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Cantando in Italia: AUC choir takes their music international
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Photo by Mahmoud El Masry GRAPES GRAPES GRAPES: Hassan Abouelrouss sings the popular hit single, Al-Aynab, or Grapes, at Palermo University. |
After a long trip to Italy, the 14 members of the American University in Cairo (AUC) choir took the stage of Palermo University charged with excitement. They left with their heads held high after winning first place in the music contest, carrying plaques engraved with Italy’s monuments.
“I’ve been on a lot of trips with AUC groups, but I am especially proud of this trip. As students we put this together and made it work. I feel like it is a great accomplishment,” said Dina Labib, student representative of the AUC choir.
The trip to Palermo University was a part of a cultural exchange program organized to give choirs around the world the opportunity to meet. Greek, Jewish, Italian and Egyptian students represented their country’s musical cultures through group and individual performances.
AUC’s performance varied from classical to modern pop music. Various members of the choir sang songs such as Helwa Ya Baladi, which roughly translates into My Beautiful Country, while one choir member, Hassan Abouelrouss, sang the popular hit single Al-Aynab, or Grapes, by Emad Ba’roor, for a solo.
“I wanted something that would give a different feel to the party… something exciting,” said Abouelrouss.
However, many of the students in the choir felt the song was too sha’abi, or folkloric, and that it would not be well received in a formal setting.
“People felt that the song was not up to AUC standards. We were really nervous since it didn’t seem like the right time for a song like that,” said Labib.
But Abouelrouss put his sunglasses on and stepped onto the stage, determined to give the Italians a true taste of Egyptian culture and the audience responded immediately. According to members of the choir, Abouelrouss’s performance “brought down the house.”
“There were people [belly dancing.] They were clapping and singing, even when they didn’t know the words or what they meant,” said Abouelrouss.
The AUC choral choir performance was so good that the president, or rector, of Palermo University, Giuseppe Silvestri, requested another performance on the second night of the program where the students performed for a larger audience and received the same type of welcome.
“It was as if a new band was playing. The minute the beat started you could see a change in the audience,” said Labib.
According to Labib, the experience was unforgettable for them. She said the choir is now looking into hosting a cultural exchange program where they plan to invite various universities from around the world in order to bridge cultural gaps.
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