As the people flocked to the open air opera house, the opening of Ghalia Benali’s spiritual performance started with the name “Allah.” As she chanted the 99 names of Allah, she smoothly guided her audience into a transcendent spiritual realm.
Ghalia Benali’s concerts are a real spiritual journey that uplifts the soul and walks one into the rich gardens of Sufi poetry. It’s not only about her voice, it’s also about her presence, one that she masters eloquently and effortlessly.
At the concert, she shared the stories behind the songs with her audience and sang her audience’s favorite song, even after she officially ended the concert. When a Curlew joined her audience, she simply greeted the bird by chanting to it “Al Mulk Lak Ya Saheb Al Mulk “(God is the Owner of all Creation). This is a song that is associated with the presence of this specific bird. In Arab folk culture, the Curlew is known for its beautiful voice and is said to be chanting this song in bird language as a reminder to humans about the Creator and his Grace.
In addition to her remarkable presence in the moment, she also composes her own unique music. In this concert she had three music instruments with her, the oud, the contrabass and the percussion. She herself composes a style of music which puts poetry to music. Her attire is quite unique as she is dressed in traditional garments with a modern twist. With two golden braids and a feather in her hand, she embarks with her audience on an enchanting trip.
“I am a story teller,” she explains.
Born in Brussels to a Tunisian family, she spent all of her childhood in her hometown in southern Tunisia. “I grew up listening to the sound of Umm Kulthum and Sheikh Abdel Basset Abdul Samad,” explained Ghalia Benali about how Egypt played a great role in her cultural awareness at the time.
She remembered how Egyptian films, plays and music, and the Arab world in general, were integrated in her life as a Tunisian. How she longed to visit Egypt and, when she finally did, it was a dream come true. This love for Egypt and strong sense of belonging prompted her to embark on yet another creative journey. “A Film of My Egypt” is the name of Benali’s upcoming documentary through which she aims to track the cultural icons of Egypt and explore the traces they left behind.
After finishing her studies as a graphic designer, the multitalented artist released her first CD titled “Ghalia Benali Sings Umm Kulthum.” The CD was an immediate hit and granted her the title Ambassador of Arab Culture in Europe in 2009. Known for representing Sufi poetry and singing mainly in proper classical Arabic, Benali spent years roaming the world chanting and showcasing to foreign audiences the gems of the Arabic culture.
Benali also wrote and illustrated a book entitled “Romeo and Laila” in 2018 where she told the classic story of a princess who instead of sitting in her high tower, went down and saved her prince. This story reflected a lot of self-discovery from her personal journey and all about the boundaries between cultures, the Self and the Other. To Benali the Other is usually different from us but somehow it reflects us and teaches us something we did not know about ourselves.
The constant search and self-discovery allowed Benali to transcend so many limitations. She sang almost a 100 songs and toyed with musical fusions of Indian music, techno music, and new age music. Even her latest album “Azan” (A Call for Prayer) included lyrics that she incorporated with European classical music dating back to the 17th century.
Throughout the concert, Benali integrated the most beautiful Sufi verses. She started off with famous lyrics of Rabaa Al-Adawya:
My comfort is in my solitude where
my beloved (God) is always present
Then she followed it by Um Kulthum’s famous Sufi song “Hanat Al-Aqdar” (The Tavern of Destiny), written by Taher Abu Fasha and composed by Mohamed El-Mougy.
She then surfed into the Quartets of Persian Sufi poetry icon Omar Al-Khayam followed by a song by Sufi pillar Sahra Wardi.
Benali also shared with her audience one of the songs that is to be released in mid-May among a collective album entitled “In the Footsteps of Rumi.” Benali sings the Arabic verses of Jalal Al-Din Al Rumi, which were never sung before. Rumi’s translated poems have been sung and recited before but this is the first time someone sings the verses Rumi actually wrote in Arabic and not Persian.
“Though this coming song is not Sufi per se yet I would like to play it here with my band who first played it with me some 20 years ago,” explained Benali to her audience about choosing the Egyptian song “Ya Msafer Wahdak We Sayebni” (You Who are Travelling Alone and Leaving Me Behind.)
After singing the famous song composed and sung by Mohamed Abdel Wahab, she decided to integrate a Sufi song in response to the previous one. Inasmuch as we are all on a journey somehow and usually traveling alone, Benali sang a poem by Sufi pillar Al-Hallaj:
After being apart I became certain that
being close and apart are the same.
Then she added verses from Halajj as well:
I swear that with every dawn and sunset,
I love you (God) with every breath I take.
Then she sang her famous song Hayamatni (She Bedazzled Me) a famous Arab folk song that goes like this:
Oh she bedazzled me,
she bewildered me, and took my full attention
The audience sang along to one of the songs in which she excels and with which the audience is quite familiar. After the concert officially ended and upon popular demand Benali agreed to sing the Tunisian folk song Lamouni Elli Gharo Menni (I was Blamed by Those Jealous of Me) with the audience singing along with her.
