El Anka

At a glance

El Anka, is a 1981 Algerian movie, directed by Abdelkrim Baba Aissa, and starring El Hadj M'hamed El Anka, Bachir Hadj Ali. Himoud Brahimi.

Overview

El Anka is a four-part Algerian documentary chronicling the extraordinary artistic life of El Hadj M'hamed El Anka, the towering figure of Algerian Chaâbi music. Beginning in 1925 with a young El Anka teaching himself the Oud and religious singing under the tutelage of Sidi Abderrahmane, the documentary traces his career through the recording of his first 45 rpm records in Paris in 1932, his famous song El Mendouza, his pilgrimage to Mecca, and his musical maturation through the 1940s and 1950s. It culminates with his triumphant song of Algerian independence in 1962. Activist and musicologist Bachir Hadj Ali provides deep insight into the artist's singular legacy.

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