Maryem Tollar
About Maryem Tollar
Perhaps the genre of “world music” carries an unfortunate designation, for one performance—or an album-sized collection of them—can hardly cover all musicality from around the globe, and is thus resigned to some extent of exclusion. Additionally, if Western compositions are never considered exponents of “world music,” does the name of the genre represent a crude division between “West” and “rest of the world?” Then again, such a moniker emphasizes unity, or a certain underlying fundament shared by all sorts of traditional song, whereas speaking of “ethnic music” might not.
Whichever concerns might be raised around these terms, Maryem Hassan Tollar certainly contributes her share towards bridging gaps between cultures and musical legacies. Spending her early years in the Middle East and Nova Scotia, she graduated from the American University in Cairo—the city where she was born in 1968. Her musical versatility does not stop at familiarity with Arabic and English, nor at being able to play the qanun and percussion instruments; collaborations with flamenco guitarist Jesse Cook, the Byzantine-inspired Christos Hatzis, or Indian composer A. R. Rahman (for whom Tollar would learn to sing in Hindi) all point to her potential of creative adaption.
One quality remains consistent beyond doubt, whether she is lending her vocals to Prince of Persia video games or harmonizing with husband Ernie plus ensemble: Maryem Tollar has a voice both powerful and sensitive, connected to a mind appreciative of tradition yet capable of emulation. A live rendition of “Quadukka-L-Mayyas,” for instance, brings out the energy of a piece often performed more slowly or melismatically, while a song such as “Omneya — Wish” (written by herself) manages soothing subtlety sans sacrifice of strength.
All in all, this may be the the most remarkable attribute of Maryem Tollar’s singing—that one musical aspect, be it elegance, power or cultural reconciliation, does not come at the expense of another.
