Cheikh Hamada

الشيخ حمادة (Known as "Cheikh Hamada")

Patriarch of Bedouin Gasba and Melhoun Music of the Dahra, Mentor of Raï

Born 1889

Blad Touahria (Mostaganem), Algeria

Passed Away Apr 09, 1968 Mostaganem, Algeria

Lifespan 79 years old

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Notice / Correction

"The reed of the Gasba carries the breath of our soil and the sorrows of our ancestors."

Archival Overview

The supreme patriarch of traditional Bedouin music and Gasba reed-flute poetry from the Dahra mountains, who profoundly influenced modern Algerian music from Chaabi to Raï.

Biographical Record

Cheikh Hamada was born in the rural Dahra region near Mostaganem. Endowed with a deep, earthy, resonant baritone voice and peerless knowledge of Bedouin Melhoun epics, he modernized traditional country songs alongside virtuoso players of the reed flute ('Gasba') and pottery drums ('Gallal').

In the 1930s, Hamada traveled to Paris and Berlin to make historic shellac 78rpm recordings. A mentor and lifelong friend to El Hadj M'Hamed El Anka and Cheikha Rimitti, he hosted legendary gatherings at his home in Mostaganem that united Algerian musicians of all backgrounds, standing as a founding father of modern Algerian popular song.

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Rest in Peace Forever remembered and cherished Your legacy lives on in all of us With deep gratitude for your life and light

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Final Resting Place

Perpetual Memorial

Sidi Benhaoua Cemetery
Mostaganem, Algeria

                         GPS: 35.9333, 0.0833                    

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