It's no exaggeration to say that the Ensemble Kaboul have literally kept Af… Read Full Bio ↴It's no exaggeration to say that the Ensemble Kaboul have literally kept Afghan music alive through many difficult years. Based in Geneva (hence the French spelling of Kabul) and led by Khaled Arman who plays the rubab lute - the Afghan national instrument - they represent thetraditional and popular sound of Afghan music. Thanks to its position at the crossroads of Asia, Afghan music is a heady and accessible mixtureof Indian, Persian and Central Asian sounds - and in the hands of a group like this, it obviously has an international appeal. Khaled's father Hossein Arman, who sings and plays harmonium in the ensemble, had a considerable reputation at Radio Afghanistan. Things got difficult for musicians in Afghanistan after the Soviet withdrawal in 1989 and the mujaheddin took power with their extreme Islamic beliefs. That's when Hossein decided to leave and follow his son who'd already left to studyin Europe. The situation got worse when the Taliban came to power in the mid-90s and music was entirely banned and instruments destroyed. It was then that Khaled and the Ensemble Kaboul really felt a duty to sustain the music of their country. Their first CD "Nastaran" was considered Top of the World by Songlines magazine. Ensemble Kaboul have not yet been back to Afghanistan as the situation with respect to music is still uncertain.
--Short biography by Simon Broughton, March 2003, at WOMAD.org

Ze andoy-e
Kabul Ensemble Lyrics

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ز اندوه غمت در سینه ام راه فغان گم شد
ز اندوه غمت در سینه ام راه فغان گم شد
ز بیداد تو ام حرفِ شکایت در زبان گم شد
ز بیداد تو ام حرفِ شکایت در زبان گم شد
چرا خوابیده یی مجنون - تو برخیز و سراغش کن
چرا خوابیده یی مجنون - تو برخیز و سراغش کن
که امشب ناقه ی لیلی
که امشب ناقه ی لیلی میان کاروان گم شد

ز اندوه غمت در سینه ام راه فغان گم شد
ز بیداد تو ام حرفِ شکایت در زبان گم شد
در این صحرا که می بینی سراسر خیمه ی لیلی
در این صحرا که می بینی سراسر خیمه ی لیلی
به صد مجنونِ سرگردان
به صد مجنونِ سرگردان در این ریگ روان گم شد
ز اندوه غمت در سینه ام راه فغان گم شد
ز بیداد تو ام حرفِ شکایت در زبان گم شد

چنان بر هم زدی هنگامه ی روز قیامت را
چنان بر هم زدی هنگامه ی روز قیامت را
که طومار شفاعت از
که طومار شفاعت از کف پیغمبران گم شد
ز اندوه غمت در سینه ام راه فغان گم شد
ز اندوه غمت در سینه ام راه فغان گم شد
ز بیداد تو ام حرفِ شکایت در زبان گم شد
ز بیداد تو ام حرفِ شکایت در زبان گم شد
شکایت در زبان گم شد

شکایت در زبان گم شد
شکایت در زبان گم شد

Overall Meaning

The Kabul Ensemble's song "Ze andoy-e" is a sorrowful and emotional piece that expresses the feeling of loss and despair. The lyrics talk about the singer's heartache and the loss of direction that comes with this sorrow. The opening verse talks about how the sorrow and grief have taken over the singer's heart and made it difficult to express themselves or find the right words to convey their pain. The second verse talks about how the legendary lovers Leili and Majnoon, who could not be together in life, have become lost and separated in death. It is a reminder that even after death, love and sorrow continue to affect and influence the living.

The third verse talks about how the chaos and destruction caused by the singer's grief are so intense that the prophet's plea for clemency on the day of judgment has been lost. The chorus ties the whole piece together by repeating how the singer's sorrow has caused them to lose their way and made it difficult to express their pain through language.

Overall, the song connects to the raw and real emotions that come with pain and loss, and more specifically, how it can be so overwhelming that it leaves us lost and speechless.

Line by Line Meaning

ز اندوه غمت در سینه ام راه فغان گم شد
My sadness has lost its way in my chest and turned into crying

ز بیداد تو ام حرفِ شکایت در زبان گم شد
Your tyranny has silenced my complaint which was once on my tongue

چرا خوابیده یی مجنون - تو برخیز و سراغش کن
Why are you asleep, like Majnun? Wake up and go find him, for tonight, Layla's camel has become lost amongst the caravan

که امشب ناقه ی لیلی میان کاروان گم شد
Because tonight, Layla's camel has become lost amongst the caravan

در این صحرا که می بینی سراسر خیمه ی لیلی
In this desert that you see, Layla's tent surrounds everything

به صد مجنونِ سرگردان در این ریگ روان گم شد
With a hundred madmen wandering, it has gotten lost in this moving sand

چنان بر هم زدی هنگامه ی روز قیامت را
You've so disrupted the moment of the Day of Judgment

که طومار شفاعت از کف پیغمبران گم شد
That the scroll of intercession has been lost from the hands of the prophets

شکایت در زبان گم شد
The complaint has been lost from the tongue

Contributed by Christopher K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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