JEDDAH: Fans of the late Egyptian singer Abdel Halim Hafez got the chance to see him perform on the Saudi stage – thanks to the latest laser technology.
Nicknamed the “Nightingale,” the artist belted out his greatest hits during a tribute concert on Tuesday held in his honor at the Hilton Hall, in Jeddah.
Hologram technology allowed show guests to see Hafez – who died in 1977 aged just 47 – sing some of his most famous songs.
Also taking part in the charity event was top Egyptian singer, actor and composer Hani Shaker, and celebrated conductor and composer Selim Sahab.
The concert was supported by the Saudi General Authority for Entertainment and organized by event management company Benchmark, with all profits going to patient charity the National Home Health Care Foundation.
Music fans attending the event were welcomed at the Hilton Hall entrance with live violin solos of classic Hafez tunes, before hologram images let them watch him perform songs on stage including Safini Mara, Sawah, and Asmar Samarani.
Shaker and orchestra leader Sahab then performed a selection of Hafez’s most memorable songs as well as some of Shaker’s own favorites which many members of the crowd sang along to.
The last song Hafez made before he passed away, Qariat Al-Fingan or the coffee fortune-teller, had the audience enraptured.
Jameel Al-Shahid, who attended the concert with his family, said he had especially wanted to see Sahab perform. “I really appreciate his great work,” he told Arab News.
Meanwhile, Abeer Dahlawi made the trip from Madinah with her son to witness “the giant of Arabic song” Shaker. “He is a great man and a great artist. No one these days can perform this kind of art to such a high and prestigious level as him,” she said.
Her son Abdelaziz Amin said: “This is the first concert we have attended in Saudi Arabia. My mother has been a fan of Hani Shaker for 20 years and finally he came to Saudi Arabia, so we definitely had to be here.”
Shaker, head of the Egyptian Musicians Syndicate, thanked the Kingdom and its entertainment authority for making his dream of singing in Saudi Arabia come true.
During his career Hafez, who was also an actor, conductor, businessman, music teacher and movie producer, appeared in 15 films and produced more than 200 songs which continue to inspire artists around the Arab world.
Using the technique of holograms, the late Egyptian songstress Umm Kulthum recently appeared at the Winter at Tantora festival, and Yemeni singer Abu Bakr Salem was honored in the same way at a ceremony in which 13 Gulf artists participated.
