and things went from there. All kinds of people,
from all kinds of backgrounds, are interested in learning, but it is not easy; students
need time to improve, and they have to understand the music fully before they can dance
well. Gaining this understanding is one of the most important aspects of Arabic dance.
Japanese people seem to love oriental music and dancing. Recently I performed at
Yamashita Park with Sadia, an Arabic dancer, and when we finished, the people were
screaming for more. Even though most people can't understand the words that are being
sung, they still dance, which makes me think this kind of music is universal.
There is no such thing as an average day for me. Sometimes I don't go to bed until
three or four o'clock in the morning. If I get an idea for lyrics or music then I have to
keep working on it until it is finished, so I often don't get up until the afternoon. If I
have a show to do, or if a student is coming to my house, then I get up earlier to make
preparations.
In a typical week I'll do four or five shows. Most of them are in Arabic restaurants,
but the response is always the same: they won't let us go and make us do encore after
encore.
I have never had any real problems here. The only difficult thing for me is finding new
ways to make music
because I can't read kanji, and most of the technology with English
instructions is for use outside Japan, it is sometimes hard to find out about new
keyboards and other instruments that I use in my work.
In the future, I hope to bring over a singer from Lebanon to do some shows. I enjoy
everything about my life in Japan and will stay here for as long as the Japanese people
want me to.
Georges Hassan spoke to Richard James
Info: Georges can be contacted at 010-854-9206
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