The crossover between Western classical and Arab pop comes through in this example from the Queen of Arab Pop, Fairuz.

Last year I got to witness one of the best conference sessions I’ve seen. Mia Ibrihim presented on Arab popular music at the Modern Band Summit, and everyone in attendance actively participated in the musical traditions of Arab culture. I was interested in this topic particularly because I have many Arab students. I love popular music, but i appreciate popular music that helps me to further connect with my students by way of their culture. Mia mentioned Fairuz, and that so much of Arab pop samples Western classical music. It was a fascinating connection to have made, and I am still not sure why there is such an overlap there.

Mia left this earthly realm in December of last year. They were brilliant and they had so much more to share. As educators, we need to understand cultures outside of our own far more than we do. We need to create connections and deepen the ones that we find, such as the connections present in Fairuz’s music. Mia knew that, and Mia pursued that all of their living days on earth. It is all of our job to finish their work.

You can purchase Mia’s book, Embracing Arab Popular Music in the Music Classroom, from F-Flat Publications (proceeds benefit the Mia Ibrahim Scholarship Fund) and make a donation to Doctors without Borders as they had asked people to.

Intro: Nouhad Wadie Haddad, better known to her millions of adoring fans as Fairuz, is arguably the most famous Arab pop singer and a hero in her home nation of Lebanon. In 1999, the New York Times referred to her as “a living icon without equal.” Her first hit came in 1952, when she was just 18, and she became an immediate cultural symbol of Lebanon. “Ya Ana” may have been composed for one of several musical shows Fairuz collaborated on with her husband and brother-in-law, this one titled Mais el-rim. The official release date is unclear in English media, but this song can also be found on her 1972 live album Nas Men Warak. She has released over 80 albums and sold 150 million records, putting her in the sales ranks of Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen. She has been recognized and awarded by multiple national governments, including Syria, Jordan, Palestine, Tunisia, Egypt, France, the US, and her home country of Lebanon.

Analysis: This song samples the first movement of Mozart’s Symphony no. 40. The song mirrors Mozart’s composition very closely, with the sung melody matching the melody in the strings exactly. Of the 1500 songs she composed with her husband and brother-in-law, this is one of several that samples classical work, including “Li Beirut,” which sampled Joquin Rodrigo’s Concerto de Aranjuez.

Considerations for Teaching: This song contains no inappropriate language or thematic material, even as sung in Arabic. It is a gentle love song, adding a matching vocal melody atop a well-known Mozart piece. This song could demonstrate past capacity for genuine cultural exchange — the most famous Arabic-language singer using the melody from a widely known Eurocentric classical symphony. This song is foundational to classical sample listening.