Setelah menghasilkan 14 buah album EP dan 11 LP,
Raja Gambus Malaysia Fadzil Ahmad telah meninggalkan jasad nya untuk kehidupan baru, beliau merupakan artis kegemaran bapa ku, maka adalah sedikit “sentimentalnya”...
Kalau di negara-negara latin dah tentu khabar ini merupakan satu berita sedih silap-silap boleh cuti satu negara
…segalanya perlu bermula dengan pembentukan budaya
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di sini aku lampirkan petikan biodata beliau dalam bahasa inggeris:
FADZIL AHMED
Fadzil Ahmed, affectionately known as the “King of Malaysian Ghazal”, was born on the 12th of June 1941 in Muar, Johore. His interest in music developed at a fairly early age, particularly as a result of watching bangsawan performances. His father, who was a musician, was also instrumental in developing this early interest in Fadzil. At the age of eighteen, Fadzil’s career as a singer and musician began when he joined the Setia Ghazal Party in his hometown. Muar is, in fact, the place principally associated with ghazal music in Malaysia. This is also the home of the more famous Seri Maharani Ghazal troupe, of which Fadzil became a member later on. Fadzil received training under four well-known gambus teachers. During the time that he was with the Seri Setia Ghazal Party and the Sri Maharani Ghazal, Fadzil’s fame as a musician spread far and wide. Seri Maharani Ghazal published 11 long-playing (LP) records, 14 extended-play (EP) records as well as numerous audio cassettes with Fadzil as gambus musician. These recordings confirmed Fadzil’s standing as Malaysia’s leading gambus player.
It is noteworthy that the instrumental repertoire for the Malaysian gambus does not derive from that of the original Arab or Middle Eastern gambus, but from the Malay asli music. These pieces are played in the ghazal style, using a range of north Indian as well as Western instruments. A typical orchestra would, for instance, consist of the harmonium, the tabla, a guitar, a gambus, a violin, as well as a mandolin. The gambus, however, serves as the lead instrument. The vocal accompaniment is in the Malay language.
Fadzil has visited forty countries, principally as a member of exchange troupes through the Malaysian Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism, which he joined in 1976. Shifting from administration to teaching, he worked, until his recent retirement, as gambus instructor at the National Cultural Komplex (Kompleks Budaya Negara), under the same Ministry. These days, Fadzil teaches music on a part-time basis at the five-year-old National Arts Academy (Akademi Seni Kebangsaan) in Kuala Lumpur.In addition to being a highly successful gambus musician, Fadzil has also done some acting and directing. He has built up a small collection of musical instruments of the oud family, acquiring these in Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt. His own preference is for the smaller and lighter Turkish gambus since a musician can play it while standing.
