Lebanese-Swedish singer Zain says proud to sing Gülen’s poem

Lebanese-Swedish singer Maher Zain (Photo: Cihan, Armağan Aydın)
Lebanese-Swedish singer Maher Zain (Photo: Cihan, Armağan Aydın)


Date posted: April 23, 2013

Lebanese-Swedish singer Maher Zain, who recently sang a poem written by Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gulen for an album titled “Colors of Peace-Rise Up,” has said that he is very proud of singing a poem by Gulen.

Artists from 12 countries composed music for poems written by Turkish Islamic scholar Gulen, who is known for his global message of peace and inter-faith tolerance, for the album, which aims to promote peace and tolerance. The poems were translated into English and each artist selected one poem to interpret.

Zain, who sang the poem “The worldly life” on the album, visited İstanbul on Tuesday. Speaking to Today’s Zaman, Zain said that all of the poems composed for the album are very meaningful, adding that he is very happy to have taken part in such a well-intentioned project that promotes peace and tolerance in the world.

Noting that the music has been the best means to establish communication both in the past and the present, Zain further stated that music has an important role in conveying the message of peace in the Islamic religion to the world. “If everybody does their fair share of the work, peace can be established in the world. Within the scope of this intention, I am doing whatever I can. Music has the general effect of influencing the masses,” Zain noted.

Zain said that he has included four Turkish songs on his album “Forgive Me,” which has not been released yet, adding that he hopes listeners will enjoy his way of singing in Turkish. Stating that he admires Turkish music very much, Zain said: “I especially admire the voice of İbrahim Tatlıses [a Turkish singer]. Turkish music has a rich structure and it contains a special deepness and impressiveness inside. I also use Turkish instruments while composing my songs. I bought various learning DVDs in Turkish to learn Turkish. I hope I will have learned Turkish completely when I come to Turkey again in the future. I plan to visit Turkey frequently in the coming years. I will visit Turkey to be inspired by its music.”

Nil Production put together the “Colors of Peace-Rise Up” album over two years together with Universal Music. As part of the project, 50 poems by Gulen were translated into English and sent to the artists, with each artist picking a poem to turn into a song. As a result of this diversity, this world music album includes different genres such as pop, jazz, Indian sounds, Flamenco and Rai. The album is being marketed all over the world.

The project development manager of Nil Production, Tevfik Aslan, says that “Rise Up” has turned out to be a diverse and colorful album that calls for peace with its universal language at a time when wars are prevalent.

Source: TodaysZaman, 23 April 2013
Tags: Fethullah Gulen

 


Related News

‘A bridge should not demolish other bridges,’ says scholar Gülen

Gülen said today via his website that naming the bridge “Yavuz Sultan Selim,” after an Ottoman Sultan historically known for slaughtering Alevis, should not demolish “others bridges.”

We must have more empathy for people fleeing for their lives around the world

No individual’s pain is to be underestimated. Thousands of families are being forced to leave their homeland by violence, terror, or fear of political prosecution. I would like to particularly talk about people of Turkey, who has been forced to leave their country since the Turkish Government ordered a massive witch hunt on members of the Hizmet (Gulen) movement after the July 15, 2016 coup attempt.

Turkish Olympiads – A Blessing from God

DR. ALI BAYRAM We had no idea in our world, what it was like abroad. All we used to know was our village, town or our province at best. The saying “Destination Antep, food molasses!” fittingly portrays our case, indeed. It was in 1990s. We were on our way to visit Fethullah Gulen Hodja Efendi […]

Fethullah Gülen: An Islamic sign of hope for an inclusive Europe

Thus Gülen and the initiatives inspired by his teaching challenge the tendency found among some Muslims groups to separatist withdrawal from the wider non-Muslim society. By contrast, they offer a basis for Muslim engagement with the wider society based upon a confident and richly textured Islamic vision.

Relatives Fear Turkish Govt May Kill Prisoners Through Staged Riot

Prisoners jailed in the post-coup crackdown in Istanbul and Ankara these days have far serious problem than torture and ill-treatment: media reports about a mass prison break that could provoke a government intervention, claims about mass executions of the prisoners trying to escape in that attempt.

Niagara Foundation Ohio Award Ceremony gathers a large attendance

Niagara Foundation, active across 11 states in Midwest, held its annual award ceremony on November 5th in Columbus, Ohio. Aimed to promote education and dialogue, the foundation’s annual event drew a large attendance of prominent guests including assembly members, academics and religious figures. Serkan Aykan, Niagara Foundation Ohio director, delivered the opening address of the […]

Latest News

Erdogan’s Failed Crusade: The World Rejects His War on Hizmet

Fethullah Gulen – man of education, peace and dialogue – passes away

Fethullah Gülen’s Condolence Message for South African Human Rights Defender Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Hizmet Movement Declares Core Values with Unified Voice

Ankara systematically tortures supporters of Gülen movement, Kurds, Turkey Tribunal rapporteurs say

Erdogan possessed by Pharaoh, Herod, Hitler spirits?

Devious Use of International Organizations to Persecute Dissidents Abroad: The Erdogan Case

A “Controlled Coup”: Erdogan’s Contribution to the Autocrats’ Playbook

Why is Turkey’s Erdogan persecuting the Gulen movement?

In Case You Missed It

Scholars stress need for dialogue, cooperation to solve global issues

Hizmet-affiliated educational institutions succeed in TEOG exam

A useful guide to understanding the Hizmet-AK Party tension

To escape from Turkey, they told their children it was a game

Once shut down by Taliban, now Afghan gov’t plans to hand over successful Turkish Schools to Turkish Gov’t

Fethullah Gulen on a Global Scale

Turkey’s coup attempt & a more intimate view of the Hizmet Movement

Copyright 2025 Hizmet News