Maryem Tollar (born 1968 in Cairo, Egypt) is a Toronto-based singer
who primarily sings Arabic songs. She played with her own band called
Mernie!.Born in Cairo, Maryem went to Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
with her parents when she was one year old in 1969. Four years later,
her father began working in Qatar and Saudi Arabia, so her family
moved back to the Middle East and stayed there until she graduated
from The American University in Cairo. Throughout those times, Maryem
always had a taste for music and sang in every school production. Her
parents were originally against the idea of Maryem becoming a singer,
but after university, Maryem started pursuing her dream. She first
performed with Toronto-based Arab band Hot D.A.M. and later sang in
Arabic for her brother's compositions. Later, she went to Syria and
Egypt to further her studies and gained recognition from the Canada
Council. She began receiving calls to perform with different groups as
well as for recording sessions for commercials and films. Eventually,
Maryem started a music group called "Mernie!" with her husband, Ernie
Tollar. The band is a 10 piece ensemble while she and her husband
compose all of the music and everyone in the band come from different
cultural backgrounds. Together, they have made one CD so far, entitled
Flowers of Forgiveness.In 2007, director Liz Marshall made a
Bravo!FACT funded a video for the Arabic lament "Mawal Saba".
who primarily sings Arabic songs. She played with her own band called
Mernie!.Born in Cairo, Maryem went to Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
with her parents when she was one year old in 1969. Four years later,
her father began working in Qatar and Saudi Arabia, so her family
moved back to the Middle East and stayed there until she graduated
from The American University in Cairo. Throughout those times, Maryem
always had a taste for music and sang in every school production. Her
parents were originally against the idea of Maryem becoming a singer,
but after university, Maryem started pursuing her dream. She first
performed with Toronto-based Arab band Hot D.A.M. and later sang in
Arabic for her brother's compositions. Later, she went to Syria and
Egypt to further her studies and gained recognition from the Canada
Council. She began receiving calls to perform with different groups as
well as for recording sessions for commercials and films. Eventually,
Maryem started a music group called "Mernie!" with her husband, Ernie
Tollar. The band is a 10 piece ensemble while she and her husband
compose all of the music and everyone in the band come from different
cultural backgrounds. Together, they have made one CD so far, entitled
Flowers of Forgiveness.In 2007, director Liz Marshall made a
Bravo!FACT funded a video for the Arabic lament "Mawal Saba".
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