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Khalife's walk towards peace
Much of what is known about Khalife comes from the stage and his being under the spotlight. But in a one-on-one, there is something rather peculiar about this legend.
- By Marten Youssef, Staff Reporter
- Published: 22:50 November 8, 2008
- I cannot be political. I am a musician who is always looking for peace in even the smallest things, says Khalife .
- Image Credit: Marten Youssef/gulf news
Inspired by friendship, a genius created and performed works to the memory of a legend.
Marcel Khalife sits at the edge of his seat in front of a lineup of reporters who eagerly shower him with questions. In between his answers, he brushes a hand through his salt-and-pepper beard and locks his eyes on the floor, listening attentively to the questions.
However awkward the question might be, his answers seem almost poetic. Much of what is known about Khalife comes from the stage and his being under the spotlight. But in a one-on-one, there is something rather peculiar about this legend.
He is a genius — by definition and trade. As most geniuses are, Khalife is different. Everything from his interaction with people to his movements indicates a persona unlike that of the average person. His attentiveness and ability to absorb all that's happening around him puts him in a league of his own.
Born in Lebanon in 1950, Khalife grew up in a rural part of the country and was influenced by Christian music and Quranic recitations from an early age. His parents enrolled him in a music school where he developed a love for the traditional Arabic instrument, the oud.
His home was close to Palestinian refugee camps, which grasped his curiosity and compassion and he sought to learn more about their plight. This experience would shape much of his music, poetry, life and pursuit.
When Khalife was just 20 years old, he was teaching people twice his age. By 1975, the start of the Lebanese Civil War, Khalife was playing songs to the backdrop of bombs and gunfire. He griped the nation for momentary lapses of hope, peace and national unity. These three would become the most accurate description of Khalife's music.
His own love for poetry and the Palestinian cause, made him cross paths with the late Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish.
"What he wrote in poems, I coloured it with music," Khalife says of his relationship with Darwish. "My music benefited from his words and his words benefited from my music."
From the bombarded halls during the civil war to the orpheums of the west, Khalife has integrated seamlessly the western style music with oriental sounds.
"We cannot describe or translate music. We cannot put a language to it. We can only feel it. My music is my expression of humanity, joy, pain and beauty," he says eloquently.
His music and lyrics have become so distinct and recognised across the Arab world that he was chosen in 2000 as the UNESCO Artist of Peace, among a prestigious 44 artists worldwide.
"I cannot be political. I am a musician who is always looking for peace in even the smallest things. Peace is like a distant light that you keep walking towards.
"No matter how far the distance is, you just keep walking towards it. It is a destination and a dream and if you loose that dream you lose all hope," Khalife says.
Darwish remembered
Marcel Khalife, the world renowned composer, poet and oud musician, performed on Thursday and Friday night at the Emirates Palace in front of more than 2,000 people at an event to honour his friend, the late Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish.
Khalife, an entertainer who often has to keep the audience from clapping and singing aloud, engaged the audience through singing songs reminiscent of Darwish.
The event saw Khalife deliver premiere performances of recitations about Darwish. Through his profound and poetic words, Khalife brought to life the memories of a legend who sought to strengthen ties between the Palestinian people and the Arab world. Far from sombre, this was a celebration of the life Darwish had lived.
Khalife performed a combination of classical and Arabic genres, fusing together the piano, clarinet, tabla, bass and oud.
A gala dinner followed the event on Thursday as a fund-raising tool. The Abu Dhabi Music and Arts Foundation hosted the event to benefit the charity A Child a Promise, an organisation which aids children in refugee camps.
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