Rageh Daoud during a rehearsal with the orchestra, at the Cairo Opera House (Photo: Cairo Opera House's promotional material)
Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz has honoured well-known Egyptian composer Rageh Daoud for composing the new Mauritanian national anthem.
The ceremony took place in Nouakchott, the Mauritanian capital, on Thursday and was attended by Daoud, the Egyptian ambassador, Maged Nafei, and Mauritanian officials.
A meeting with the Mauritanian musicians and artists will be organised during Daoud’s visit to the country.
Daoud is one of the most prominent Egyptian composers; among many orchestral works, he has also composed scores for several films that are considered landmarks in the history of Egyptian cinema.
He has worked with leading film directors such as Daoud Abdel Sayed, Enas El-Dighad, and Mohammed Kamel Alqluoby.
Four films by Abdel Sayed are among his most important soundtracks: Kit Kat (1991), Sareq Alfarah (1995), Rasael albahr (2010), and the latest, Extraordinary Abilities (2015).
Daoud, a professor in the Cairo Conservatoire, is also a pianist who began his studies at the Cairo Conservatoire at the age of nine and obtained a graduate diploma from the Vienna Academy.
He plays an active role in the musical scene in Egypt and abroad where his works are performed in Cairo and Alexandria as well as Austria, Italy, Germany, France, the Czech Republic, the UK, Spain, Canada, Hungary and Poland.
Daoud has won several awards at cinema festivals, including at the Cairo International Film Festival, the Alexandria Film Festival, and the State Award of Encouragement.
In January 2017, he joined the jury of the 4th edition of Luxor Egyptian and European Film Festival.
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