From film to an underground music enthusiast

By Nada Hedia and Mahmoud Fathi

Cairo, Egypt --  Musician, Singer and Songwriter Ayman Serdar performed yesterday at El Sawy Culturewheel, to introduce fans to a collection of his songs.

Serdar kicked off the night with three of his signature songs, all played back to back, followed by a selection of unoriginal yet well known tunes.  Some of the audience quickly reacted in excitement and gradually started to sing along.  

After dropping a few of his anticipated tracks, Serdar, backed by a band of four musician friends, had his fans up on their feet dancing.

The show however was received with mixed reviews.  In a group of approximately 100 attendees, some complained that it did not live up to their expectations.

Khaled Morshedy, one of the audiences thought the concert ''was below average and it wasn't different and did not reflect what Egyptian music is.''  Morshedy continued,  " the lyrics were a bit traditional," in comparison to Serdar's previous gigs.

Despite the controversy surrounding his singing, Serdar says preparing for concerts is a time consuming process.  He says sometimes it takes up to two years to come up with the lyrics, and a month to prepare for shows. 

Serdar now performs an average one time a month at El Sawy, which has been widely credited for giving birth to many of the art talents that preform or exhibit through it. People at the venue believed the education Serdar got attending Film School in Vancouver coupled with persistence can provide Serdar with what it takes to  make a successful  career out of  concerts.

In an interview, the vocalist himself admitted "Living in Vancouver had such a huge impact on me as a person and my artistic personality.  It taught me how difference could be empowering.  It taught me about art as I learned music in Vancouver through film.  Being surrounded by talented people, musicians, artists from all over the world was such an enriching experiment."

When asked about his upcoming concerts, Serdar finally recommended his facebook page as a place to get updated with what's going on.