The US Air Forces Central (AFCENT) band is currently touring Egypt in one of the moves that represent the deep cultural and diplomatic connections between Egypt and the US. The band performed two concerts in Cairo, and they are getting ready for their final show in Alexandria next week.
SEE New had the chance to chat with several AFCENT members about music, culture and their tour in Egypt.
On the message that AFCENT aims to deliver and promote, Staff Sergeant Nick Del Villano, who is a vocalist and trumpet player in the band, said: "Our mission is different depending on where we are. And for this mission here in Egypt, it's our job to reinforce diplomacy and partnership."
He added, "The US and Egypt have long had a great relationship culturally. And so we have had the opportunity while we've been here to come, and we've been able to play some Egyptian music, which has been very rewarding for us specifically."
He mentioned the feedback of the audience when they covered Dalida's "Helwa Ya Baladi," describing: " We watched people sing, it feels so good."
Moreover, he asserted that they were impressed by the audience's extensive knowledge of American pop music. For example, the audience requested songs for Bruno Mars and Ed Sherin.
Del Villano also discussed the collaboration with the CairoBigBandSociety, continuing, "It's thrilling to see us connect in that way, music kind of like whatever other differences we may have, music always kind of like it jumps over them and it connects people immediately. I mean, we're here playing with the CairoBigBandSociety, and we're able to connect with people without even saying a word. You know, have a seat, let's connect. Music is a language. And it's beautiful."
On arranging their setlist, the band members revealed that they listen to the audience as they play a vital part in the experience; in addition, they prefer choosing songs that represent the culture of the country they perform in.
About interacting with Egyptian people, Technical Sergeant Dylan Carpenter, who plays trombone, described, "Our show in Maadi, it wasn't like a direct interaction, but I'm playing in the back and everything's black and I can't see anything except for the lights. But when the lights came up, the audience rushed the stage. So I would say that was one of those moments that you hope that you have at least once or twice on a tour, where you clearly made an impact, and they clearly loved it. The Egyptian audience has, I would say, a good musical culture; they are exposed to Western music and other Eastern models of music."
Staff Sergeant Dan Dyar, who plays drums in the band, describes, "Another interaction, as you said, when the lights did turn on and we're singing Die With A Smile, everyone in the back is singing, and I'm singing, and I feel like I'm trying to dance with them from our stage. So, yeah, we do have a lot of interactions."
Technical Sergeant Dylan Carpenter expressed: "I was in the back, while they're performing, and it's fantastic to see the response from the audience that entire show watching them film the concert, taking pictures, people singing along, dancing.
He added: "They're there, the entire time with their family and having a good time, so it was great seeing that, and ye,s I can definitely tell the Egyptians love all sorts of music because it was actually cool, but for us, like we're at this show and we're playing Egyptian stand classics, and they're singing the,m and they're also singing like the pop music that we know from the radio, but we don't know the Egyptian music that well, and I think it could benefit from it from our learning point, like I think we could benefit from"
On his side, Hisham Galal from the CairoBigBandSociety, said "When we started working together, there was a band from the US and we wanted to collaborate with together and work on the concert I didn't know what we were going to do they told us that the band would play alone as if it was a contrast between the two cultures or the two music and in the end when we met them yesterday all of this didn't exist we became one band playing everything. We play their music together, and they play the music that is presented to the Arabs together. In the end, he said that it is a language that is not something independent of culture."
He added, "If you put a written musical sheet in front of them, we will know from the top even if it is Arabic, English, Spanish, or any other language. This was very clear, and the cooperation in the lab, we didn't take a single song from the band. It was a mixture of two bands but sounded like one. That's what I felt."
He mentioned that the band cooperated with various international acts and collaborated with the Cairo Jazz festival and the Jazz Festival in Alexandria."
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