Youssef Elsisi (19 March 1935 – 9 November 2000, last name also spelled El-Sisi or El Sisi) was an

Egyptian ''Egyptian'' describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of year ...

conductor Conductor or conduction may refer to: Biology and medicine * Bone conduction, the conduction of sound to the inner ear * Conduction aphasia, a language disorder Mathematics * Conductor (ring theory) * Conductor of an abelian variety * Cond ...

and

music educator Music education is a field of practice in which educators are trained for careers as elementary or secondary music teachers, school or music conservatory ensemble directors. Music education is also a research area in which scholars do origina ...

Biography

Elsisi was born in Shebin Al-Kom,

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

. Both his father and mother encouraged him to listen to and appreciate

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...

. His interests in music later grew serious, when the family moved to

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

in the 1940s. His father, an engineer, wished that he would not pursue professional music, so Elsisi went to study

English literature English literature is literature written in the English language from the English-speaking world. The English language has developed over more than 1,400 years. The earliest forms of English, a set of Anglo-Frisian languages, Anglo-Frisian d ...

at the

Cairo University Cairo University () is Egypt's premier public university. Its main campus is in Giza, immediately across the Nile from Cairo. It was founded on 21 December 1908;"Brief history and development of Cairo University." Cairo University Faculty of En ...

in addition to continuing his music studies. In 1956, he graduated from both the Higher Institute of Music and the Cairo University in English literature. In 1961, he received a scholarship to travel to Austria and study at the

Vienna Music Academy The University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna (, abbreviated MDW) is an Austrian university established in 1817 located in Vienna. With a student body of over three thousand, it is the largest institution of its kind in Austria, and one of t ...

. He studied under

Hans Swarowsky Hans Swarowsky (September 16, 1899September 10, 1975) was an Austrian conductor of Hungarian birth. Swarowsky was born in Budapest, Hungary. He studied the art of conducting under Felix Weingartner and Richard Strauss. Jiří Vysloužil ...

and graduated 1965 in both conducting and compositio

After returning from his studies, he became permanent then principal conductor and artistic director of the Cairo Symphony Orchestra performing most symphonic and operatic repertoire at the Opera House. His efforts were crucial to bringing classical music and opera performances back from a standstill, due to the destruction of the Opera House in 1972. He pushed musicians forward to a level of performance which enabled them to play the most sophisticated pieces, such as Beethoven's Ninth Symphony and Carl Orff's Carmina Burana. He also brought classical music to audiences outside of Cairo and presented concerts in Alexandria and upper Egypt. He was the first conductor to perform open-air concerts in summer seasons in Cairo reaching classical music to a wider range of audiences. He was awarded ''Ordre des Arts et des Lettres'' (Order of Arts and Literature) by the French government 1983 and the Liszt Memorial Plaque by the Hungarian government 1986 for his contributions to music in Egypt. Among contemporary Egyptian composers music he included in his performances were

Aziz El-Shawan Aziz El-Shawan (born Cairo, May 6, 1916; died Cairo, May 14, 1993) was one of the most prominent Egyptian composers of the twentieth century. Biography He completed his primary and secondary education at the St. Joseph – La Salle College ...

Gamal Abdel-Rahim Gamal Abdel-Rahim ( ) (November 25, 1924 – November 23, 1988) was a distinguished Egyptian classical music composer and composition professor. Life and career Abdel-Rahim was born in Cairo to a musical father, and began playing the piano at ...

, Sayed Awad, Rageh Daoud, Abou-Bakr Khairat and others. He was awarded the Egyptian State's Decoration of Arts 1989 for his efforts in promoting of Egyptian national music in Egypt and abroad. He frequently wrote and lectured music appreciation in different colleges and in the media raising music awareness. As a visiting professor for graduate studies he lectured on musicology and music appreciation at most music institutions in Cairo. In 1990 he became a Fulbright grant recipient and taught at the Eastman School of Music in the United States. He also taught in Kuwait, South Korea, and Japan. His students include

Adel Kamel Adel Kamel (1942–2003) عادل كامل was a music critic, musicologist and composer. He was one of the writers in ''Watani'' newspaper, the founder of “Panorama” section, a lecturer in Universities in Egypt and abroad, a member of th ...

Mohamed Abdelwahab Abdelfattah Mohamed Abdelwahab Abdelfattah (; born 1962) is an Egyptian composer of contemporary classical music and educator. He is a member of Egypt's third generation of classical composers. Biography Abdelfattah was born in Giza. He graduated with a ...

, and

Omar Khairat Omar Khairat (; born November 11, 1948) is an Egyptian musician. He has gained recognition for his versatile talents as a composer, pianist, conductor and arranger. Early life Born in Cairo, Omar was raised in a family of musicians. His uncle, ...

. Youssef Elsisi died in Cairo on 9 November 2000, of a heart attack.

Honors and awards

*1983 Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Order of Arts and Literature) from the French government. *1986 Liszt Memorial Plaque from the Hungarian government. *1989 Egyptian State's Decoration of Arts. *1989/1990 Fulbright grant recipient.

References

*Aziza Sami and David Blake
"Youssef El-Sisi: Not a lights down man"
Al-Ahram Weekly On-line, November 2000, Issue No.508. *Amal Choucri Catta

Al-Ahram Weekly On-line, February 2003, Issue No.625. *The Fulbrighter, Newsletter of the Fulbright Alumni Association, Fall 1990, Issue 4, Page 8. {{DEFAULTSORT:Elsisi, Youssef 1935 births 2000 deaths Egyptian conductors (music) Music directors (opera) University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna alumni Musicians from Cairo 20th-century Egyptian composers 20th-century conductors (music)