The crisis surrounding the 34th Arab Music Festival, scheduled to run from 20 to 30 October 2026, is continuing as the list of artists who have withdrawn or will be absent from the events grows. The developments coincided with Dr Reda El Wakil announcing his decision to step down as head of the Cairo Opera House, before reversing it and continuing in his post.
Ramy Sabry withdraws from festival
Egyptian singer Ramy Sabry was the latest addition to the list of artists who have withdrawn, after reversing an earlier announcement confirming his participation in the new edition. Sabry attributed his decision to developments and circumstances he said he learned about later, including a post issued by the Cairo Opera House and a video of its head, which he considered among the reasons that led him to withdraw.
Sabry had previously posted a message on his social media accounts confirming his association with the Arab Music Festival, noting that he was a graduate of the Higher Institute of Arab Music at the Academy of Arts. He also expressed his appreciation for the festival’s standing and placed himself at the disposal of the Cairo Opera House, but later deleted the post and announced that he would no longer participate.
Assi El Hallani withdraws amid opera house crisis
Lebanese singer Assi El Hallani also withdrew from appearing at the festival. In a statement, his media office said the artist had preferred not to participate in light of the latest developments at the Cairo Opera House, to avoid becoming involved in disputes or circumstances linked to the crisis, while stressing his respect and appreciation for the opera house and its audience.
El Hallani’s withdrawal came after he had previously announced that he would donate his entire fee for taking part in the festival, expressing his keenness to attend the edition’s events and his appreciation for the Egyptian audience. His latest decision therefore falls within the context of developments concerning the opera house, rather than a financial dispute over the fee allocated to him.
Marwa Nagy withdraws over concert arrangements
Egyptian artist Marwa Nagy also announced her withdrawal amid disagreements over arrangements for her concert and what she described as a lack of clarity in coordinating with her. Nagy had agreed to participate for a fee more than 50% lower than the one she received in the previous edition, and had also offered to perform a concert at the Alexandria Opera House without payment, as an expression of her appreciation for the festival and the opera house.
Nagy said the date of her concert had been announced during the press conference for the edition without prior coordination with her, despite her travel commitments to the Sultanate of Oman. She added that she was also surprised to find works by composer Baligh Hamdi included in the concert programme, without prior agreement with her on that artistic segment.
In a later clarification, Nagy confirmed that she had tried to contact Reda El Wakil and the festival director well before the press conference, and attached evidence of attempts to reach them, but said she had received no response. She noted that the details of her participation had not been officially finalised with the opera house’s management when the concert programme was announced.
New withdrawals affect Bahaa Sultan, Ali El Haggar and others
The list of absentees also includes artist Bahaa Sultan, who was unable to participate because of prior artistic commitments coinciding with the festival period, along with Ahmed Saad and Jannat. Composer Mohamed El Mougy, director of the Arab Music Festival and Conference, told the press that other withdrawals included artist Reham Abdel Hakim and singer Mohamed Mohsen.
Artist Ali El Haggar attributed his absence from the festival for the first time in 30 years to the budget allocated for his accompanying musical ensemble. El Haggar described the budget as unsuitable, stressing that he could not accept it, which prompted him to withdraw from appearing in the new edition.
Egyptian singer Mohamed Tharwat was the first to announce his withdrawal from the events, in a post on his Facebook account. Tharwat later clarified that his decision was not related to fees, saying he had asked for his participation not to be announced, particularly as he had not signed a contract to take part in the festival’s 34th edition.
Meanwhile, a number of singers are continuing preparations to participate, including Mohamed El Helou and Medhat Saleh. Saleh is scheduled to give two concerts, one in Cairo and the other in Alexandria, accompanied by pianist Amr Selim, as part of the announced programme for the edition, whose events will run for ten days.
Egyptian singer Amal Maher told local media that she was pleased to be taking part in the festival, stressing that the opera house held a special place for her and represented a source of pride and happiness. She also described the Arab Music Festival as one of the oldest and most prestigious arts festivals in Egypt and the Arab world.
The announced list of participants still includes about 70 artists, among them Ghada Ragab, Ahmed Gamal and Nadia Mustafa. Their continued inclusion in the programme comes alongside the successive withdrawals, which began to escalate after the press conference organised by the Cairo Opera House to announce details of the new edition.
During the conference, Reda El Wakil spoke about the festival’s limited financial resources compared with other festivals in the region that have greater capacity to attract Arab singing stars, linking this financial gap to the absence of some names from the edition.
He also announced that some artists would participate without payment and that others would waive part of their fees, as part of the opera house’s efforts to secure additional resources to help improve the pay of its employees.
