born 1969) began his career in the early 1990s by composing soundtracks for several Arab TV series, such as “The End of a Brave Man,” “Al-Jawarih,” and “Struggle on the Sands.” His vision is based on reviving Syrian and Jordanian heritage. In 1998, he founded his band “Rum,” which has released several albums, including “Ya Rouh” (2000), “Urdun” (2006), and “Ya Bourdain” (2011).
The artist will present his new project, “Jaltoun,” in a concert at 7:00 PM tomorrow, Wednesday, at the Dar Al-Saraya Museum in Irbid, Jordan. The project includes songs from the heritage of the Hauran region, which extends from southern Damascus to northern Amman.
The project, supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), takes its title from a wild plant that grows among wheat stalks, the seeds of which farmers enjoy eating during harvest seasons. In it, Al-Nasser revisits his early experiences, performing music from the Hauran heritage. At the time, he was a member of the Al-Ahali band, and continued to perform a single song from the same heritage.
In an interview with Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, project manager Hanaa Miqdadi said, “About a year ago, the owner of “Wajtna Risala” established a music studio at the Najm al-Din House for Culture and Arts in Irbid, where rehearsals and preparations began. A group of young musicians from Syria and Jordan participated, and they were trained to perform a collection of songs, some of which were rearranged and their performance skills developed.”
She adds: “The songs were collected from several villages in Irbid, in an effort to purify them of any modern influences or mingling with other musical styles by comparing them in multiple narratives, to present the song in its most frequently repeated form. Tariq Al-Nasser then selected seven songs that had never been remixed before, and combined a number of short songs that share a common melody into one song.”
Maqdadi explains that “the project preserved the identity of the selected pieces, while innovating in their remixes by playing them by fifteen musicians on guitar, piano, violin, tabla, and other wind and percussion instruments, and performing them by a choir that includes male and female singers, giving it a new form and shape.”
It is worth noting that the technical supervision of the project is under the supervision of the Tajalla Association for Music and Arts, which says it seeks to develop the community’s relationship with culture and the arts, and to provide new spaces and areas that bring artists together with all people, wherever they may be: in the street, neighborhood, city, village, and desert.