Younan performed at the Cairo Opera House on 2 August and is scheduled to hold a second concert Thursday, 4 August, at Bibliotheca Alexandrina's open-air theatre.
When you sleep you will see A sweet dream
Enormous swarms of doves Flying in the meadows
When I catch a glimpse of your little mouth Smiling happily
I will pray my little baby 'God, grant him more dreams'
Sleep my sweetheart, now fall asleep,”
Thus the Swedish-Syrian Faia Younan sang to a packed open air theatre of the Cairo Opera House on Tuesday, 2 August.
The lyrics are from Younan’s widely acclaimed single Nam Ya Habibi (Sleep, my Sweetheart), written by poet Mowaffaq Nader, set to music by Mohanad Nasr, and dedicated “to our country’s children,” Younan told the Cairene audience.
“You see, nowadays, mothers [in Syria] put their kids to sleep not knowing if this will be their last cradle song. This lullaby is therefore dedicated to our beloved country’s children who deserve to wake up every morning full of happiness and joy,” she said.
Throughout the course of the night, Younan performed an array of songs from her own budding repertory, as well as fine selections from the rich Arabic music library, particularly the musical repertoires of Egypt and the Levant, her beautiful voice giving a cool breeze to a hot August night.
Younan was accompanied by musicians Hani Bedair on percussion, Sherif Kamel on qanoun, Ahmed Nazmy on bass, and Rayan Habre on piano.
Opening the night, Younan delivered a hypnotic cover of late Lebanese composer, singer and songwriter Zaki Nassif’s masterpiece Ahwak (I Love You), which was adapted into a number of musical pieces by different musicians, including Lebanese musical icon Fairouz. Younan also revisited another of Nassif’s hits, Ya Ashiqata El-Wardi (Flowers’ Lover), later in the night.
Addressing the audience during Tuesday’s concert, Younan expressed her happiness to be in Egypt, adding that “the Egyptian audience is never easily impressed, which renders tonight’s performance a huge responsibility.”
“Tonight, we shall sing together and attempt to be happy, because our grief-stricken countries, and first and foremost my beloved Syria, deserve this happiness.”
