Hosted by the Al-Assad House for Culture in Latakia over five days, the festival was inaugurated by the Mahmoud Al-Ajan Music Institute’s Arabic Music Ensemble. Their concert, titled “About the Nights of Tarab,” transported the large audience back to the era of beautiful art and the golden age of Arabic music. The evening featured a remarkable performance by the students under my leadership, presenting musical openings of some of the most famous songs by the Arab singing legend Umm Kulthum, such as “Enta Omri,” “Alf Leila Wa Leila,” and “Aghadan Alqak,” along with instrumental pieces composed by musician Mohamed Abdel Wahab, including “Awatif,” “Layali Al-Jaza’ir,” “Zeina,” and “Khutwa Habibi.”

The choir accompanying the ensemble delighted the audience with a medley of traditional Arabic songs and folk melodies, including “Lama Bada Yatathanna,” “Ya Zairi Bil-Duha,” “Jadaka Al-Ghaith,” “Marmar Zamani,” “Beelbaklak Shek Al-Almas,” “Awal Ashra Mahbubi,” “Al-Qarasiyya,” “Ya Tair Tiri,” and “Ya Mal Al-Sham”.