Al-Haj Al-Hussein Al-Toulali
Al-Haj Al-Hussein Al-Toulali
Al-Haj Al-Hussein Al-Toulali
On the green cover featuring a photo of the artist playing the oud, the following information is provided: Artist (in Latin characters): L'HAJ L'HOUCINE TOULALI
Artist (in Arabic characters, center and top left): الحاج الحسين التولالي (Al-Haj Al-Hussein Al-Toulali)
L'Haj L'Houcine Toulali (1924 – 1998) was a legendary Moroccan musician and singer, universally recognized as one of the greatest masters (in Arabic Cheikh) of Malhun (or Melhoun). Born in Toulal, a village near the imperial city of Meknes, Toulali dedicated his life to preserving this ancient musical genre. Malhun is a form of sung poetry typical of Morocco, historically linked to the guilds of Andalusian-Moroccan artisans. Toulali is credited with “democratizing” this art form: with his powerful voice, his oud, and his orchestra, he brought Malhun out of exclusive circles, introducing it to the general public through radio, television, and theaters worldwide. He also founded a school in Meknes to pass on this complex vocal and poetic art to new generations.
This cassette is a classic release of traditional Moroccan music. It is not a pop album with short songs, but a collection of Qasidat (singular Qasida), which are long sung narrative poems that form the backbone of Malhun. Track structure: The Qasidat are very long poems that tell stories of daily life, love, historical anecdotes, or morals. Because of their considerable length, it was common practice on audio cassettes to have to “split” a track. As can be seen from the cover, the Qasidat Zine Es-Soura (which praises beauty) begins at the end of Side 1 and continues (“continued”) at the beginning of Side 2.
The Style: Musically, Toulali's recordings are characterized by the use of traditional Andalusian-Maghrebi instruments (oud, vertically played violin, percussion such as the darbouka and tar) and male choirs that respond to the lead singer, creating a hypnotic atmosphere deeply rooted in Moroccan culture.
Covers
Tracklist
Side A
- * قصيدة حمان (Qasidat Hamman – The poem of Hamman)
- * قصيدة زين الصورة (Qasidat Zine Es-Soura – The poem of the beautiful face)
Side B
- * قصيدة زين الصورة (تابع) (Qasidat Zine Es-Soura (Tabi') – The poem of the beautiful face, continued)
- * قصيدة ليتام (Qasidat L'ytam – The poem of the orphan)