Mounir Mourad or Monir Morad, born Maurice Zaki Morad Mordechai, was an Egyptian singer, actor and composer of popular songs.
12 Facts About Mounir Mourad
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Mounir Mourad's compositions included film songs for famous stars such as Sharifa Fadel und Sabah, as well as duets for Egyptian actress Shadia and actor Abdel Halim Hafez.
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Mounir Mourad played the leading roles in a few Egyptian films, the most famous being "Good Day".
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Mounir Mourad's father Zaki Mourad Mordechai was a famous Jewish Egyptian singer, musician and composer in the early 20th century.
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Mounir Mourad's mother was a Jewish Egyptian called Gamilah Ibrahim Roushou, the daughter of Ibrahim Roushou, a local concert contractor, who regularly booked Zaki Mourad to sing at concerts and wedding parties.
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When Mounir was growing up, his sister, the singer and actress Leila Mourad was already famous and singing on Egyptian radio.
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In 1939, Mounir Mourad left his French college College des Freres, took various jobs, and then entered the field of cinema, first as a script supervisor, and later as assistant director to Kamal Salim in about 24 films in the 1940s.
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Mounir Mourad was one of the most popular composers of film songs of his time and composed music for several popular singers from Egypt in his personal style, often characterised by rapid rhythms.
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Mounir Mourad attempted to compose film music with Western influences, but faced difficulties to find a producer.
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Mounir Mourad's association with popular actress and singer Shadia was a milestone in the history of Egyptian music, as their songs have become classic songs of romance.
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Further, Mounir Mourad was a pioneer in dance music and musical shows.
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Mounir Mourad composed and developed much of Egypt's famous dance music, performed by leading dancers of the time, such as Tahiya Karioka, Samia Gamal, and Naima Akef.