Sheikh Shaban Abdul Aziz Sayyad; A Quran Reciter with Heavenly Voice
The eminent Egyptian qari had a special method of recitation that became known as the Sayyadiyah school of recitation and he himself became known as the owner of the diamond larynx.
Sheikh Shaban Abdul Aziz Sayyad was born on September 20, 1940, in Egypt's Sarawak, Menofia Governorate. His father, Abdul Aziz Esmail Sayyad was a top qari at the time and this was enough for young Shaban to develop strong interest in Quran recitation.
At the age of seven, he accomplished full Quran memorization and at the age of 12, he was already receiving invitations to participate in Quranic circles.
He was a distinguished qari because he was also an instructor at Al-Azhar Islamic University.
On July 31, 1966, he was named as an international qari and in 1975 he joined Egypt’s Quran Radio as a reciter.
He had a special status among Egypt’s great qaris because of his beautiful voice, long breath and being skillful in performing various Maqamat.
King of morning, the Muslim world qari, owner of heavenly voice, chevalier of qaris, and star of Quranic circles were among the titles given to him.
H spent all his life on the path of Quran recitation and preferred Quran-related activities to teaching at Al-Azhar.
Late Ammar al-Shura’ei, a renowned Egyptian musician once said about him: “I was surprised at Sheikh Sayyad’s voice because he broke all regular laws in music. Shaban Sayyad in his recitation acts very fluently and descends (lowers his voice) very simply like the flow of water.”
Sheikh Sayyad won many awards in different countries, the last one being the royal insignia of Brunei.
He also traveled to many Muslim and non-Muslim countries like Jordan, Syria, the US, Britain, Indonesia, Iraq, and France.
In 1994 he was diagnosed with kidney disease and it grew worse over the years.
He died on January 29, 1998, which marked Eid al-Fitr, at the age of 58.
What follows is Sayyad’s recitation of Surah An-Najm:
