I just came back from Natacha Atlas’s very intimate concert at Elgar Room of the Royal Albert Hall and I had such a great time that I need to share as soon as possible! This is the second event from Nour Festival that I attend, after my Moroccan themed night ‘Dardasha’ at Leighton House. Natacha Atlas is a singer that I’ve known since I was a kid, her song “Mon Amie La Rose” was such a big success in my country Morocco and everywhere else! For this reason, I decided to get my tickets, come see her live and discover more…
The concert was sold-out and I was quite lucky to buy my tickets early. Natacha sang her greatest hits but I was so looking forward to hear “Mon Amie La Rose” which was excellent. At the break, I asked her to take a picture but kindly said it was planned for later. Few more songs after a 10 minutes break, we could see some belly dancing on stage that made the crowd on fire! She sang some songs in English, one in French and the rest in Arabic. The band was amazing although it could have been slightly better with a louder sound. One song that I really liked (and discovered) is “Hayati Inta”. At the end of the concert, I ask Natacha Atlas for another picture that she agreed to take and later she signed some albums and took time to Meet and Greet her fans. And to make my night more Arabian, I’ve had a delicious Lebanese dinner at Comptoir Libanais in South Kensington.
Overall, me and my friends were amazed by Natacha’s voice and the mix between Middle-Eastern and Western musics in one stage! I got my picture as a souvenir, years ago, I’d never think that one day I will see that singer live but it happened as everything happens in London and what happens in London… Stays in my blog!
Sooner or later, I'll be in a city near you! ;)
Yes, I got tickets for tomorrow. It seems that’ll be a fusion of various forms of art and I expect another magic carpet ride 🙂 Hope you will also come.
You should definitely visit Serbia, spring and autumn are the best periods to visit as winters are very cold and summers regularly very hot. Rivers and farms of lowlands in the North, old monasteries and misty forests in the hilly South…and wild and hot Belgrade nights and then chilling on the terrace of Petrovaradin fortress overlooking river Danube and Novi Sad…
I loved Morocco so much and took so many photos that never had enough time to filter the best ones for Facebook album. Will let you know when I do this and I publish it.
See you tomorrow.
Sadly I am not coming tomorrow to Nour Festival concert as I will be attending World Travel Market all day and have a dinner at night ;/
I’m sure I will get to see Natasha Atlas on another occasion!
Thanks for the tips about Serbia! And I look forward to check your pictures from Morocco 🙂
Hopefully see you another time!
Cheers!
Hi Omar. My name is Bojan and was also lucky enough to get tickets for the last night’s gig.
I travelled around Morocco in May this year and while staying in one riyad in Fez I asked the guy who worked there if he could translate me some lyrics from Arabic to English. When he learned that was one song of Natacha Atlas (“Ya weledi”), he jumped in excitement and screamed “Mon amie la rose!” and immediately brought his laptop to play that song. He was so happy that I liked her music and knew her songs. I found it interesting to learn that she was so popular in your home country. (Btw, we also visited Casa…listened traditional musicians there and survived the traffic when driving around… 🙂
I live in London but am coming from Serbia where only true followers of world/etno music know about Natacha. I am spreading the word (or, better to say, her music..)
Thanks for this article and for the one about Dardasha, I really wanted to come to hear stories about Moroccan women immigrants but could not make it.
Keep travelling and writing. Cheers!
Salam Bojan,
Thanks for your comment it definitely complete my article with your own testimonial about your trip to Morocco and being at the concert yesterday!
It seems like you had a good time in Morocco and I’m glad about it. Natacha is doing another concert at Leighton House on November 5th. Perhaps, you might be interested in that!
I hope someday I’ll visit your country! I’ve heard a lot of good stuff about Serbia.
Cheers! Enjoy the rest of Nour Festival