Gaida Hinnawi
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Gaida Hinnawi

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This band has not uploaded any videos

Music

Press


"Santoor in the East Village"

"...a simply amazing vocalist. Of Syrian descent, she has amazing vocal control and a great ability to weave about and hover around the melody in a way that draws your ear in and forces you to pay attention...beautiful, beautiful vocal music." - soundofblackbirds.blogspot.com


"Listings"

"Syrian vocalist Gaida Hinnawi keeps one foot in the Arabic-music tradition, evoking the emotional storminess of legendary figures like Warda and Om Kalthoum. But her filigreed singing—not to mention the broad, if restrained, palette afforded by her expert band …—suggests all manner of exotic new possibilities". - Time Out NY


"Review: Gaida Hinnawi at the Stone"

"And when this magnificent Lady starts singing, her Passion is infectious. She draws you in; shares with you her joy, her pain and her bright, strong spirit. This is a rare and fine gift for the listener, straight from her open heart"  - nasrudra blog


Discography

Debut CD, Hayat wu Hub ("love and life") to be released in September, '08

Photos

Bio

Gaida Hinnawi is a vocalist and composer working at the intersection of the New York Arab and improvised music scenes. Her compositions draw at once on classical Arabic song, Syrian folk traditions, and free improvisations that expand on traditional Arabic maqams (modes) to produce an original and highly personal style marked by great emotional intensity. An acclaimed singer from an early age, Gaida was raised in Damascus and later lived in Kuwait, Paris, and Detroit, where she received classical voice training at Wayne State University. Now settled in New York, Gaida works with leading Arab and creative-music artists such as Amir ElSaffar, Brahim Fribgane, Tareq Abboushi, Omer Avital, and Rufus Cappadocia. She also is a member of other New York based groups including Ayyoub, Zikrayat, and Tarab Ensemble. Gaida has composed and recorded for major motion pictures, including Jonathan Demme's Jimmy Carter: Man from Plains, in which she recorded with Gillian Welsh and Alejandro Escovedo. Gaida also maintains a parallel career as a speech pathologist.

In her own words...
"Many Arabic songs express the pain generated from missing the loved ones who traveled or migrated leaving behind their homes, families, and memories. In addition, there is another genre of poetry that is created by the immigrants themselves, called Adab Elmahjar (Expatriate Literature), a genre which includes poems expressing longing for the homeland and constant homesickness in all its complexities.
 
My writing stems from the themes of love, longing, and caring. It is my wish for survival and strength for all facing this harsh period of time. It is my prayer for peace between my new homeland and first homeland, and that no one I love gets hurt- and I love all. It is about my love to all human beings and to the earth. These dilemmas of being far and helpless while one's mother, father, old friends are in danger is far more complicated than I can express in words. These feelings I can only express in my music and in my voice-the genuine reflection of my soul."