Culture Min. celebrates 60th anniversary of Reda Folklore Band

CAIRO - 24 December 2019: Minister of Culture Inas Abdel Dayem will honor 14 of the founders of Reda Band who contributed with their creativity to the revival of one of the forms of folk art in the Egyptian society.

The honoring will take place during the grand celebration organized on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the founding of the group, which extends for two consecutive weeks.

The celebration starts on Dec. 26 at 8 p.m. at the Balloon Theater. It is directed by artist Khaled Galal, head of the cultural production sector, and will be attended by Adel Abdo, head of the Artistic House of Folk and Performing Arts.

The celebration begins with the screening of a documentary film on the enriching career of Reda Band and its tours inside and outside the country.

The minister of culture will then grant the honorary shield to the founders of the band; Mahmoud Reda, Farida Fahmy, Ali Reda, Ali Ismail, Hassan Afifi, Nabil Mabrouk, Hassan al-Sobki, Hamada Hossam el-Din, El-Geddawi Ramadan, among others.

After the honoring, the band will present a number of their most popular performances.

It is worth noting that Reda Band was founded by artist Mahmoud Reda in association with the first dancer, designer and music composer of the band Ali Reda and the first female dancer Farida Fahmy with the support of Engineering professor Hassan Fahmy. The band’s first performance was held in August 1959.

In 1961, the band became state-owned and was managed by the brothers Mahmoud and Ali Reda. Music composer Ali Ismail formed an orchestra for the band under his leadership and composed the band’s most famous performances.

The group starred in three cinematic films that were met with wide public success; “Agazet Nos el-Sana”, “Gharam Fel Karnak, and “Harami el-Waraqa”. The band roamed the world and represented Egypt in various festivals.

Reda Band presented more than 3,000 performances in the most important and prestigious stages of the world.