Personal Info
- Country of residence: Palestine
Information
Mary Akkawi was a famous Palestinian
singer, who became famous in the forties of the last century. She had a singing
segment on “Hana al-Quds” radio, alongside her fellow popular singer Rajaa the
Palestinian, singer Rawhi al-Khammash and Fahd al-Najjar.
The well-known musician at the time,
Muhammad Abd al-Karim, composed for her the song “My Neighbor Laila” during his
visit to Jerusalem in 1936, which had a great resonance, as it was sung years
later by the Egyptian singer Faiza Ahmed. Sobhi Saeed composed her monologue “Where
is the Beloved” from the poetry of Dr. Mamdouh Hakki and “Ya Tira” from the
words of Salama Al-Aghwani.
her life
She enjoyed wide fame, as she was
known on Al-Quds Radio in the forties, and her reputation became famous for her
musical art, which prompted the Egyptian Radio in 1939 to host her and some of
her colleagues for a whole month. 25 entitled: (Radio Singers, a Palestinian
theme broadcasting from wireless radio stations in Cairo), including the singer
Mary Akkawi, who narrated her story with art and her joining Al-Quds Radio: “I
loved singing since I was young, so I used to sing songs and participate in
singing them with my fellow students at school, then I moved to Learning songs,
so I used to memorize them from the CDs of Miss Umm Kulthum, which affected me
more than others. It happened that I was invited to one of the family parties
some years ago, and I was still a student at that time, then the attendees
invited me to sing, so I sang, and among those present was a composer. A
well-known name, Mr. Yacoub, barely heard me until he expressed his admiration
for my good readiness to learn singing and advised me to learn its roots, and
he volunteered to be my first teacher. And singers... So I applied to her, and
Professor Yahya Al-Labbaidi, the artistic director of the Palestinian Wireless
Radio, invited me to test me. When I sang in front of him, he became convinced
that my preparation was good and my voice was good, and that I only lacked some
training and education. Professor Al-Labbaidi invited Professor Saleh
Al-Furuji, the well-known Egyptian singer, to teach me some songs And I
broadcast it when the Palestinian radio station was opened.
source
Achievements and Awards
- Years in active
: From
To