SUHAIL NAJMI

ALBUM JUST LAUNCHED FOR RAMADAN 1430 / 2009Suhail Najmi was born in Pakistan in 1973 and brought up in Paris, the diverse and cosmopolitan capital of France. He started singing when he was only 12 years old, and later on he added Arabic, French, and English to his repertoire. His first album “Ilâhî” is a tribute to this rich cultural heritage and provides the listeners with an original and unique synthesis of the art of Nasheed. He appreciates that thoughts, ideas or cultures which may seem opposite or different can come together cohesively to make something unique.In this album, Suhail presents some classic odes of the Islamic legacy in a contemporary composition and modern rhythm. Some items are performed solo, while with other songs his voice is accompanied by a choir of male voices and percussive instruments. The variety of instruments is deliberately limited in order to preserve the authenticity of this traditional Islamic artform. Suhail doesn't come from a musical family although he admits that they do love to sing. Suhail's father, who he describes as having a beautiful voice, recites the Qur'an and nasheeds in several styles. In his spare time, Suhail enjoys reading, travelling with his family, having social activities, sitting with eminent scholars, and singing songs by different artists.The cover of the album “Ilâhî” represents the mosque of Ibn Tûlûn in Egypt. It was built in the 9th century by the Mamluk general Ahmet Ibn Tûlûn. This mosque is the oldest monument and also the most remarkable piece of architecture from the Muslim civilization in Egypt. “Its most important part is the immense central courtyard, like a vast spanning desert, with no other frontier than beauty: beauty of its arcades in their repetitive harmony and balance, suggesting infinity. Its countless doors opening towards a universe without limit,” wrote an admirer of this beautiful mosque. Built with bricks and adorned with stucco, the central courtyard is a square with an attractive fountain for ablutions in its middle and a minaret at one end. The Ibn Tûlûn mosque is a symbol of purity and harmony of Islamic design, highlighted by the aura of light it stands in, symbolising Divine guidance. The central courtyard is flooded with light along with its numerous colons and pillars, glorifying the beauty of God: truly God is beauty!