Issue No. 592
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27 June - 3 July 2002 Issue No. 592 People |
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 | Recommend this page | ||
Pack of Cards
Dearies, did you know that Amman, lovely, arid Amman, has been chosen as the capital of Arabic culture for the year 2002? If you did, you probably also know that my dear, dear friend, former Minister of Environment Nadia Makram Ebeid, was also chosen as one of the members of the jury for the King Abdallah II Ibn Al-Hussein Prize for Creativity. The King Abdallah II Prize for Creativity is awarded for excellence in the fields of information technology, environmental pollution and novel writing. Ebeid is set to help select the winner in the environmental pollution category.
One of my favourite maestros, Adel Shalabi, has just arrived from Munich, my sweets, where he teaches at the Richard Strauss Conservatoire. Shalabi is here to conduct the Cairo Symphony Orchestra as it plays Carl Orff's masterpiece Carmina Burana accompanied by the A Cappella Choir, led by Maya Gvineria. The concert, due to be held on 29 June at the Cairo Opera House's Main Hall, will also feature soprano Tahia Shamseddin, tenor Hisham El-Guindy and baritone Raouf Zeidan.
Another favourite maestro of mine, Salah Ghoubashi, recently conducted the National Arabic Music Ensemble at the Gumhouriya Theatre in Abdin, producing a delightful evening which commemorated the birth anniversary of legendary singer Abdel-Halim Hafez. Featuring gifted vocalist Ibrahim El-Hefnawi, the concert was sublime, especially when I found myself lost in thought while touring the exhibition that was held on the sidelines of the concert, featuring some of the late singer's personal belongings. Ah, what memories were evoked by being so close to the Andaleeb's camera, boots, suits, shirts, and rare photos...
I have to admit, my dears, that this has been quite a musical week.
Yesterday, my favourite Iraqi oud master, Nassir Shamma, and his Oyoun group, took part in an interesting musical experiment with the Byzantine Academy Orchestra in Italy. The concert was part of the festival held annually in Italy in June to celebrate International Music Day. Shamma mesmerised the audience with the musical dialogue he conducted between the Italian orchestra and his Oyoun troupe, playing a selection of his own compositions such as Halat Wagd (A State of Passion), Bein Al-Nakheel (Among Palm Trees) and the seminal piece, Freedom, with which the concert concluded.
About 20 countries participated in the festival, I am told, with its theme promoting peace in the wake of the 11 September terrorist attacks against the United States. Egyptian audiences are scheduled to enjoy the same show on 24 and 25 July at the Cairo Citadel, accompanied by dancers from Greece, Japan and other countries.
Mexico's top culture official is currently in Cairo, my dears, on a state visit to promote increased cultural exchanges between Egypt and her country. Sari Bermudez and the Ambassador of Mexico in Egypt Miguel Angel Orozco Deza, will meet Egyptian Minister of Culture Farouk Hosni, as part of a busy schedule including in-depth looks at the recovery and underwater excavations in Alexandria, as well as archaeological sites like Abu Simbel, Luxor, and Aswan. Along with Jaime Nualart, the Mexican Ministry's Director General for International Affairs, Bermudez's goal is promoting a better understanding of the cultures of both Mexico and Egypt. The Alexandria Library of course, and a visit with its Director General Ismail Serageddin, are also on the agenda.
The Manasterly Palace on Roda Island was the scene, recently, of one of my favourite kinds of events: an American University in Cairo (AUC) Press "Book and Music Festival". AUC's outgoing president John Gerhart and AUC Press Director Mark Linz welcomed guests of honour Culture Minister Farouk Hosni and professor George Scanlon as well as several hundred friends of the AUC Press, who came to take a gander at the splendid new books produced by the press, while enjoying a spirited piano recital by Mohamed Shamseddin. Liszt, Chopin, Gershwin and Abu Bakr Khayrat were on the musical agenda, while the literary selections being toasted included Naguib Mahfouz at Sidi Gaber, a collection of conversations between the Nobel laureate and playwright and Al-Ahram Hebdo editor Mohamed Salmawy, Voyage Through Time by Ahmed Zewail, The Committee by Sonallah Ibrahim, Love in Exile by Bahaa Taher and The Library of Alexandria with a foreword by the Bibliotheca's director, Ismail Serageddin.
Linz -- who was recognised by the AUC press staff for his part in the publication of more than 300 significant new books -- presented Culture Minister Hosny with an original painting from the recently published volume Egyptian Festivals by Margo Veillon, while AUC professor Jill Edwards honoured Scanlon with the first copy of the interesting publication, Historians in Cairo.
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