Musician of the generations
Last Thursday coincided with the 17th anniversary of the death of music writer and composer Mohamed Abdel-Wahab (1901 – 1991) who is widely regarded as the father of modern Egyptian music. To mark the occasion, a celebration was held at the Manesterly Palace in Manial, Cairo, organised by the Culture Ministry. Musician Amgad al-Atafi, one of Abdel-Wahab’s disciples, performed some of his famed works.
Abdel-Wahab, who was born in Cairo into a modest family, made his first recording at age 13 and grew to revolutionise the music scene in Egypt and the Arab World. He invented the Arabic film musical, and began to feature large orchestras with admixtures of Western instruments, hybridising with Western song forms such as the tango, samba, and rhumba. Abdel-Wahab’s music and singing were extremely popular in the Arab world and, in the 1980s, he was awarded the rank of general by then president Anwar Sadat for orchestrating the Egyptian national anthem.
Fantasy
Yemeni musician and singer Ahmed Fathi played to a full house at the Gomhuriya Theatre in Cairo last Friday. He surprised his audience with a first-time performance of Fantasy which he played to the accompaniment of the oud (lute), flute, violin, and percussion instruments. Fathi’s works link authentic Arabic music with Spanish European heritage, to words by greatest Arab poets including Ali Mahmoud and Mohamed Hamza.
Digital film
Culture Minister Farouk Hosni has approved the allocation of a first installment of funds for the financing of digital films—long and short feature films and documentaries. According to the allocation, a sum of LE448,750 will be used to produce 14 films.
Cuban ballet
In celebration of its 60th anniversary and the Cairo Opera House’s 20th, the Cuban national ballet held five performances of Don Quixote, accompanied by the Cairo Opera Orchestra, at the Cairo Opera House’s Main Hall, the sound and light theatre at the Giza Pyramids, and the Sayed Darwish Theatre in Alexandria. The Cuban national ballet was founded in 1948 and, until 1959 was called the Alicia Alonso Ballet after its founder, who is one of the most prominent figures in Cuban dance. In 2002, she was chosen a good will ambassador by UNESCO.
National Egyptian Film Festival
The 14th round of the National Egyptian Film Festival will open on 22 April and run for a week. A number of 118 films—73 short and long feature films, and 15 documentaries, as well as 18 animation films, will be shown. Ali Abu-Shady, head of the festival, said that three films will be screened for the first time: Spectrum, Jungle, and Girl Town.
Hassan and Naiema
In an effort to sponsor young talent, the cultural development fund last Thursday held a theatre show, in narration and mime, of the folk love lore Hassan and Naiema. The show was held at Qubbet al-Ghouri, a 10th century inn in Fatimid Cairo, which was restored and is being used as a cultural centre. The cultural fund is also hosting, starting today and running till next Sunday, an exhibition of the works of Egyptian female artists at Prince Taz Palace in Cairo. Participating from Egypt are 45 female artists, among whom are Soheir Othman, Nagwa al-Ashri, and Asmaa al-Nawawi.
