Bond - Dancin' On A Saturday Night 1975 !FULL!

Back to the table of Contents Page Classifieds Palo Alto Online Publication Date: Friday, April 02, 2004 East to West East to West (April 02, 2004) Simon Shaheen honors two legendary Egyptian musicians by Dana GreenWhen Arab musician Simon Shaheen plays the oud , a traditional Arabic lute, his greatest hope is to put his audience in a trance. This experience, known as tarab -- a kind of musical ecstasy -- is unique to Arabic music."The listener feels elated, a numbness in the whole body," Shaheen said. "It brings out a great deal of emotions."In this state of tarab , the audience will often shout words of encouragement to the performer -- similar to the passionate cries of Ole ! when a Spanish flamenco dancer has duende , an inner force that inspires his audience."It's beautiful," Shaheen said of the mystical experience. "[It's] the ultimate bond between musician and listener." Shaheen has the opportunity to inspire a local audience on Saturday, when he performs with the Near Eastern Music Ensemble at Stanford's Dinkelspiel Auditorium. Presented by Stanford Lively Arts, the performance will be a tribute to two pillars of Arab music and culture: famed composer Muhammad Abdel Wahhab and legendary singer Um Kulthum. The two musicians, both Egyptian, are still revered in Arab countries. Both were masters of traditional Quranic chanting, and both were also virtuosos of improvisation and "ornamenting" music -- elaborating on the written composition. Wahhab, who composed thousands of songs and eventually starred in films featuring his music, touched each new generation with lyrics and contemporary ideas, according to Shaheen."He was a chameleon, rejuvenating his music [to] address each generation," Shaheen said. "His music reached millions." Kalthum, renowned for her impressive range and electrifying voice, emerged at a time when Arab nationalism was at its peak and radio first became available in the Middle East. Her weekly radio programs were a national institution in Egypt. Upon her death in 1975, millions of mourning fans flooded the streets of Cairo."She could go for hours," said Beth Youngdoff, a Stanford music department staff member and Middle East dance instructor. "From elite to peasants, people would gather around the radio to hear her. She was one-of-a-kind."Even as both musicians achieved great fame, they had never worked together -- until President Nasser, a friend to both, persuaded them to collaborate. "It indicates there was great competition there, which was healthy," Shaheen said. "They always had the greatest respect for each other. When they [worked together] in 1964 (Wahhab composed her landmark song, "Inta 'Umri"), it was a turning point in the world of Arab music."In that world, Shaheen has become well-known in his own right. Born in Tarshiha, a village in Galilee, Shaheen learned to play the oud from his father, a music professor and oud master. After studying in Haifa and Jerusalem, he emigrated to the United States in 1980, completing his studies at the Manhattan School of Music and Columbia University. Growing up in Israel was a challenge: A Christian Palestinian, Shaheen had to go through checkpoints to go back and forth between his home village and school in Haifa. During his schooling, he was unable to travel to Arab countries for performances. It wasn't until he became a U.S. citizen that he was able to freely travel in the Arab world. "1987 was my first trip to an Arab country," Shaheen said. "It was the first time I saw my aunt in Beirut. It was a very emotional experience."Perhaps it was these restrictions that led him to reject borders in his music. In 1996, Shaheen formed Qantara, a fusion band that borrows from a wide variety of musical roots, including Arab, jazz, and Latin-American music. The band was nominated for a Grammy for its recent CD, "Blue Flame."Shaheen formed the Near Eastern Music Ensemble in 1982 to preserve and perform the rich musical repertoire of the Near East, and to increase an awareness and appreciation of Arab music through concerts, recordings, workshops and lecture demonstrations. Based in New York, the ensemble performs the full repertoire of Arab music, from classical and folkloric music to new works.Despite his experiments with combining musical influences, Shaheen has always returned to conventional Arab musical forms."Sometimes people think I've abandoned traditional music," Shaheen said. "This is not the case. ... I always did both. I have always wanted to do the music of Wahhab and Um Kulthum."In Saturday's performance, the ensemble will tackle the early music of the two legends -- something not many Arab musical groups would dare to do, according to Shaheen. The ensemble, which will feature Shaheen on violin and the oud , will also include bass, qanun (zither), ney (Arabic flute), and riqq (frame drum). The group will include two singers, Youssef Kassab and 29-year-old Lebanese singer Rima Khcheich.The American public has welcomed Arab music, according to Shaheen, who has played at Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, and other major venues across the United States. Since 1994, Shaheen has produced the annual Arab Festival of Arts in New York, and has conducted hundreds of workshops to promote an awareness of Arab musical traditions."Wherever we go we have 700, 1,000 people," Shaheen said. "I've sensed ... an openness [that] Americans have to other traditions and cultures."He experienced this first-hand when he played a concert in Chicago only a few days after the destruction of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001."There were no flights ... luckily we were told that there was one flight leaving for Chicago," Shaheen said. "We performed at Symphony Hall, and it was packed. It was such a powerful performance -- there was a great deal of emotion."Shaheen believes that this emotional power, inherent in great music throughout the world, can ultimately erase barriers between Arab and Western cultures. "When I perform, I want to reach a moment of truth with the listener, a level of enchantment," Shaheen said. "If we have reached that level ... I have reached my goal." Who: Simon Shaheen and the Near Eastern Music Ensemble, presented by Stanford Lively Arts. The program will feature a tribute to Mohamed Abdel Wahab and Um Kalthum. Where: Stanford University's Dinkelspiel Auditorium When: Saturday at 8 p.m. A moderated pre-performance discussion will take place at 6:45 p.m. and will be free and open to the public. Cost: Tickets are $36 and $32. Half-price tickets will be available for people age 15 and under, and discounts will be available for students. Info: Please contact the Stanford Ticket Office at Tresidder Memorial Union, or call (650) 725-ARTS (2787) or visit E-mail a friend a link to this story.

Bond - Dancin' On A Saturday Night 1975

So it is that in proceedings under G. L. c. 210, Section 3, to dispense with the consent of natural parents to adoption -- such as the case at bar -- there must be a showing of grievous shortcomings or handicaps on the part of the natural parents which place the child at serious hazard. Petition of the New England Home for Little Wanderers to Dispense with Consent to Adoption, 367 Mass. 631, 646 (1975). Petition of the Dept. of Social Servs. to Dispense with Consent to Adoption, 391 Mass. at 118. Even where prospective adoptive foster parents have become a minor child's psychological parents (i.e., the child has bonded with them), there is no rule that these foster parents shall automatically prevail in a custody dispute over a natural parent. Ibid. Parents must be given ample opportunity to demonstrate an ability to provide proper care for the child. Petition of the New England Home for Little Wanderers to Dispense with Consent to Adoption, 367 Mass. at 646. The rights of the biological parents, however, are not absolute. Indeed, the paramount duty of courts is to consult the welfare of the child. Petitions of the Dept. of Social Servs. to Dispense with Consent to Adoption, 389 Mass. at 799. Neither the parental fitness test nor the best-interests-of-the-child test is to be applied to the exclusion of the other. Petition of Catholic Charitable Bureau to Dispense with Consent to Adoption, 395 Mass. at 184. Accordingly, whether a biological parent is currently fit to further the welfare of a child is to some degree a function of the needs of the child. Petition of Catholic Charitable Bureau to Dispense with Consent to Adoption, 18 Mass. App. Ct. at 661.

A native of Chicago, Miss Dunham-after a storied 35-year, worldwide career as a dancer and choreographer in the theater and in film-came to the SIU Carbondale campus in 1964 when she was invited to choreograph a student opera. It was during that time she first visited East St. Louis, which was to become her second home and base of operations. In 1967, Miss Dunham was appointed visiting artist-in-residence in what was then known as the Fine Arts Division of SIUE. She became a University Professor and adjunct professor of Anthropology in 1975 She retired in 1982. 041b061a72