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Performing on the oud (the Arabian short-necked lute) and the tar (the ancient single-skinned frame drum of the upper Nile), along with his gentle voice and original compositions, Hamza combines the subtleties of Arabic music with the indigenous music of his native Nubia. He has single-handedly forged a new music, essentially a Nubian/ Arabic fusion but one in line with both traditions and informed by Western conservatory training. His music has captured the interest of listeners worldwide.

First discovered by Western audiences through his performance at the Newport Folk Festival, the U.N. Human Rights Day and Vanguard recordings in 1964, his 1971 Nonesuch recording, Escalay: The Water Wheel is legendary among musicians and connoisseurs. The Escalay album, 1971 Nonesuch recording, was re-released in 1998. His best known recording in the U.S. is Eclipse, produced and engineered by Grateful Dead percussionist Mickey Hart. Hamza's music has also appeared in movies soundtracks including the Black Stallion, You Are What You Eat and, The Passion in the Desert. Hamza has appeared regularly with the Kronos Quartet, which included Escalay: the Water Wheel on their chart-topping Pieces of Africa album (Elektra/ Nonesuch, 1992). From 1995 to 1997, Hamza toured most of the world. Hamza's 1996 album, Available Sound: Darius debuted from Lotus Records (Salzburg, Austria) and was nominated for the European equivalent of the Grammy, the Preis der Deutschen Schallplatten Kritik. A new CD, A Wish, by Sounds True was released in May 1999. Hamza's compositions were performed by many ballet companies such as Maurice Bejart Ballet, Paris Opera Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, Molissa Fenley Dance Company and Lines Contemporary Ballet in San Francisco.

Hamzaeldin.com:
This is the second of Hamza's groundbreaking Vanguard discs, every bit as forceful today as they were when they were released. Al Oud is perhaps Hamza's most aggressive recording, playing with a fervor that ignites love in even the hardest of hearts.



Amazon.com reviewer:
Al Oud plays from the start like a well scripted concert. Each song takes hold of the ear, guiding us to the next. The transition from each track glides without seams. Hamza gives the listener a perfect balance between his simple and beautiful oud playing and a voice so gently harmonious. Hamza El Din is a technical master of oud and voice. This is why he can give us his true expression. What he wants to pour into the listener, is as easy to him as drinking water. This is a true gift.

Wikipedia biography:
Hamza El Din (b. Toshka, Egypt, July 10, 1929; d. Berkeley, California, May 22, 2006), was a Nubian oud player, tar player, and vocalist. Born in the village of Toshka, near Wadi Halfa in southern Egypt, he is considered by some to have been the father of modern Nubian music. Originally trained to be an electrical engineer and after working in Cairo for the Egyptian national railroad, El Din changed direction and began to study music at the Cairo University, continuing his studies at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome; he also studied in Ibrahim Shafiq's Institute of Music and the King Fouad Institute for Middle Eastern Music, and traveled in Egypt on a government grant collecting folksongs. His performances attracted the attention of the Grateful Dead, Joan Baez, and Bob Dylan in the 1960s, which led to a recording contract and to his eventual emigration to the United States. Like much of Egyptian Nubia, his home village of Toshka was flooded due to the construction of the Aswan High Dam in the 1960s, creating in El Din a drive to preserve and promote his culture.

In 1964 and 1965, he recorded two albums for Vanguard Records; his 1968 recording Escalay: The Water Wheel is recognized as one of the first world music recordings to gain wide release in the West, and was claimed as an influence by some American minimalist composers, such as Steve Reich and Terry Riley. In this period, he mentored a number of musicians, including Sandy Bull. Later, he released albums for Lotus Records and Sounds True. His album Eclipse was produced by Mickey Hart. He performed with the Kronos Quartet on an arrangement of Escalay in 1992. His pieces were often used in ballet performances and plays.

El Din held a number of teaching positions on ethnomusicology in the United States during the 1980s and 1990s (in Ohio University, University of Washington, and the University of Texas), eventually settling in the San Francisco Bay Area after studying the biwa in Tokyo Japan during the 1980s. In 1999, he released his last album, "A Wish".

He died on Monday, May 22, 2006, at the age of 76, after complications following surgery for a gallbladder infection at a hospital in Berkeley, California. He is survived by his wife, Nabra.

Hamza El Din - voice, oud, and tar

Song Titles:
1. Assaramessuga (Childhood) - comp. Hamza El Din, lyrics Mohi El Din Sherif
2. Shortunga (The Spirits) - comp. Hamza El Din, lyrics Mohi El Din Sherif
3. Annun Sira' (Grandfathers' Stories) - comp. Hamza El Din
4. Gillina Nura (Did Nura Remember) - comp. Hamza El Din, lyrics Mohi El Din Sherif
5. Hoi To Irkil Fa Giu (The Message Bearer) - comp. Hamza El Din, lyrics Mohi El Din Sherif
6. The Gondola - comp. Hamza El Din, lyrics Mohi El Din Sherif
7. Nuban Uto (Call for Unity) - comp. Hamza El Din, lyrics Mohi El Din Sherif
8. Kogosh (The Fortune Teller) - comp. Hamza El Din, lyrics Mohi El Din Sherif
9. Abdin (Greeting Card) - comp. Hamza El Din, lyrics Mohi El Din Sherif