Al-Tannoura Troupe spellbinds audience at PNCA

ISLAMABAD The style of sufi rendition and dance the Egyptian Al-Tannoura Troupe for Cultural Heritage presented here Saturday night at the auditorium of the PNCA was entirely different from what is known and practised here in the region or in the countries around. Though the soul of the performance was not other than to motivate the inner-self of the audience to be selfless for the Almighty but the difference was the folkway the African-Arab Muslims soothe their souls in devotion. The event was organised by the Pakistan National Council of Arts (PNCA) in collaboration with Embassy of Egypt, and Pakistan-Egypt Friendship Association (PEFA) in connection with the national day of the Arab Republic of Egypt. It was the second performance of the Al-Tannoura Troupe on Saturday. The first one was on Friday when the Egyptian Ambassador, Magdy Amer hosted a reception to mark his countrys national day at the same venue. On the occasion, Al-Tannouras exclusive performance was for the diplomats, high officials of the Government and army, and a select group of the VIPs. On Saturday, The PNCA auditorium was packed to full as the show was open for all. The locals from different walks of life and the Egyptian community living in and around the Capital enjoyed the show like the anything as their applause revealed the warmth of their love for the performers of the Al-Tannoura. PTVs English language newscaster, Shabnam Riaz conducted the show. The programme began with the playing of the national anthems of Egypt and Pakistan in video mode, screening images from both countries sightseeing attractions and other aspects of which they are proud of. The first part of the show was for the Pakistani musicians. Led by Nawazash Ali Hazarvi, Muhammad Ajmal, Raees Ahmed and Gulab Khel performed on tabla, violin and rabab respectively. It seems that the PNCA has only a very small group of musicians in the Federal Capital. The cultural authority needs to include more performers and musicians in their clout to add diversity to show the audience who would rather fed up with seeing the old faces all the time again. The second part was comprised of solo renditions by the Al-Tannoura performers on traditional percussion instruments 'Sagat, Mizmar and Tabla cymbals, frame drums and one headed conical barrel drum respectively, followed by an orchestral performance on 'Rababa the traditional Fiddle and Nay, the flute. The third part of the show featured the Al-Tannoura dance performance to the recitation of devotional verses in accompaniment with traditional melodic and percussion instruments. The last part included Tannoura dance by a trio dancers in accompaniment with traditional melodic and percussion, Rebaba, Nay, Mizmar, Sagat and Tabla. The 12-member Al-Tannoura Troupe is one of the Egyptian folk groups established by the General Organisation for Cultural Palaces at Egypts Ministry of Culture. The group is based in the Capital at the old Fatmis Cairo, mainly at Salahel Din Citadel. Speaking on the occasion, Ambassador Magdy Amer thanked his guests for attending the function and promised that there would be more such cultural performances in future after every 4-5 months. He also suggested that the cultural exchange between the two countries should not discontinue as it was for the last 10 years. Touqir Nasir, the PNCA Director General, appreciated the Egyptian Embassy for continuing the cultural exchange, and he offered full support from PNCA and the Cultural Ministry for future Egyptian cultural shows in Pakistan. We are trying to highlight our culture to prove that Pakistanis are the peace-loving people, not warlords or terrorists, he added.