Google Doodle celebrated the anniversary of the huge success achieved by Sudanese composer and oud player, Asma Hamza, who was known as the oud princess.
On July 19, 1997, Asma was the first Sudanese female composer to win the national music competition Laylat Al-Qadr Al-Kubra, which was a turning point in her career and helped her gain recognition in a male-dominated field in her country.
Her first popular work was composing the music of the “Al Zaman Al Tayb” written by Sudanese poet Saifeddine el-Desouki, and sang by Sudanese singer Sumaya Hassan in 1983.
Born in 1932, Hamza loved music from a young age, dreaming of becoming a singer. However, her vocal cords were not equipped to handle singing safely, so she switched to whistling melodies instead. When her father heard her whistle in harmony, he borrowed an oud (similar to a lute but with a thinner neck and no frets) so Asma could practice.
She taught herself to play oud using her memory and her musical sense. Despite that it was not socially tolerable for women to practice music in Sudan during her time, her father was one of few who encouraged her interest in music. According to Google, Asma composed her first musical piece in secrecy.
The first music she ever composed was “Ya Ouyouni” for a poem by Egyptian poet Ali Mahmoud Taha, in 1956.
With time, she collaborated with many talented Arab artists. She composed over 90 songs and became one of the most renowned female composers in Sudan. She also kept playing oud and officially became the first trained oud player in 1946.
Asma Hamza died in May 2018.
