Singer Ahmed Saeed, during his segment at the Arab Music Festival concert at the Nafoura Theater in the Cairo Opera House, presented a bouquet of songs from the stars of the beautiful era, which included “The First Time You Love, My Heart” by Abdel Halim Hafez, “The Sweet and the Bitter” by Abdel Ghani Al-Sayed, and “Taab Al-Hawa Qalbi” by Mohamed Fawzi, amid great interaction from the audience, which restored the atmosphere of authentic singing.
The activities of the 33rd session of the Arab Music Festival and Conference were launched in the presence of the Minister of Culture, Dr. Ahmed Fouad Hanno, the President of the Egyptian Opera House, Dr. Alaa Abdel Salam, and the Deputy Director of the Festival, Maestro, Dr. Mohamed Al-Moji, and the lady of Arab singing, Umm Kulthum, was chosen as the character of this session on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of her passing.
The opening ceremony witnessed the honoring of 10 art icons from Egypt and the Arab world, including Dr. Hisham Sharaf from Jordan, the artist Naima Samih from Morocco, and the poet Al-Hadi Adam from Sudan, in addition to a number of Egyptian artists, including Amal Maher, who received her honor during her singing segment, the composer Khaled Ezz, and the maestro Hassan Fikry.
The Arab Music Festival will continue to present various concerts that combine singing heritage and modern works over the coming days.
