Mohammed Fairouz facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Mohammed Fairouz
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Fairouz at work on his second symphony in New York City, 2009
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| Born | November 1, 1985 |
| Occupation | Composer |
| Years active | 2002–present |
Mohammed Fairouz (born November 1, 1985) is an American composer. A composer is someone who writes music. He is known for creating many different kinds of music, including songs, operas, and symphonies.
Fairouz started writing music when he was young. He studied at famous music schools like the New England Conservatory of Music and the Curtis Institute of Music. Some of his teachers were well-known composers like Gunther Schuller.
Today, Fairouz lives in New York City. Many people consider him an important new voice in music.
Contents
Vocal Music: Songs and Stories
Fairouz loves to set poems and stories to music. He once said he was "obsessed with text," meaning he really enjoys using words as a starting point for his compositions.
He has written hundreds of songs and many "song cycles." A song cycle is a group of songs that are meant to be performed together, often telling a story or exploring a theme.
- Three Fragments of Ibn Khafājah: This piece uses poems by an old Arab poet from a place called Al-Andalus (which was in Spain).
- Furia: This song cycle was written for a singer named Randall Scarlata. It uses texts that talk about the Middle East.
- Jeder Mensch: This work was created for singer Kate Lindsey. The words come from the diaries of Alma Mahler, who was a famous musician's wife.
- Audenesque: This is another song cycle that Kate Lindsey sang. It was released on a major music label called Deutsche Grammophon.
- Bonsai Journal: Fairouz worked with a living poet named Judson Evans for this piece.
- Pierrot: This is a theatrical song cycle, meaning it's like a mini-play with music. He wrote it with Wayne Koestenbaum.
- Unwritten: This cycle was commissioned (meaning someone asked him to create it) by a music group called Lunatics at Large. It uses texts by poet David Shapiro.
Zabur: A Big Musical Story
Fairouz also wrote a large musical work called Zabur. It's an oratorio, which is like an opera but usually performed without costumes or staging. Zabur tells a story using both Arabic and English words. It features a full orchestra, a big choir, a children's choir, and solo singers. It was first performed in April 2015.
Operas: Musical Plays
Fairouz has written several operas, which are plays where the story is told mostly through singing.
Sumeida's Song: A Village Story
His first opera is called Sumeida's Song. It's based on a play by an Egyptian writer. The opera is about a character named Alwan who returns to his village in Egypt. He tries to bring new ideas and stop a cycle of violence, but it shows the difficult results of his efforts.
The New Prince: A Political Opera
In 2015, it was announced that Fairouz was working with a famous American author, David Ignatius, on a political opera called The New Prince. This opera was inspired by the ideas of Niccolò Machiavelli, who wrote about how leaders gain and keep power. The opera explores themes like revolutions and the challenges leaders face.
Opera About the Bhutto Family
Fairouz is also creating a new opera about the lives of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto. They were important political leaders from Pakistan. This opera features well-known singers like Nathan Gunn and Kate Lindsey. The story for the opera is being written with a Pakistani author named Mohammed Hanif.
Orchestral Music: Big Sounds
Fairouz has written music for large orchestras, including symphonies and concertos.
Symphonies: Grand Musical Journeys
He has composed four symphonies. A symphony is a long musical piece for a full orchestra.
- Third Symphony, Poems and Prayers: This symphony includes solo singers, a choir, and an orchestra. It uses poems from Arab and Israeli poets, as well as prayers. It was first performed in February 2012.
- Fourth Symphony, In the Shadow of No Towers: This symphony is for a wind ensemble (a group of wind instruments). It was inspired by a graphic novel (a comic book in novel form) about life in America after the events of 9/11. The New York Times newspaper called it "technically impressive" and "deeply moving."
- First Symphony, Homage to a Belly Dancer: The last part of this symphony is based on an essay about a famous Egyptian belly dancer named Tahia Carioca.
Concertos: Solo Stars with Orchestra
A concerto is a musical piece where one or more solo instruments play with a large orchestra.
- Cello Concerto: This piece was written for the cellist Maya Beiser and was first performed by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.
- Violin Concerto, Al-Andalus: This concerto was written for violinist Rachel Barton Pine and the Alabama Symphony Orchestra.
- Double Concerto, States of Fantasy: This concerto is for two solo instruments, a violin and a cello, playing with the orchestra. It was inspired by a book with the same title.
- Clarinet Concerto, Tahrir: This work was written for clarinetist David Krakauer. Its title comes from Tahrir Square in Cairo, Egypt, a famous public square.
- Akhnaten, Dweller in Truth: This is a dance scene for cello and orchestra. Its name comes from a book by Naguib Mahfouz.
Chamber and Solo Music: Smaller Groups
Fairouz also writes music for smaller groups of instruments (chamber music) and for single instruments (solo music).
- Wind Quintet, Jebel Lebnan: This piece was written for the Imani Winds group. It tells a musical story about events from the Lebanese Civil War.
- Lamentation and Satire: This is a piece for a string quartet (two violins, a viola, and a cello).
- The Named Angels: Another string quartet piece, this one is about the stories of angels in Middle Eastern folklore.
- Native Informant: This is a sonata (a piece for one or two instruments) for an unaccompanied violin, meaning the violin plays by itself. It was written for Rachel Barton Pine.
Recordings
Many of Mohammed Fairouz's works have been recorded so people can listen to them. Here are some of his albums:
- 2008 – Boston Diary
- 2010 – As It Was, Is, and Will Be
- 2011 – Critical Models
- 2012 – Sumeida's Song
- 2013 – Native Informant
- 2013 – In the Shadow of No Towers
- 2014 – Poems and Prayers
- 2015 – Follow, Poet
- 2015 – Scrapyard Exotica
Images for kids
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Fairouz at work on his second symphony in New York City, 2009
