Hassan Atia & His Orchestra Sudanese Songs 7" (Supraphone, 196?)
When one thinks of Sudan today, images of starving refugees in Darfur, tales of genocide and rape, and the thought of a society under the totalitarian heel of shaira law comes to mind. But there was a time before Fundimentalists took charge, a time when Sudan was a more tranquil place responsible for some of North Africa's most wonderful music.
My introduction to Sudanese music came in the 1980s, when I started picking up Folkways' Ethnic series. Prior to discovering Folkways and then Nonesuch, my "international" music knowledge was limited to hardcore bands from Finland, Japan, and Brazil. Anyone who knows hardcore, understands that the music tends to homogonize rather than bring out ethnicity. So really, Folkways and Nonesuch were the two labels that opened the musical world to me. Over a couple weeks I methodically raided every used record bin in Sacramento, stripping them of Folkways and Nonesuch Explorer titles. My ears were burning with all the new and wonderful noise: Pygmy songs, Indonesian monkey chants, Whirling Dervishes, Temiar dream songs. I was a Folkways/Nones sponge, but, still, I needed more. So I started buying international music that released on other labels. One day, I stumbled upon a small stack of records by the Nubian musician Hamza El Din. And then I found a record by Abdel Gadir Salim. I was hooked.
That El Din is from Nubia, the middle of Sudan, and Salim from Kordofan, in the west, told me that Sudan had a very rich musical culture and I was right. From Sufi songs to the folk music of the Dinka, the music is as rich as any place on earth. Today's artist, Hassan Atia is from the north of Sudan, a region with a long musical history.
Northern Sudan is predominately Muslim, thus it is no surprise that Twentieth Century Northern Sudanese music is derived from Islamic hymns, the first of these genres being Haqibah. Haqibah is a stripped down music, made up of harmonic a cappella vocals, with maybe a tambourine. The introduction of the oud revolutionized the music, giving it a bit more heft, and leading to a stain of lyrical music, often used to spread anti-imperialist/pro-independence messages. With the 1940s & 50s came many Western & eastern instruments. Violin, tabla, and accordion were added. Groups were organized as big bands, Western style in structure, Sudanese in sound. The music of Hassan Atia is a good example of post-Haqibah sound.
The music continued to evolve, many Sudanese artists gaining much popularity in North Africa and the Middle East. In 1989, Fundimentalists came to power and Islamic shaira law was imposed. Music that did not sing the praises of Allah or the state was banned. Many musicians went into exile. Those who didn't were kept from performing, imprisoned, and tortured. Miles of tape was erased. Records destroyed. The state tried to wipe out centuries of culture. (Don't think for a second that if Christian Fundimentalists had their way this wouldn't happen in the United States. Put Pat Robinson in charge and the Soriano archives get melted down in order to make more Amy Grant CDs, and I'd be hanging by my toes in some dank cell, force-fed Christian Contempory for refusing to bow to their Sky God.) Records like this, stuff that got out of or that where pressed outside of Sudan is the only musical record of Sudan before its decent into hell.
One thing about Sudanese music that appeals to me are the vocals. The voices are often full of sorrow and remind me of American country blues. Combine that vocal style with the sparseness of the instrumentation and the short orchestrated blasts and I am hooked.
Despite the title, this 7" is one long song, split into two parts. I found it at a Paris flea market for 1 euro. It was made in Czechoslovakia. I can't tell you any more about it than that.
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