Haj Abderrahman ben Moussa (1908-1997) - Complete Qur'an on 60 cassettes published in Morocco, probably in the late 1980s - First set: cassettes 1 to 30

We post here - to celebrate the holy month of Ramadan - a complete Qur'an on 60 cassettes, recited by the outstanding Moroccan Qari (reciter) Haj Abderrahmane ben Moussa. In 2011 we had posted the first and last volume of this series in mp3 format. We also posted over the years a series of six volumes from a different series. See here. Now we post all 60 cassettes in flac and (better) mp3 formats.

Haj Abderrahmane ben Moussa (Abdul Rahman Benmoussa) recited in an old style, based on so-called Andalusian melodies. His recitations had a very refined musical and contemplative beauty. In this he was truly outstanding. I never heard any other reciter reciting his way. Nowadays this way of reciting seems to have disappeared. I had once an Algerian friend staying in our house. When he saw these Qur'an cassettes, he asked me to put on one of the cassettes. When he heard it he was very touched and happy. He said that this was the kind of recitation he used to hear in his childhood and that he had not heard it since decades. This friend talked to me about the beauty of these so-called Andalusian melodies, which are used in Arabo-Andalusian music, but even more so in Sama', the singing of spiritual or mystical poems of the Sufis, and by Haj Abderrahmane ben Moussa in Qur'an recitation. These are only known in Morocco and Algeria. Today one hears them only in the circles of very traditional Sufi orders.

"His full name is Abdul Rahman bin Ahmed bin Mohammed bin al-Bashir Benmoussi Hamasani Hasnawi Salawi, born in the city of Salé on August 28, 1908. Abdurrahman Benmoussa grew up in Beit Alam, where his father, the scholar Ahmed Benmoussa, was a jurist and modernizer. The memorization of the Qur'an was directed by Sheikh Abdul Hadi Ateobi, as taught to a group of elders such as Mr. Ahmed bin Abdul Nabi and Sheikh Abu Shuaib Aldakali and Mohammed bin Arabi Alawi. For a while he was at the service of King Mohammed V. Haji Abdurrahman Benmoussa used to pray in Ramadan with the king, his sons and his clan. In the framework of the construction of the Mulawiya school, Muhammad V commissioned him to teach the then crown prince Hassan II. Al- Sadeq Ma'nino (the former director of the Moroccan TV) said: The more difficult things were for King Mohammed V and the conspiracies of colonialism affected him and brought him into a state of distress, he would call Professor Abdurrahman Benmoussi to sit beside him and recite the Qur'an and recite a collection of verses. When King Mohammed V was banished to Madagascar he returned to the city of Salé. People got to know his voice through national radio, and then they got to know his image through Moroccan television in the early 1960s, which he opened and sealed with verses from the Holy Quran."

Based on a translation done with Google Translator from:
https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%B9%D8%A8%D8%AF_%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B1%D8%AD%D9%85%D9%86_%D8%A8%D9%86%D9%85%D9%88%D8%B3%D9%89

Here a short documentary in Arabic:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbrE71tMsAM

Vol. 1 - flac

Vol. 1 - mp3

Vol. 2 - flac
Vol. 2 - mp3

Vol. 3 - flac

Vol. 3 - mp3

Vol. 4 - flac

Vol. 4 - mp3

Vol. 5 - flac
Vol. 5 - mp3



Vol. 6 - flac
Vol. 6 - mp3

Vol. 7 - flac

Vol. 7 - mp3

Vol. 8 - flac

Vol. 8 - mp3

Vol. 9 - flac

Vol. 9 - mp3

Vol. 10 - flac
Vol. 10 - mp3

Vol. 11 - flac
Vol. 11 - mp3

Vol. 12 - flac

Vol. 12 - mp3

Vol. 13 - flac
Vol. 13 - mp3

Vol. 14 - flac
Vol. 14 - mp3

Vol. 15 - flac

Vol. 15 - mp3

Vol. 16 - flac
Vol. 16 - mp3

Vol. 17 - flac
Vol. 17 - mp3

Vol. 18 - flac
Vol. 18 - mp3

Vol. 19 - flac
Vol. 19 - mp3

Vol. 20 - flac
Vol. 20 - mp3

Vol. 21 - flac
Vol. 21 - mp3

Vol. 22 - flac
Vol. 22 - mp3

Vol. 23 - flac
Vol. 23 - mp3

Vol 24 -flac
Vol. 24 - mp3

Vol. 25 - flac
Vol. 25 - mp3

Vol. 26 - flac
Vol. 26 - mp3

Vol. 27 - flac
Vol. 27 - mp3

Vol. 28 - flac
Vol. 28 - mp3

Vol. 29 - flac
Vol. 29 - mp3

Vol. 30 - flac
Vol. 30 - mp3

The second set we will post in about a week or 10 days, insha'Allah.

CONGRÈS DE MUSIQUE ARABE DU CAIRE 1932 - THE CAIRO CONGRESS OF ARAB MUSIC 1932

Here an importent release which might have gone unnoticed by many music lovers. It contains, amongst other jewels, two and half CDs by the great master of Iraqi Maqam Muhammad al-Qubbanji.

CONGRÈS DE MUSIQUE ARABE DU CAIRE 1932 - THE CAIRO CONGRESS OF ARAB MUSIC 1932 - Coffret 18 CD avec livret trilingue français, anglais et arabe de 256 pages - Box of 18 CDs with a book of 256 pages in French, English and Arabic - Sous la direction de Jean Lambert et de Pascal Cordereix, Texte original de Bernard Moussali, Restauration sonore par Luc Verrier, CDs 1 to 10: Egypt, CDs 11 to 13: Mashriq (Near East), CDs 14 to 18: Maghreb (North Africa), LA BIBLIOTHÈQUE NATIONALE DE FRANCE

This box can be obtained from info@raga-maqam-dastgah.com for € 199,00 including postage.

"Le Congrès du Caire de 1932 est un mythe pour tous les chercheurs et les amateurs de la musique arabe en particulier et de la musique en général. Rares étaient ceux qui avaient, jusqu’à cette édition, accès à ces enregistrements. Après un important travail de restauration du son effectué dans ses studios, la BnF, en collaboration avec l’émirat d’Abou Dhabi, et sous la direction scientifique de Jean Lambert (Centre de recherche en ethnomusicologie), publie l’intégralité des enregistrements du Congrès du Caire, authentique document d’archives sonores de plus de dix-huit heures de musique, soit 18 disques compacts accompagnés d’un livret descriptif de 256 pages. 

Le Congrès de musique arabe qui s’est tenu au Caire en mars-avril 1932 a fait date dans l’histoire de la musique au XXe siècle. Première manifestation scientifique d’envergure consacrée à des musiques non occidentales, il a permis la rencontre entre musicologues occidentaux et orientaux. Il est le premier congrès de musicologie à consacrer une part importante de ses travaux à l’enregistrement sonore d’interprétations de référence. C’est dans ce cadre que la filiale égyptienne de la firme His Master’s Voice de la Gramophone anglaise enregistre 334 faces de disques 78 tours, enregistrements non destinés à l'époque à une diffusion commerciale. Quatre-vingt-deux ans plus tard, l’art et le savoir de grands musiciens du monde arabe deviennent accessibles.

Il s’agit de la première manifestation scientifique d’envergure consacrée à des musique savantes non occidentales. Le Roi Farouck d’Egypte avait confié l’organisation au musicologue Franco-Britannique Le Baron Rodolphe François d’Erlanger. Ce congrès du Caire 1932 à fait date dans l’histoire de la musiques du XX siècle."

It is for the first time that the complete recordings of this historical event are published. In the 1990s there existed 5 CDs (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia & Iraq) published by Club du Disque Arabe and a double CD published by Institut du Monde Arabe. These are no longer available for more than 10 or 15 years. This is truly an outstanding publication for lovers of classical Arab music.

Abdel Hamid Hussain (1932-1992) - Qur'an Karim - Warsh Recitation from Morocco - Cassette, probably from the 1980s, published in Morocco

Another wellknown Qur'an reciter (Qari) from Morocco. He represents a style quite different from the very beautiful one of the outstanding Haj Abd er-Rahman ben Moussa, of whom we posted eight cassettes (see here).

This is the only cassette by Abdel Hamid Hussain we have. Warsh is the version (or reading) of the Qur'an used in Morocco.

On YouTube one can find a complete Qur'an by him: 

https://www.youtube.com/user/alhouma100/videos 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4vyz-aE90E

wave

mp3

Mohammad al-Zahraoui - Sufi Songs (Sama') - Cassette published in Fes, Morocco

Since 27th of may it is Ramadan again. To celebrate it, especially the blessed nights, we post here some cassettes and LPs of Sufi ceremonies, Munshidin from Syria and Qur'an recitation.

First a cassette from Morocco, which I bought in an Islamic bookshop in Brussels in the late 1980s or early 1990s. It contains: Amdah (songs of praising Allah) & Dhikr (remembrance of Allah), Mouloud an-Nabi (celebration of the birthday of the Prophet (saws)) and Wafa ar-Rasoul (?) (I don't know what this means exactly). This is a typical repertoire as it is sung in the first part of a Majlis, a Sufi gathering.

wave

mp3

Abderrahim Abdelmoumen - Tartil Al Karie - Qur'an Recitation from Morocco

On the occasion of the beginning of the blessed month of Ramadan a beautiful Qur'an recitation from Morocco. Abderrahim Abdelmoumen is a well known Qur'an reciter, Munshid (singer of religious and Sufi songs) and a singer of Arabo-Andalusian Noubas. Here he recites the two last Hizbs (sections) of the Qur'an.

Side 1:

Hizb 'Amma: Surates 78 - 86

Side 2:

Hizb Sabbih: Surates 87 - 114

flac

mp3

"Natif de Tanger, Abderrahim Abdelmoumen, par ailleurs licencié en droit privé, a commencé son parcours dans le chant spiritual au sein de la zaouïa de Tanger, où il a appris les règles du chant soufi et reçu les principes et les valeurs du soufisme au contact des grands maîtres du domaine. Les liens tissés entre le chant spirituel marocain et la musique andalouse lui ont permis d’explorer les secrets de cet art et de former son propre style.

En 1999, il enregistre un CD de musique andalouse à l’Institut du Monde Arabe, avec le groupe du conservatoire de Tanger sous la direction de Cheikh Ahmed Zaitouni. Il est membre d'une association Italienne impliquée dans les traditions du monde, « Multifrazione Projettit », sous la direction du maestro Luigi Cinque avec lequel il enregistre « Tangerine Café » en 2003. En 2008, il participe aux semaines culturelles organisées par le ministère de la culture marocaine en Algérie, en Tunisie et en Syrie. Il enregistre également un CD de musique andalouse « Al Hadika Adai'a » (El jardín perdido) avec un groupe espagnol à Valence. En 2009, il enregistre la bande son d'un opéra pour marionnettes « Davia et le Sultan », avec la casa musicale de Corse, Amina Alaoui, Francine Massiani, Henri et Idriss Agnel.

Abderrahim a aussi chanté dans différentes villes du Maroc, avec les orchestres des conservatoires de Tanger (sous la direction de Cheikh Ahmed Zaïtouni), de Tétouan (avec Mohamed Amine Akrami), de Meknès (avec Tawfik Himmich), et les orchestres Omar Métioui, El Brihi (sous la houlette de Anas Attar), Chabab El Andalous (avec Amine Doubi), Abdelkrim Raïs (avec Mohamed Briouel), Layali Nagham (avec Abdesslam Khalloufi). Il a tourné en Afrique du Nord, en Europe et aux États-Unis."

http://www.imarabe.org/musique/mawal-un-parfum-de-tanger

Comment by Tim Abdellah on his blog Moroccan Tape Stash (http://moroccantapestash.blogspot.com):
"A lovely album of Qur'an recitation by Abderrahim Abdelmoumen, a Moroccan reciter who is also versed in Moroccan Andalusian Sufi singing. It's rare to hear Moroccan melodies and vocal stylings in Qur'an recitation, so this is a real treat."

Al-Haj Abd er-Rahman ben Moussa - Al-Qur'an al-Karim - TCK 678 - Cassette from Morocco

We post here one more cassette by Al-Haj Abd er-Rahman ben Moussa with beautiful Quran recitations, based on so-called "Andalusian" melodies, a style which has almost completely disappeared.

Before we had already published Vol. 1 and Vol. 60 of a complete Quran on 60 cassettes and five cassettes from this series (see here).  Originally we wanted to post this cassette already in february 2013, but abstained from it because this tape has unfortunately some weaknesses: the sound is partly muffled, especially on side 1 up to 11:05. Now on the occasion of the blessed month of Ramadan we finally decided to post it.  

Haj Abd er-Rahman ben Moussa was very well known in Morocco as he used to recite the Quran on Moroccan TV and radio for decades.

This volume is from a series of 8 cassettes. Some volumes were given to me as a gift by some Moroccan friends, some I bought in the late eighties in Brussels. There is also a complete Qur'an on 60 cassettes by him, of which we have posted already the first and last volumes and which I bought in the early or mid nineties, also in Brussels. I don't remember what inspired me in the beginning to look for recordings by him, but I did for many years. Two or three years ago one could still not find anything about him in the internet, but now there are a couple of sites from which one can download his recitations. As this style has more or less completely disappeared, now there seem to be people who feel the loss and are eager to get hold of his recordings.

Addition on 1 february 2015:

By now one can find many recitations by Al-Haj Abd er-Rahman ben Moussa on YouTube, for example the complete Qur'an in 5 parts here:
https://www.youtube.com/user/tanga1958/videos

If you put his name (abderrahman ben moussa) into the search bar of YouTube you will find many many more files.

There are now also 40 downloads to be found on platforms like Amazon, Deezer etc.

Side 1:

Surat al-Tauba (16:50)

Side 2:

Surat al-Ma'ida (16:38)

Download

Abdelkrim Rais (1912-1996) - Musique Andalouse Marocaine 2 - LP published in Morocco in 1973

Download mp3

Download wave

Abdelkrim Rais (1912-1996) - Musique Andalouse Marocaine 1 - LP published in Morocco in 1973

Download mp3

Download wave

See our earlier post of a cassette by the artist here.

About the artist see: http://musique.arabe.over-blog.com/article-18172382.html