Khaled
The last thing I did in Oslo was attend a concert with Ingeborg as part of the Oslo World Music Festival. Actually, this concert was the whole reason for going to Oslo in the first place. The artist was one of Ingeborg's favorites, Khaled, whom she described as "the Bruce Springsteen of the Arabic world." Khaled is from Algeria, and I'm pretty sure the entire Algerian population of Oslo showed up to this concert. Some even brought Algerian flags and soccer jerseys to wave in the air.
The concert hall had a wide, open floor packed with people, plus two balconies. I thought it was a decently large venue, though I'm sure it's nothing compared to where Khaled is used to performing. He's been singing since his twenties and is now 54. He stood in the middle of the stage, surrounded by a band of 5 or 6, and moved around way more than I expected for his age.
Khaled's music is the kind that makes you want to move. I found myself unconsciously swaying my hips as I listened, and as the concert went on, more and more people around me began to dance. Those of you who know me are aware of how much I love to dance, but you also know I don't like to attract much attention. You can imagine my surprise when someone I didn't know grabbed me by the hand and pulled me into a group of Algerians. It was one of those dance circles - you know, where everyone stands around in a circle, takes turns soloing, and leaves enough space in the middle for that one guy who can do back flips.
It definitely caught me off-guard to be thrust into a bubble of empty space with 100 eyes on me. I managed to pull off a decent half minute of footwork before retreating.
All in all, it was quite a cultural experience. It seems I've had quite of few of those in Norway - nights when I had a hard time figuring out what country I was in. Norwegians have somehow struck this beautiful balance whereby they maintain and uphold their own unique culture, all the while embracing and enjoying elements of other cultures too. What a crazy, amazing world we live in.
In case you're interested, Khaled's two most famous songs are "Aicha" and "C'est la vie." I guarantee if you YouTube either title along with his name, the songs will come right up. Enjoy!
The concert hall had a wide, open floor packed with people, plus two balconies. I thought it was a decently large venue, though I'm sure it's nothing compared to where Khaled is used to performing. He's been singing since his twenties and is now 54. He stood in the middle of the stage, surrounded by a band of 5 or 6, and moved around way more than I expected for his age.
Khaled's music is the kind that makes you want to move. I found myself unconsciously swaying my hips as I listened, and as the concert went on, more and more people around me began to dance. Those of you who know me are aware of how much I love to dance, but you also know I don't like to attract much attention. You can imagine my surprise when someone I didn't know grabbed me by the hand and pulled me into a group of Algerians. It was one of those dance circles - you know, where everyone stands around in a circle, takes turns soloing, and leaves enough space in the middle for that one guy who can do back flips.
It definitely caught me off-guard to be thrust into a bubble of empty space with 100 eyes on me. I managed to pull off a decent half minute of footwork before retreating.
All in all, it was quite a cultural experience. It seems I've had quite of few of those in Norway - nights when I had a hard time figuring out what country I was in. Norwegians have somehow struck this beautiful balance whereby they maintain and uphold their own unique culture, all the while embracing and enjoying elements of other cultures too. What a crazy, amazing world we live in.
In case you're interested, Khaled's two most famous songs are "Aicha" and "C'est la vie." I guarantee if you YouTube either title along with his name, the songs will come right up. Enjoy!
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| Ingeborg and I before the concert. |
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