[Perform-Talk] Interesting and Unique: A Blind Orchestra from Egypt

[Leslie Hamric]

This is so cool!
Leslie Hamric
Cello and Braille Music Teacher

> On Jan 20, 2024, at 12:20 PM, Ella Yu via Perform-Talk <perform-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> Hey everyone, I am posting the following simply for interest and curiosity.
> 
> 
> 
> Through some (random) searching around online, I discovered that there is a
> very unique orchestra in Egypt comprised entirely of women and girls who
> are blind or have significant vision loss. The orchestra consists of around
> 45 musicians ranging in age from teenagers to adults in their forties. It
> is a full (albeit small) symphony, with standard string, woodwind, brass,
> and percussion sections. They play orchestral works typical in the western
> repertoire, such as Mozart and Tchaikovsky, as well as works by Egyptian
> composers and more oriental works.
> 
> 
> 
> As a fairly high level blind musician who plays violin and viola in
> orchestral settings, I find their story and situation very interesting,
> unique, and inspiring. They truly are a one-of-a-kind group, having
> overcome numerous social, economic, and cultural barriers to get to where
> they are today, and I think there are some interesting lessons to be
> learned from their story.
> 
> 
> 
> The Al Nour Wal Amal (translated as light and hope) Orchestra is run by the
> nonprofit association with the same name. This association was established
> in 1954 to provide academic and vocational training for blind women and
> girls to help integrate them into society. In 1961, the association
> established a music institute and orchestra to introduce blind girls to an
> art form they would excel at, and given them an outlet to express
> themselves. Since then, the orchestra has given many performances, both in
> Egypt and on tour around the globe.
> 
> 
> 
> The orchestra members learn and memorize their parts using braille music
> notation. The conductor then works with each section of the orchestra
> separately to help familiarize them with how their parts fit together
> before bringing the whole group together. Since all the musicians are
> blind, the conductor uses alternative rehearsal techniques to guide them to
> performance level. For example, he taps a baton on a table to help them
> learn the tempo, and sings the notes and melody to guide them into playing
> the right notes at the right time. The conductor is not usually onstage
> during performances; he counts them in at the beginning of the music but
> otherwise sits back to relax. You can learn more about how they rehearse by
> watching videos here
> <https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-middle-east-20008432> and here
> <https://www.facebook.com/alnourwalamalaorchestra/videos/1191387861752376/>.
> You can look up more videos of their performances on YouTube.
> 
> 
> 
> Most of the members of the orchestras have lives outside of music. Many
> have university degrees and jobs, some are married and have children. They
> come from middle and lower income family backgrounds. Most are Muslims, and
> all of them wear bright-coloured scarves and dresses on stage, rather than
> the typical black/white seen in western orchestras.
> 
> 
> 
> The orchestra members begin their musical education at around age 7 or 8.
> They spend the first year becoming literate in music reading before they
> choose an instrument to learn. Once they are advanced enough, they join the
> orchestra. They do academics in the morning and music in the afternoons.
> 
> 
> 
> Although they do not play at the level of a western professional symphony
> orchestra, it is quite obvious to me that they play well together as an
> ensemble. I’d say they sound pretty similar to an intermediate-advanced
> youth or amateur community orchestra or a lower level non majors college
> orchestra. As you may know, western classical music is not big in Egypt,
> not to mention that there isn’t a lot of funding, so their playing level is
> expected given those circumstances. Still, I find it quite incredible that
> they thrive together in an orchestra, given their socio-economic and
> cultural situation.
> 
> 
> 
> The following articles and videos give a pretty good glimpse into their
> lives.
> 
> https://fellowsblog.ted.com/an-intimate-glimpse-into-a-remarkable-egyptian-orchestra-for-blind-women-23f6c1c9444f
> 
> https://nfb.org/images/nfb/publications/bm/bm96/brlm9607.htm#8
> 
> https://english.ahram.org.eg/News/170306.aspx
> 
> https://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/5/33/41424/Arts--Culture/Music/Humbled-by-Music-Al-Nour-Wal-Amal-Orchestra.aspx
> 
> Overall, doing research on the Al Nour Wal Amal Orchestra has been an
> eye-opener for me. Relative to the western world, Egypt is not a very
> accessible place to live for a blind individual, and with the lack of
> classical music culture overall, seeing a western classical-style orchestra
> thrive is quite the sight to see.
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiZGlj0JlYk&pp=ygUbImVneXB0IiAiYmxpbmQiICJvcmNoZXN0cmEi
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Mg_5hlLg-8&pp=ygUXbmlsZSB0diBmaWtyeSBvcmNoZXN0cmE%3D
> 
> Here’s a master's degree thesis
> <https://studenttheses.uu.nl/handle/20.500.12932/445> which takes an
> interesting look at their situation.
> 
> 
> 
> My Personal Reflections
> 
> 
> 
> First of all, I find it very interesting how braille music literacy has
> been adopted in a location and situation where you kinda least expect it.
> Let’s face it, most blind musicians who learn in a classical-oriented
> environment aren’t pushed to learn braille music to the degree they should,
> at least in my opinion, although that is slowly changing. From what I can
> tell, it is a ton of work for them to procure braille scores for large
> volumes of music, since they appear to be manually copying music onto
> sheets by hand using a slate and stylus. I personally think the process can
> be sped up a lot using the technology we’ve come to know in the western
> world, but the high costs of procuring and maintaining technology is
> understandably out of reach for them. I’m sure they do use computers, but
> they likely do not have the funds to purchase and maintain a braille
> embosser for printing out their braille music, for instance.
> 
> 
> 
> The alternative rehearsal techniques they use are also quite interesting.
> They are quite different from what I’m used to in practice and performance,
> since I’m a blind musician playing alongside sighted musicians. I think
> there is quite a big difference between an orchestra that is comprised
> entirely of blind musicians and an orchestra where one or a few members are
> blind/visually impaired while everyone else is sighted. Seeing the
> situation of the Egyptian blind orchestra, I am incredibly grateful for all
> the technology I have access to that makes my life as a blind orchestral
> musician easier. Being able to locate recordings on the internet to
> practice along with is integral to how I learn and memorize my parts, and
> having access to a braille display and software that can convert MusicXML
> to braille is a huge blessing.
> 
> 
> 
> Overall, I think this is a unique and wonderful case study of how musicians
> with disabilities can partake in an art form that is traditionally not
> inclusive of differently able musicians. Let’s face it, there are many
> sighted musicians and educators who are concerned blind musicians can’t
> participate fully in orchestra because they can’t see the conductor,
> although this attitude is slowly changing. As this Egyptian blind orchestra
> and the personal experiences of myself and others show, not being able to
> see the conductor is not a major hindrance to full participation in large
> ensembles. Yes, you do lose some information from not being able to see the
> conductor, but there is a lot you can pick up from listening to your
> section-mates and the other musicians around you. In fact, I’ve seen my
> orchestra directors telling everyone to listen more and not be so buried in
> the music, which of course is a non-issue for me. There are things to
> overcome, and there are times when you may need the help of your fellow
> musicians to cue you after long pauses or tempo changes, but it can be done.
> 
> 
> 
> I also think there is a difference between being in a string section vs
> being alone on your part as a member of the woodwind, brass, or percussion
> sections. I noticed this for myself after a conversation on a mailing list
> with a blind trumpet player on this very topic. As a string player, there
> is an element of safety in numbers that just doesn’t exist in the other
> sections of the orchestra. For instance, if I’m not 100% sure exactly where
> to come in, I can get away with starting a fraction of a second late, and
> no one will really notice, since I’m one out of eight or ten people in a
> string section. (Pizzicato is a bit of an exception, in which case I might
> just miss the first note, and still, no one will really notice). On the
> other hand, if you’re alone on a woodwind, brass, or percussion part, you
> are much more exposed, which means you need to be much more precise and on
> the ball when it comes to timing. One challenging issue faced by string
> players, though, is the coordination of bowings. I myself haven’t really
> bothered to find a solution to this, and the only way I can be 100% certain
> that my bowings line up with my section is by going through the incredibly
> tedious process of going over bowings with a section mate, which just takes
> way too much time, not to mention bowings are something that can change
> quickly with a moment’s notice. In the Egyptian blind orchestra, I guess
> all bowings are already marked in the music ready to go, so everyone is
> just expected to follow it as written.
> 
> 
> 
> In conclusion, doing research on the Al Nour Wal Amal Orchestra has been an
> eye-opener for me. Relative to the western world, Egypt is not a very
> accessible place to live for a blind individual, and with the lack of
> classical music culture overall, seeing a western classical-style orchestra
> thrive is quite the sight to see. Generally speaking, inclusion of disabled
> citizens is much better in western countries than in the east, but there is
> lots of room for improvement everywhere.
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