Adel and Chahin, Gala pays homage to Ziyad Rahbani
The opening concert featured the Egyptian-Australian composer and oud player Joseph Tawadros, who was born in the Cairo neighbourhood of Shoubra. “I used to wear black in my concerts,” he declared on stage, referring humorously to his colourful outfit, “but today I want to look like the popular singer Shaaban Abdel-Rehim.” His pieces were interspersed by talk of his passion for his ancestral homeland, which he left when he was only two. Tawadros played a solo oud piece, Constellation, before his band – led by Wagdy Al- Fewy – appeared on stage. Among the highlights was an instrumental dirge for his parents, both of whom died 11 years ago, and an improvisation on the tune to an Um Kolthoum song warmly received by the audience.
On 3 November, an event titled The Sound of Rebellion took place at the Oriental Hall of the American University in Cairo, exploring the legacy of the great composer. Saad Hajo, the prominent Syrian Swedish cartoonist who led the event, spoke of his friendship with Ziad, who worked with him as a satire columnist at Al-Nahar and Al-Safir newspapers. Hajo shared a video recording of a Ziad-inspired song by a Berlin-based musician, Marawan Kargosly.
The Egyptian oud virtuoso Hazem Chahin, who became friends with Ziad after they met at the 10th CIJF, described how Ziad believed in his talent, encouraged him greatly and financed his recently released album. “My love for the Rahbani family is genetic. I was raised in a home whose atmosphere was filled with Fairuz music,” some of which was composed by her son Ziad. Chahin singled out Ziad’s album I Am Not an Infidel as the most influential for his work. Ziad, Chahin concluded, was “a genius who rebelled against Rahbani music, digested different styles of and ultimately managed to compose his very own music.”
The famous musician and actor Hany Adel, one of the founders of the phenomenally popular band Wust El-Balad, described how he performed Ziad’s songs during the first round of CIJF. “As of my childhood I only listened to Fairuz and Mohamed Mounir, so I consider Ziad one of my mentors.” Adel described Ziad as a “modest teacher. Every time I listen to one of Ziad’s songs, I learn a new thing about either composition or lyrics, especially those invented words of his.” Adel noted that the state of deep sadness engulfed Egyptians on Ziad’s death reflected the master’s honesty and dedication and that people simply believed in him.
For his part, journalist Sayed Mahmoud noted, “to feel the impact of Ziad on the established musicians and artists as well as the young people gathered here today is the real commemoration.”
Following concerts by Egyptian bands like Wust El-Balad and El-Dor El-Awal as well as musicians from Denmark, Japan and Germany, the festival closed with two concerts: a group of German and Swiss musicians (Andreas Schaerer, Luciano Biondini, Kalle Kalima and Mario Hanni) performing classic jazz; and a gala Homage to Ziad Rahbani directed by Basel Hisham and featuring Nouran Abu Taleb, Hany Adel, Rana Haggag, Alyaa Nada and The Egyptian Recording Orchestra with conductor Wagdy El-Fiwy. It featured a cinema screen showing snippets of Ziad’s interviews and rare pictures.
Before the second concert begins, prominent Iraqi musician Naseer Shamma went on stage to pay tribute to Ziad, describing him as a pillar of the musical scene in the Arab world. “During the Civil War in Lebanon, he never thought of fleeing and resorting to a safe country. His presence among people and belonging to his home country was sincere and honest. Ziad was a modest person who rebelled against his own life and the atmosphere he lived in. This is why his name is closely linked with jazz music, which has its origins in rebellion, being a kind of scream transformed into art.”
* A version of this article appears in print in the 4 December, 2025 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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