Abu-Bakr Khaïrat

Abu-Bakr Khaïrat (Cairo, 1910 – Cairo, 1963) was one of the first Egyptian composers to train in Western methods and to seek a distinctive musical language for his country. His name is associated both with concert music and with architecture, the profession he actually practised as a livelihood.

From childhood he was in contact with masters of traditional music who frequented his father's house. He began with the violin at the age of five, although he soon turned to the piano. After completing his university studies in architecture, he won a scholarship to study in France, where he received private lessons in piano, harmony and composition from teachers at the Conservatoire. On his return to Egypt, his career as an architect was successful: he designed the complex of the Academy of Arts, the conservatory and the Darwish Concert Hall.

His early work follows a Romantic style without specifically Egyptian features. Later he sought a national idiom, taking an interest in aspects of urban popular music. From this phase come the Symphony No. 2 'La folklorique' and works of local inspiration such as Lamma bada, a polyphonic version of an ancient muwashshah. Although his melody clearly reflects the national character, he also employed Western techniques; he was the first Egyptian composer to use sonata form, though he adapted it to materials of an Eastern lyrical character, which at times reduced the development section.

He founded and directed the Cairo Conservatory between 1959 and 1963, and received the state prize for composition. His orchestral music was performed in the USSR, Romania and Yugoslavia. His importance lies above all in his role as a pioneer of a generation that apparently had more enthusiasm than expertise, but which paved the way for Egyptian concert music.