Mohamed Mustapha Ali Masfaka (; born 1962), better known as Abu Ratib (), is a Syrian Nasheed singer of

Islamic Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

and

Arabic music Arabic music () is the music of the Arab world with all its diverse List of music styles, music styles and genres. Arabic countries have many rich and varied styles of music and also many linguistic Varieties of Arabic, dialects, with each countr ...

based on classical Arab poetry.

Early life

Masfaka was born in

Aleppo Aleppo is a city in Syria, which serves as the capital of the Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Governorates of Syria, governorate of Syria. With an estimated population of 2,098,000 residents it is Syria's largest city by urban area, and ...

, Syria. From an early age, he was immersed in musical traditions of the Arab world. At a young age, he joined the Arab Music Institute in Aleppo, Syria where he studied musical notation (

Solfège In music, solfège (British English or American English , ) or solfeggio (; ), also called sol-fa, solfa, solfeo, among many names, is a mnemonic used in teaching aural skills, Pitch (music), pitch and sight-reading of Western classical music, W ...

) and learned to play the violin. Abu Ratib Masfaka studied broadcasting and television direction in

Amman Amman ( , ; , ) is the capital and the largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of four million as of 2021, Amman is Jordan's primate city and is the largest city in the Levant ...

Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...

, and obtained experience in the broadcasting engineering.

Career

As Masfaka balanced music with a growing interest in Islam, his work moved in a spiritual direction. He joined the band of the singer Abi Dujanah for religious singing, until he founded Al-Huda band in 1981 and began issuing the albums of Islamic singing. In 1986, Al-Huda band developed to found Al-Huda Islamic Art. In 1991, he founded Al-Huda International Art Production. Masfaka is an active member of the Arabic arts community and is involved in numerous organizations to promote Islamic music and artist development worldwide. He has traveled over the U.S and abroad as a featured artist at community events in mosques and on college campuses. He is a member of Michigan-based Crescent Academy International, and aims to overcome negative impressions of Islam through his works such as a play about the

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

featuring the

Islamic prophet Prophets in Islam () are individuals in Islam who are believed to spread God's message on Earth and serve as models of ideal human behaviour. Some prophets are categorized as messengers (; sing. , ), those who transmit divine revelation, mos ...

Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...

which attracted a large non-Muslim audience. He is also head of the World Islamic Art League. Masfaka has often sung in support of human rights for the occupied

Palestinian people Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous ...

Awards

In 2006 Masfaka was awarded the World Youth Prize for Islamic Work in the field of Inshad (religious singing).

Arrest and deportation

In 2010 he was arrested when he returned from Canada, due to his involvement with the Holy Land Foundation when the case of the holy land 5 concluded in 2008 with their imprisonment. Masfaka who pleaded guilty to making false statements during his naturalization proceedings, was later deported to the country of his choice.

References

External links