Composing Temple Sunrise - by Hassan El-Tayyab (Paperback)

About the Book

Literary Nonfiction. Music. Arab American Studies. California Interest. "In this candid, inspiring memoir, singer-songwriter Hassan El-Tayyab of American Nomad takes us deep into the heart of what it means to chase a creative dream. After experiencing multiple losses (family, home, love, job, self- confidence), El-Tayyab sets out on a transcontinental quest that eventually lands him in Nevada's Black Rock Desert. His vivid descriptions, paired with artist's renderings, capture both the vast, surreal landscapes of the Burning Man festival and the hard practice of art-making. COMPOSING TEMPLE SUNRISE is both a page- turning adventure and a road map for anyone struggling to forge their way."--Faith Adiele

Book Synopsis

This is a memoir by musician Hassan El-Tayyab and recounts his trip across the US looking for that elusive muse. He arrives in Berkeley and hooks up with a group creating a metal sculpture called Fishbug. They go to Burning Man in the Nevada dessert and here he writes the musical piece Temple Sunrise. Hassan is a musician singer/songwriter with his group America Nomad. This is a book of travel, personal exploration, community, and that elusive finding of the creative source. A beautiful song comes of this journey as well as a beautiful, insightful book. Hassan El-Tayyab is an award-winning singer/songwriter, author, teacher, and cultural activist currently residing in San Francisco, California. His critically-acclaimed Americana act American Nomad performs regularly at festivals and venues up and down the West Coast and beyond. In addition to performing Hassan is also a music educator, having taught songwriting and guitar classes for the Freight and Salvage and The East Bay Center for the Performing Arts. Hassan has also been a guest lecturer on song writing at the University of California, Berkeley.