Young people from Damascus and outside of Damascus organized musical performances in a small square in Bab Sharqi on a weekly basis. These were spontaneous and beautiful performances, with limited resources, free and open to all, and performed by new and diverse groups. We had never heard of them in Beirut; unlike Lena Chamamyan, Kinan Azmeh, Kulna Sawa, Bashar Zarqan, Bassel Rajoub, and other well-known artists who have collaborated with Lebanese musicians in recordings and live performances.
One of these young musicians informed me that there was a new musical movement that goes beyond Damascus and was different from the experimental projects executed in Beirut. The movement was however in need of theaters and venues that would welcome these new voices that convey the new realities experienced by the Syrian youth. They also need less limitations of the freedom of expression. Comparing the music scenes in Damascus and Beirut, a musician friend who played percussion with some of the best-known artists in Syria told me «[…] here, we don’t discuss politics…».
This aspiring young musical movement was destined to witness what Syria had witnessed in 2011. It was a journey of hope-turned-tragedy during which artists began to depart Syria, one after the other. Beirut was naturally their first stop; though not only because it was the beloved neighbor. To them, Beirut was the capital of culture, art, and freedom of expression, it fostered audiences hungry for new underground music.
The beginning was rough. The cost of living in Beirut was so high that even its own people tried living elsewhere. Khaled Omran, Tanjaret Daghet’s bassist, recalls the difficulties he faced, from searching for –accommodation even though just a small room for three people – to high prices, to the conditions that prevailed when they left Syria; the only difference here was that immigration or displacement were not an option but an obligation.. These same circumstances faced most of the bands whose members began infiltrating into Beirut, into its bars and with its musicians. And a new start began, one that they desperately needed to ventilate.
Consequently, since 2012 and particularly in 2013 and 2014, names of good Syrian bands began to emerge in Beirut’s music scene, among which are Tanjaret Daghet and Khebez Dawle (rock), As-saaleek (Oriental fused with Latino), Latlateh (hip-hop), Abo Gabi (a Palestinian-Syrian writer and singer), Hello Psychaleppo (electronic), and others. In addition, several valuable contributions by Syrian musicians in Lebanese bands during music performances emerged, as well many other musical attempts, though not all were successful.
Beirut audiences quickly fell in love with their music, especially as it encompassed such a professional range of genres, from electronic to hip-hop, rock, fusion jazz and oriental. The success and creativity of these Syrian musical groups ensured their longevity on stage, drawing Lebanese producers into collaborations to record and produce their works.
The question asked here is, What is the secret behind these musicians’ quick success? And what qualities have attracted Lebanese audiences, producers and musicians? What innovations have they carried to the already-rich Lebanese art scene?
First, it must be said that most of the activity that followed the Arab revolutions made a small scandal out of the vacuity of the majority of the alternative musical projects in Lebanon; they were devoid of any content that reflected the genuine social reality, and did not reflect in any serious way what was happening in the country and around it.
The exception to this was hip-hop. Hip-hop artists naturally followed the productions of the rappers arriving from Syria: Sayyid Darwish, Latlateh, Khebez Dawle and Abo Gabi who sang several music genres. Collaborations materialized, such as «The Third Way», which includes: al-Ras, Nassereddine Touffar, Sayyid Darwish, Khebez Dawle, and Latlateh. Osloob, of the Palestinian project Kateebeh 5, produced the album «`al-hafa», featuring Syrian artists, including Abo Gabi and Sayyed Darwish.
Second, the National Conservatoire of Damascus, despite its harsh teaching methods and its emphasis on classical music instruction – as recounted by some of its students-, aided students to develop their individual talents and burnish their performance abilities.
Those musicians, with the skills they enjoyed, have added a new spirit to several Lebanese bands. Members of Tanjaret Daghet, for example, played with several groups there and guitarist Tarek Khuluki performed with drummer Dani Shukri at Eileen Khatchadourian’s album release party for «Butterfly» (Farasheh). Khaled Omran collaborated with several musicians, most important of which was Ziad Rahbani. About the experience, Omran said: «The sundry rhythms of Ziad’s music cross over between jazz and Latin jazz, and funk and oriental sometimes. I think I can play them all because I love them all». He added that he grew up learning from his father who was a rhythm musician and a connoisseur of oriental music.
Most of these musicians, according to Omran’s experiences, met to make music that they liked to listen to but couldn’t rehearse at the Conservatory. Most of them performed at whatever occasion available, including wedding parties, in order to save up to continue their studies in Europe, where the opportunities were supposed to be better.
These artists have infused Lebanese music with new styles. Recently, Qanunist Leila Mahmoud (24 years old) and oriental percussionist Ramy al-Jundi came to Beirut to take part in the Lebanese fusion band «Kameh», known to play fusion music production that was manifested in different recordings, in addition to concerts at Radio Beirut, hip-hop productions that were already mentioned, «Hijaz Hareb» album for Abo Gabi with «Kameh», and Tanjaret Daghet’s first and second to-be-released album produced by Raed Al Khazen, a Lebanese musician, composer and producer.
Also, Hello-Psychaleppo has recorded hip-hop tracks with Nassreddine Touffar and al-Ras while Lebanese-Syrian As-saaleek are also preparing to release new material.
Lebanese theaters and bars, from Mar Mikhael to Hamra, thirsted for new music, and two of them hosted Syrian musicians on a regular basis- Radio Beirut and Metro Al Madina – while all of them hosted the names mentioned here incessantly.
Unfortunately, this musical odyssey is not destined to settle without difficulties; Beirut, as "Watar of «Latlateh» says, has provided him with a space for expression and introduced him to other musicians and was musically generous with Khaled Omran by providing him ample opportunity, but has grown too small for its guests.
Syrian musicians have to put up with provocations in Lebanon on a daily basis. It is not easy for them to hear of insults or attacks in the news, nor to be faced with prejudices. Add to that, the General Security and residency laws have made it very difficult for them to sing, play music, stay in the country, or even move around, while security checkpoints have become a cause for fear.
«If I will ever miss Beirut, it’ll be because of the music there, not the checkpoints», Watar said. He has already departed to Europe, as have Abo Gabi and several other Syrian musicians and artists.
Omran, who still lives in Beirut, said that the city has forced him to interact with it sometimes, making him play just like it and Syria play, «violently».
Perhaps, in the future, these musicians and what they have produced together in Beirut will constitute the first brick to rebuild what wrongful Lebanese prejudices and politics have broken, and what the fires of Syria have burned. These collaborations will have to continue in one way or another, then, to salvage anything positive from the war that still wrecks Syria.
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