"There is nothing more interesting than forging new styles, and nothing more exciting. The biggest attraction is being mysterious."
Fathy Salama in HE, spring 2003.
Fathy Salama was born by the Nile, when he was a child he swam there with his friends.
He grew up listening to the family radio, which played the music of Oum Kalthoum, Mohamed Abdel Wahab and Farid el Atrash.
Later, when he could tune the radio, he reached beyond the banks of the Nile to Jazz and to a huge variety of world traditional music.
Learning the piano from the age of six was a good beginning and was followed by gigging in Cairo clubs from the age of thirteen. Soon the kid of Shobra, Harlem of Cairo, made it to Europe and to NewYork to learn Jazz with such great artists as Sun Râ, Barry Harris, Hal Galper, Malik Osman, Pat Patrick and Ossman Kareem.
Progressing to creating many hits in Cairo during 80's (Amr Diab, Mohammed Monir, Aly Al Haggar, Anoushka), touring the world, and winning two prizes for his film sound tracks (Fallen Angels Paradise's and Signs Of April), it is with Sharkiat (is own group) that Fathy is making his dreams come true of merging modern and traditional music together, thus expressing both a message from his home country and his love of music.
His music reflects his experience from the Orient and from Europe. His "success" on the music market plays a secondary role ; first and foremost he wants to be understood, and so he works tirelessly on this bridge linking traditional and modern music from the Orient.
Today the adventure takes him towards new journeys, allows him to rub itself to other audiance, other musicians. Fathy kept his passion for the discoveries.
With a big smile under his beard, Fathy dashes into the electronic adventure with Kouchari or his meeting with Alix Roy. and sacred music with Egypt latest Youssou N'Dour album (Grammy Award for Best Contemporary World Music Album and BBC Award).
1980 to 1988: composed and arranged music for Egyptian pop stars like Amr Diab, Mohammed Monir, Aly Al-Haggar, Anoushka, etc.
1989: started his group Sharkiat, played numerous concerts in Egypt, Europe, Africa, Japan and Pakistan and touring the world until now.
1991-1993: composed for the Egyptian National Theater.
1994: performed in the Berlin Jazz Festival with the German oud player Roman Bunka and Malachi Favors (bass player from the Art Ensemble of Chicago). A collaboration that ended up with the CD Color Me Cairo.
1994: started the second group Gouzour, presenting traditional Arab rhythms. They toured Egypt, Italy and France.
1996: created for the Cairo Opera House a show with Manuel de Paula (vocals) and Nino Carrion (guitar) to explore the relationship between Flamenco and Arab music.
1997: Sharkiat worked with a rock group from Switzerland The Maniacs. They released the album Don't Climb the Pyramids and toured Europe and Egypt.
1998: Algerian female singer and dancer Karima Nayt started working with Sharkiat. They toured Europe, Pakistan, Algeria and Egypt. A CD for Karima has been recorded to be released soon.
1998: gave a workshop at the Rhythmic Music Conservatory in Copenhagen.
2000: won two first prizes in the Cairo International Film Festival for the soundtracks of Fallen Angels Paradise and Signs of April.
2001: created the first multimedia show Kouchari using electronic music, Egyptian traditional rhythms and visuals. Salama toured Europe with the project.
2002: started a workshop on Rango and Zar and had several performances, last in Essaouira Festival in 2005.
2002: worked with the Danish composer Lars Bo to produce a big show Oriental Cut, the project toured Scandinavia.
2004: Egypt was released, a Grammy Award winner for Best Contemporary World Music Album in 2004. Egypt is a collaboration between Salama and Senegalese singer Youssou N'Dour. Salama toured with the project throughout Africa, Europe, and the United States. Egypt won a BBC Award too.
2004: collaborated with Italian composer Eugenio Bennato to work on Taranta music from the South of Italy. They performed in Egypt and toured Italy and Algeria.
2005: collaborated with the internationally renowned Norwegian Jazz Saxophone player Trygve Seim. Together they played in Egypt and toured Norway. Salama gave various workshops during his tour in Norway at different Conservatories.
2006: Collaborated with the french DJ and producer Alix Roy.
Discography
1991 Camel Dance (Face Music Switzerland)
1994 Color Me Cairo (ENJA Record Germany)
1996 Camel Road (Face Music Switzerland) (Cross Currents Music USA)
1998 Don't Climb The Pyramids (Barraka Switzerland) with Les Maniacs
2003 Maqsoom & Mashy El Hal Maxis vinyles (Les Disques Sérieux)
2004 Egypt (WEA Warner) by Youssou N'Dour with songs composed and arranged by Fathy Salama.
2006 Sultany (Incognito)
Compilations
1997 Egypt, music of the Nil from the desert to the sea (Virgin France)
1998 Cairo to Casablanca, an Arabic musical odyssey (Putumayo World Music)
2004 Ottomanic (Irma)
Press
"Please , do not ask him to be made the symbol of the Egyptian folk music, he is unlike those that sculpture the fashions."
Florence Carrique-Allaire, A Nous Paris ! (France) May 14 to 20, 2001
"Fathy Salama made the music and the arrangements for most of the current stars, among whom Amr Diab … In the secret of his studio, Fathy Salama works out technoïdes pearls."
Christophe Ayad, Libération (France) July 20, 1997
"The Egyptian group Sharkiat creates a deep and talented interbreeding the jazz and the pop, played mainly on traditional instruments enters the world music."
Billboard (United States) October 25, 1997
"Tracks evoke a whole spectre of different, brilliant and lyric atmospheres as much as dark and threatening, quite served by an impressive and net production."
Andy Morgan, Stern (Great Britain)
