Supervisor Elham AbolFateh
Editor in Chief Mohamed Wadie

Remembering Mohamed El-Mougy on His Death Anniv


Sun 03 Jul 2022 | 03:55 PM
Ahmed Emam

Today marks the death anniversary of Mohamed El-Mougy, fondly known as the "Godfather of Modern Arab Music".

Born in Kafr El-Sheik in 1923, El-Mougy was cited as one of the most acclaimed composers in Egypt. He won millions of admirers across the Arab world for his compositions including many Egyptian patriotic and Arab national songs like ‘Watani Habibi’, and  ‘Salmoli Ala Masr.’

Throughout his long-standing career, he composed the music for about 1,000 songs and was called the "Godfather of Modern Arab Music" because of his appeal to both young and old for more than half a century.

His melodies and songs were the background of many Egyptians' childhood and their eyes would tear up whenever they heard his songs on the radio, up until this day, according to Maspero Zaman.

He made his debut with “Safini Marra”, performed by the late Abdel Halim Hafez. Then, he composed for numerous music stars, but the most memorable has always been his collaboration with Umm Kulthum.

The late musician was the composer behind Egypt’s drama film, " The Belly Dancer and Drummer" , starring famous actor Ahmed Zaky and the stunning actress Nabil Abid. He even played a part in the film. Gradually his music carved its way into Egyptian cinema, amounting to thousands of tracks registered under his name, and featured in almost 40 plays. And performed some blockbuster hit songs in front of a number of Arab leaders like Gamal Abdel-Nasser, and Anwar Al-Sadat.

The late musician made a great contribution to the development and popularization of Arab classic music and the great work of Egypt’s composers. All Egyptians know about his talent as a composer who followed the modern music approaches. At all times, he was highly appreciated by the Arab people. He received numerous awards for his artistic achievements.

To celebrate his talent and his great career, a premiere series of live concerts in commemoration of the 27th anniversary of the late notable musician Mohamed El-Mougy, fondly known as “The Good Curlew Bird,” will be held on Sunday night at the Opera House, under the patronage of Egypt’s Culture Ministry.

Under the direction of Maestro Mohamed El-Mougy, the Cairo Opera band will perform a selection of El-Mougy’s remarkable songs and iconic pieces, reminding people of the legacy and spirit of the late singer.

The concerts include pieces like ‘Watani Habini’, ‘Salmoli Ala Masr’, Beit El-Ez’, ‘El-Dwama’, ‘Ini Atnfs Mn Taht El-Maa’, ‘Ayon El-Qalb’, and ‘Akdab Alik’, which will be played by outstanding singers like Marwa Nagy, his granddaughter Farah El-Mogy, and Ahmed Efat.