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Hossam Ramzy

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Hossam Ramzy
حسام رمزي
Born(1953-12-15)15 December 1953
Cairo, Egypt
Died10 September 2019(2019-09-10) (aged 65)
Brazil
Instrument(s)Traditional Egyptian Darbuka, Zills, The Mazhar
Years active1970–2019
LabelsARC Music

Hossam Ramzy (Arabic: حسام رمزي; 15 December 1953 – 10 September 2019) was an Egyptian percussionist and composer. He worked with English artists including Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, Siouxsie Sioux, as well as with Arabic music artists like Rachid Taha and Khaled.

Early life and career

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Ramzy was born into a wealthy Cairo family. He began playing the traditional Egyptian Tabla goblet drum at an early age. In the 1970s he moved to London and began playing with saxophonist Andy Sheppard. His collaborations with jazz musicians earned him the nickname "The Sultan of Swing".[1] In 1989 he worked with Peter Gabriel on the soundtrack to Martin Scorsese's The Last Temptation of Christ.[2] This brought him to the attention of artists Frank Asher and the Gipsy Kings.

In 1994 he returned to his roots and formed a ten piece Egyptian ensemble that performed on the album No Quarter: Jimmy Page and Robert Plant Unledded. Ramzy and his ensemble also gained exposure by touring with Plant and Page throughout 1995 in support of their album.[3][4] The next year Ramzy released the first of three collaborations with English arranger Phil Thornton, Eternal Egypt. The success of Eternal Egypt's blend of Traditional Egyptian music prompted the follow-up albums Immortal Egypt and Enchanted Egypt.[5] In 1996, Hossam and his percussion section played with Big Country in Dingwalls club, and the live album Eclectic was released. In 1998, he performed with Rachid Taha, Khaled and Faudel at their 1,2,3 Soleils concert and backed Khaled again for the Claude Challe album Flying Carpet.[6]

In 2000, Timbaland sampled his version of "Khosara", an Egyptian song by Abdel Halim Hafez, for the Jay-Z song "Big Pimpin'". After 2000 Ramzy increasingly began to work arranging music for pop stars. In 2005 he arranged some songs for Ricky Martin's album Life and he worked with Shakira on her album She Wolf. He also contributed two songs to the soundtrack for the film Prince of Persia and one to the soundtrack for Conan the Barbarian.

His last album titled Rock the Tabla released on 30 August 2011. It features Indian composer A. R. Rahman, Omar Faruk Tekbilek, Manu Katché and Billy Cobham.[7]

Personal life

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Hossam lived in London and Cairo. He is survived by his three children Louvaine, Omayma and Amir.[8] He made a cameo appearance in the 1993 film Son of the Pink Panther.

Awards

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  • 1999 New Age Voice Award for Best Contemporary World Music for Immortal Egypt

Selected discography

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References

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  1. ^ Hijazi, Muhammad (25 July 1992). "Global Music Pulse". Billboard. p. 36.
  2. ^ Holden, Stephen (14 June 1989). "The Pop Life". New York Times. Retrieved 26 September 2011.
  3. ^ Catlin, Roger (19 October 1995). "Saturday Afternoon". Hartford Courant. p. 15.
  4. ^ Kot, Greg (28 April 1995). "Blues Tinged Hip-Hop: G. Love Updates the Delta Sound". Chicago Tribune. p. O.
  5. ^ "Enchanted Egypt: An Interview with Phil Thornton". New World Music. November 2004.
  6. ^ Broughton, Simon (2006). The Rough Guide to World Music: Africa & Middle East. p. 477. ISBN 1-84353-551-3.
  7. ^ Takiff, Jonathan (13 September 2011). "Upcoming: Country, blues-jazz blends". Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on July 10, 2012. Retrieved 26 September 2011.
  8. ^ Reid, Graham (7 October 2004). "Gift from Egypt to the globe". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 26 September 2011.
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