Today's post features a cassette that was the source for several of my favorite selections on the compilation of Mauritanian guitar music that I put together back in 2010--the compilation was called Wallahi le Zein!: Wezin, Jakwar, and Guitar Boogie from the Islamic Republic of Mauritania and released (on CD) on the Latitudes label in 2011.
Mohammed Mahmoud ould Meilid, popularly known as 'Klayhid', was born in 1972 in the department of Tintane, one of the four departments of the Hodh el Gharbi region, in south eastern Mauritania. (The town of Tintane, the capital of the department of the same name, is 50 km closer to Bamako than to Nouakchott.) Klayhid does not come from an iggawen (griot) family, but grew up with el-Hawl, evenings of classical music and poetry under a nomadic tent. By his early twenties he started to sing, spontaneously and occasionally, during musical events organized in villages around Tintane. The audience reaction was so encouraging that Klayhid decided, in 1998, to perform for a living. Very quickly his reputation and cassettes spread beyond the Hodh el Gharbi, making their way 700km west to Nouakchott, Mauritania's capital and musical hub. His growing popularity was also met by snubs and condemnation, including from iggawen who contested his right to make a living performing el-Hawl, the art music of the beydane (ethnic moors).
Klayhid's reputation was further boosted by his participation in one of the earliest episodes of a national television program called 'Mauritania Roots' (see the wonderful clip below), filmed on location in Tintane. Over the last twenty years, Klayhid has created his own distinct style, a mid-tempo repertoire based on the traditional tidinitt repertoire of shwar, melodies with strong associations with particular places, persons, and events. His principal musical partner over this time has been his cousin Kweli ould Seyyid, a guitar player with a gift for counterpoint. (In the early years of his career Klayhid was also often accompanied by Ahmed al-Taleb ould Issa.) Although he continues to encounter resistance, Klayhid's talent has been recognized by some of Mauritania's biggest stars. In 2008, he performed with Ooleya mint Amartichitt and he has recorded with Mohammed ould Hembara.
Klayhid remains committed to the socio-musical context that inspired him to start singing, preferring to sing for small groups of attentive listeners enjoying an evening of music and poetry under a khaima (the traditional nomadic tent) than for the larger, and more lucrative, crowds at Nouakchott's weddings. [His artistic preference may also reflect the fact that as a non-iggawen he receives fewer invitations to perform at weddings and life-cycle rituals.]
In a recent interview, Klayhid was asked how he thought the shift from the 60/90 minute cassette tape to the mp3 file and mini-SD card, as the means of documenting and distributing music, has impacted Beydane music. 'The cassette tape', he answered, 'was the perfect medium for el-Hawl. It encouraged careful and sustained listening. A 60 or 90 minute cassette could capture an entire musical event, including all of the modes, with one gradually leading into the next. This is the opposite of the mini-SD card which has made it possible to skip from song to song. This accelerated form of listening cannot initiate new generations into the mysteries and magic of el-Hawl.'
Download Mohammed Mahmoud ould Meilid 'Klayhid' & Kweli ould Seyyid
This cassette is perhaps Klayhid's finest 90 recorded minutes of Hawl. This is a beautiful document, recorded on the 25th of June, 2001, capturing a musical evening shared amongst a small group of friends. Klayhid is accompanied by Kweli and a percussionist. The music gets increasingly intense over the course of the evening, with Kweli playing up a storm to bring the event to a close. This is one of the rare cassettes to benefit from a near perfect mix between the guitars, the t'bel, and Klayhid's voice and to also capture the beautiful rippling tone of the phased out guitar. If you listen closely you will hear the evening's patrons reciting verses (gav) of poetry that Klayhid then sings, as well as tea-glasses clinking against the serving platter.
It is worth taking your time with this recording. This cassette gives you a good sense of the emotional arc of an evening of hawl.
This wonderful video features Klayhid and Kweli performing in Tintane. This was shot by and broadcast on Mauritanian national television. The resolution is not the greatest but the clip is well worth your time. The opening scenes are fantastic.
Much of the detail in this post was taken from this interview done by Ali Damin and Ahmed Eby. Many thanks to them for the insightful interview!
Mohammed Mahmoud ould Meilid, popularly known as 'Klayhid', was born in 1972 in the department of Tintane, one of the four departments of the Hodh el Gharbi region, in south eastern Mauritania. (The town of Tintane, the capital of the department of the same name, is 50 km closer to Bamako than to Nouakchott.) Klayhid does not come from an iggawen (griot) family, but grew up with el-Hawl, evenings of classical music and poetry under a nomadic tent. By his early twenties he started to sing, spontaneously and occasionally, during musical events organized in villages around Tintane. The audience reaction was so encouraging that Klayhid decided, in 1998, to perform for a living. Very quickly his reputation and cassettes spread beyond the Hodh el Gharbi, making their way 700km west to Nouakchott, Mauritania's capital and musical hub. His growing popularity was also met by snubs and condemnation, including from iggawen who contested his right to make a living performing el-Hawl, the art music of the beydane (ethnic moors).
Klayhid's reputation was further boosted by his participation in one of the earliest episodes of a national television program called 'Mauritania Roots' (see the wonderful clip below), filmed on location in Tintane. Over the last twenty years, Klayhid has created his own distinct style, a mid-tempo repertoire based on the traditional tidinitt repertoire of shwar, melodies with strong associations with particular places, persons, and events. His principal musical partner over this time has been his cousin Kweli ould Seyyid, a guitar player with a gift for counterpoint. (In the early years of his career Klayhid was also often accompanied by Ahmed al-Taleb ould Issa.) Although he continues to encounter resistance, Klayhid's talent has been recognized by some of Mauritania's biggest stars. In 2008, he performed with Ooleya mint Amartichitt and he has recorded with Mohammed ould Hembara.
Klayhid remains committed to the socio-musical context that inspired him to start singing, preferring to sing for small groups of attentive listeners enjoying an evening of music and poetry under a khaima (the traditional nomadic tent) than for the larger, and more lucrative, crowds at Nouakchott's weddings. [His artistic preference may also reflect the fact that as a non-iggawen he receives fewer invitations to perform at weddings and life-cycle rituals.]
In a recent interview, Klayhid was asked how he thought the shift from the 60/90 minute cassette tape to the mp3 file and mini-SD card, as the means of documenting and distributing music, has impacted Beydane music. 'The cassette tape', he answered, 'was the perfect medium for el-Hawl. It encouraged careful and sustained listening. A 60 or 90 minute cassette could capture an entire musical event, including all of the modes, with one gradually leading into the next. This is the opposite of the mini-SD card which has made it possible to skip from song to song. This accelerated form of listening cannot initiate new generations into the mysteries and magic of el-Hawl.'
Download Mohammed Mahmoud ould Meilid 'Klayhid' & Kweli ould Seyyid
This cassette is perhaps Klayhid's finest 90 recorded minutes of Hawl. This is a beautiful document, recorded on the 25th of June, 2001, capturing a musical evening shared amongst a small group of friends. Klayhid is accompanied by Kweli and a percussionist. The music gets increasingly intense over the course of the evening, with Kweli playing up a storm to bring the event to a close. This is one of the rare cassettes to benefit from a near perfect mix between the guitars, the t'bel, and Klayhid's voice and to also capture the beautiful rippling tone of the phased out guitar. If you listen closely you will hear the evening's patrons reciting verses (gav) of poetry that Klayhid then sings, as well as tea-glasses clinking against the serving platter.
It is worth taking your time with this recording. This cassette gives you a good sense of the emotional arc of an evening of hawl.
This wonderful video features Klayhid and Kweli performing in Tintane. This was shot by and broadcast on Mauritanian national television. The resolution is not the greatest but the clip is well worth your time. The opening scenes are fantastic.
Much of the detail in this post was taken from this interview done by Ali Damin and Ahmed Eby. Many thanks to them for the insightful interview!
Thank you for sharing and the info! I'm very curious to hear this one! Looking forward!
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