Khaled Habbash: «The lovers» embody our dream of returning

"Dubai Opera" gathered members of the Palestinian "lovers" group, who were separated in countries of expatriation on more than one continent, as the group presented its concert, the day before yesterday, to a wide audience of "lovers", who have always been the voice of Palestine and the cause of the cause.

Khaled Habbash, one of the founders of the band, asserted to «Emirates Today» that the “lovers” have monitored during the past decades the Palestinian pain from the homeland to the camps, and then to the exile, and still today they reflect the Palestinian dream of returning. He considered that the cultural struggle is the basis of any revolution and cause, and that art is an integral part of this struggle.

On the band's history, Habash said: "The band was founded primarily by the Media and Culture Department of the Palestine Liberation Organization, and the starting point was from series songs, and was later developed by producing songs of its own." Regarding the preparations for return, he noted that after the interruption of work and the division dispersed more than once in more than one country, the collection process was the most difficult task, as the old generation of founders delivered this new generation to Palestine and the heritage of the country, and this is the goal of business continuity, pointing out that The songs were developed, and everything new was introduced, as his brother Muhammad Habash is working on providing various tunes.

Time changes from the change in the general form of division during the past years, Habbash saw: «It is natural that changes will occur over time, at the beginning (the lovers) took it upon themselves to document all stages of the struggle of the Palestinian people, from the Qassam revolution, to the first and second uprisings, and to what happens Now, as the band gave its opinion on the deal of the century, and what happens through a song, the issue has gone through many events and has been kept up with art. ”

He stressed that they believe that "politics remains a policy, so act alone, but for the band what it means is Palestine and its heritage, and all that its people have gone through, and to preserve Palestinian dignity and strength", adding that "the switch that took place is artistic development, in the beginning the band was dependent On the law and the permissible and the rhythms, while today added instruments accompanying the development of music, and also gave the rhythm a bit of modernity, and this is what makes the young and old find what he is looking for in the band of lovers ». He stated that «the change of the form of art and music during these periods, led to a few changes in the words presented by the band, as the original heritage songs lead to new and modern rhythms, and the band has come to tell the world in the language of the times. The band dealt with important names in poetry, among them the late poet Mahmoud Darwish, and this makes it facing a permanent challenge to find poets on the same level.

Syrian words

Habash continued: "Poets are tired with us to present a word on the level of the words the band sang in the past, while today there is a poet named Hossam Hanouf, who is Syrian, who presented us with words bearing the full Palestinian sense and we were dazzled by what he presented." The group carried the Palestinian cause and the revolution with an intellectual dimension, and Habbash saw that the retreat in the issue occurred with the departure from the cultural struggle because it is the basis, because the occupation fights on a cultural level, through the use of Palestinian fashion and food as it is for him, as he seeks to build a history for him. He added: “We know Palestine from the memory of the fathers, and we know exactly the features and homes from the memory, and just as the (lovers) have established a culture, they play a role in preserving the issue, as one song is able to present the issue more than the political talk that may last a whole year.”

He considered that the songs of the "lovers" monitor the Palestinian pain, but there is no doubt that the dream is dominant. The hope of every Palestinian is return and the homeland, and the "lovers" were part of the identity, and sang for the Qassam, Al-Aqsa, Jaffa, Haifa, the sea and all the towns, cities and camps of Palestine.

The band faced a lot of challenges in this era, and Habash limited the main obstacles in general in how to deal with the song in order to reach the people, because the band suffered at some point from the financial capabilities, as there were those who worked and contributed to writing words and melodies for free, while The biggest challenge was securing registration costs, and the solution was to build a rooftop buffer room in Yarmouk camp to record the first songs, but later it was difficult to record songs in this room. He continued: “We all worked to provide all that we have to continue the work of the band, and my brother Muhammad is working to overcome the difficulties, through the works that he presents for the series and in the teams, as he passes Palestinian songs through them, and he was able to provide a good library, so that we can continue our message ».

Cooperation with Mohamed Assaf

Khaled Habbash confirmed that the band met the artist Mohamed Assaf, and there is talk of a joint work that will bring the young artist together with the band, through one or two songs that he will present. He praised Assaf and his seriousness in presenting a good image of Palestine, and this is what the band seeks to prepare for the new generation to preserve the Palestinian heritage.

- Our start was from a room

On the roof in

Yarmouk camp

To record the songs

The first.

- Dubai gathered members of the "Lovers" squad who

They dispersed in countries of expatriation on more than one continent.