2nd Syrian Heritage Song Festival at Al-Azzem Palace in Damascus highlights diversity of the Syrian musical heritage

The activities of the Syrian Heritage Song Festival, in its second edition, were launched on Sunday at Al-Azzem Palace in Damascus, with the aim of preserving the Syrian musical heritage.  The activities of the festival, held by the Ministry of Culture and Directorate of Theaters and Music, last for three days and include a variety of traditional songs that reflect the richness of the cultural and social fabric that characterizes the Syrian people throughout ages.

The activities of the first day of the festival included songs presented by the Syrian Heritage Band, led by Maestro Nazih Asaad, who told SANA reporter: “The criterion for selecting the traditional songs that will be sung over a period of three days sought to highlight the diversity that characterizes the Syrian heritage.”

On his part, journalist Idris Murad, the founder and organizer of the festival, stressed the importance of preserving the Syrian singing heritage also involving the younger generation so that they learn about their rich and diverse heritage.

The first day of the festival started by celebrating four components of the Syrian musical heritage where singer Haya Al-Shamali represented, with her voice, the singing heritage of the regions of Aleppo and Idlib, sang three traditional songs: “Skaba Ya”, “Halla, Halla Ya Jamlo”, and “Aliana Aliana”.

On the other hand, Singer Marie Hospian graced the Armenian singing heritage with her voice as she sang three songs, one of them was about flirtation called “Sing for Me”, the second was about the Armenian wedding ceremony and the last one was a flirtation traditional Armenian song from the Mosh region in Armenia.

As for the singing heritage of the coastal region, singer Bashar Nizam sang two traditional coastal songs called: “Mountains between Me and my Beloved” and “Jafleh”.

The first day concluded with traditional Sufi songs from Homs city that were sung by Suleiman Harfush.

These young voices strive to embody the cultural diversity in Syria and contribute to enriching the audience’s artistic experience.

It is noteworthy that the Syrian Heritage Song Festival, in its first edition, was launched last year and came to crown the efforts of Idris Murad and Maestro Asaad, after many experiences over many years of work to preserve the Syrian musical and lyrical heritage.

Leen Al Salman