Israeli orchestra accused of robbing Arab heritage with release of Umm Kulthum video

An Israeli orchestra that released a video this week marking the 50th anniversary of the death of the late Egyptian music icon Umm Kulthum has been accused of stealing Egypt’s heritage.

Firqat Alnoor, an Arabic classical music orchestra composed of Jewish and Arab musicians from across Israel, filmed the video on the dunes of Dubai. It shows the orchestra playing Umm Kulthum’s “Ghanili Shway Shway” and includes images of the artist singing, using clips from the Egyptian film “Salama.”

As the video clip made its way around the Arab world, social media posts gathered steam, accusing the Israeli orchestra of appropriating Egyptian culture.

The family of Umm Kulthum has reportedly condemned the video and planned concerts as well, vowing legal action to stop the performances.

Umm Kulthum’s family argues that commercializing her repertoire without proper permission disregards the cultural significance she holds for millions of Arabs worldwide, according to regional media.

Ariel Cohen, the conductor of the orchestra, told Israel’s Channel 12 news that the orchestra exists to give a voice to Umm Kulthum’s music.

Umm Kulthum, sometimes dubbed Egypt’s “Fourth Pyramid” or “the lady of Cairo,” was one of the most revered singers of the Arab world, including Mizrahi Jews, renowned for her deep, resonant voice.

She performed in Haifa in the 1930s when the city was part of British Mandate-era Palestine.

After Egypt’s defeat to Israel in the 1967 Six Day War, Umm Kulthum performed songs with themes of national pride and one with lyrics about taking back Palestine. She died eight years later in 1975, when she was 76 years old.

Cohen has often said that Umm Kulthum is not an enemy when interviewed in the past about the Egyptian diva.

He told Channel 12 that he wasn’t surprised by the threats, which the orchestra also received when they performed in Cairo in 2022 as part of an Israeli Foreign Ministry event.

He noted that the orchestra’s performance in Cairo took place before the October 7, 2023, Hamas terror onslaught and the subsequent cultural boycott, which has seen the international community target Israel’s arts and culture industry.

“We haven’t received any formal letters,” said Cohen.

“I believe in making good music to honor the art form. Whoever likes it, likes it; whoever doesn’t like it, to our great fortune, isn’t talking about the quality of the music. The reactions and the storm [over the video] are about stealing heritage,” he added, comparing the claims to accusations that Israel has stolen falafel and Palestinian lands.

In addition to being an orchestra of 25 musicians from both Arab and Jewish backgrounds, Firqat Alnoor prides itself on being the only orchestra in Israel that performs without sheet music, playing a wide variety of music from the cultural Middle East, both in Arabic and Hebrew, alongside liturgical and Israeli music.