19th edition of Festival of Tunisian Music takes flying start
Tunis , March 27, 2008 – (TunisiaOnline) --The 19 th edition of the festival of Tunisian music took a flying start at the Tunis Municipal Theatre on Wednesday as Soufiene Zaidi, Soulef, Zied Gharsa , Raouf Maher and Chehrazad Helal, performed in turn the best songs of their repertoire to an enthusiastic public.
The opening of the festival, placed this year under the motto: “meeting of generations”, was attended by the Minister of Culture and Heritage Preservation, Mr Mohamed El Aziz Ben Achour, Mr Abbes Mohsen, the mayor of Tunis , Mr Mansour Mhenni, the president of the radio establishment, and Mrs Ratiba Hafni, the president of Arab Academy of Music.
The Festival which will run from March 26 to March 30, will take place at the Tunis Municipal Theatre , except for the closing ceremony which is due to be staged at the El Menzah indoor cupola.
The closing ceremony, scheduled on March 30, will definitely bear a maghrebi connotation thanks to the participation of the Kabyle Algerian singer Idir, Abdelhedi Belkhayat of Morocco , Hassen Laaribi of Libya , Maaloumah bent Meidah of Mauritania and Nabiha Karaouili of Tunisia .
During the closing evening, substantial cash prizes will be awarded to the best performers but also to the best song writers and composers. 20 songs out of 83 take part in the competition.
Observers note that over the last years, the festival has gained in magnitude and scope, to become a major national artistic event that showcases an open and authentic Tunisian music.
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