Mahmoud El Sherif

Egyptian musician, born in Alexandria on April 2, 1912 He loved music since his childhood. He studied in Alexandria and remained there until 1939. He was influenced by his older brother, who was a musician in the Egyptian Naval Orchestra. In 1927, he began singing as an amateur singer, then began composing some songs for himself In 1932, he began frequenting Cairo theaters before working there In 1938, when Alexandria was fed up with his art and ambitions, his friend, the Alexandrian artist Mohamed Afifi, who had begun recording his melodies for Cairo Radio, revealed his desire to settle permanently in the capital. The two agreed to leave Alexandria, but Mohamed Afifi was unable to convince his mother, who was her only breadwinner, to travel with him. In 1939, with the beginning of the World War, Alexandria was struck by planes, and its people abandoned it to neighboring cities. Muhammad Abd al-Wahhab admired him when he heard his melody by Abd al-Muttalib: “You ask me, ‘Why do I love you?’” and a friendship began between them from that time. This song introduced him to the public, and then he became one of the most famous composers in Egypt. In 1946, Mahmoud Al-Sharif’s marriage to Umm Kulthum was announced, and this news disturbed many of those who were in Umm Kulthum’s orbit. It only lasted a few days and ended with a royal decree that separated them by order of King Farouk I! His relationship with her began when she was chosen as the head of the Musicians Syndicate and he was the General Secretary of the Syndicate at that time He was honored by the state in Egypt on more than one occasion, the first time during the era of President Gamal Abdel Nasser and then during the era of President Anwar Sadat, and in 1989 he received the State Appreciation Award. He died on July 29, 1990, at the age of 78, leaving an enormous artistic legacy.