Egyptian singer and songwriter Maryam Saleh and electronic music producer Zeid Hamdan's 30 July concert at the open-air El-Genaina Theatre at Al-Azhar Park has already sold out after going on sale earlier this month, prompting El-Genaina Theatre, the concert's organiser, to announce a second concert on 29 July. Initially meeting in 2010, Saleh and Hamdan swiftly began their collaboration, experimenting with a fusion of Arabic lyrics and electronic beats. Together, they performed an array of concerts in the Arab world and abroad. Recently, in September 2015 precisely, the duet released Halawella, an album comprising of satirical Arabic lyrics and state-of-the-art electronic music. The album includes 10 songs, six of which are rearrangements of Sheikh Imam and Ahmed Fouad Negm's songs: Valerie Giscar D Estaing, Nixon Baba, Ghaba, Youyou, Halawella and Chal El Hawa. The other four songs were composed by Saleh, and specifically written for the project by Mido Zoheir, Omar Mostafa, Amr Qenawi, and Maryam Saleh. Saleh, who is also a theatre artist, began her music career participating in the Baraka band, which reinterpreted Sheikh Imam's songs with rock music, and Gawaz Safar band which she founded herself, before commencing her solo career. Her repertoire also includes acting roles in films Ein Shams, Bel Alwan El Tabeeya and the TV series Farah Layla. In 2012, Saleh released her first album, Mesh Baghanny. Saleh's theatre experience includes collaborations with El-Warsha and Tamy troupes as well as the Choir Project. Furthermore, her repertoire is steeped in experimentation, with collaborations with Palestinian musician Tamer Abu Ghazaleh and Egyptian musician Maurice Louca. Zeid Hamdan is a renowned Lebanese electronic music composer and producer. He has deservedly earned the title of “the godfather of Lebanese underground music” after almost two decades of experimenting with music. Hamdan was -- and continues to be -- a staunch supporter of budding Lebanese and Arab underground bands, evidenced by his collaborations with Kazamada, Zeid and the Wings, Katibeh 5, and the New Government. Besides collaborations with Maryam Saleh, he has also worked with Egyptian singer Maii Waleed. Hamdan also composed music for and sang in the band Soap Kills, which was founded in 1997 and also featured Lebanese singer Yasmine Hamdan. An established film composer, Hamdan created scores for From Beirut With Love (Waël Noureddine, 2008), El Tangawya (Erin von Alberti, 2009), Hadouta Men Sag (Aida El-Kashef, 2010), and Beirut Hotel (Danielle Arbid, 2012), among other films. Programme: Friday 29 July, 8.30pm Saturday 30 July, 8.30pm Al Azhar Park, Salah Salem Road, Darassa, Cairo For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture
