CAIRO - When you enter the museum, you feel that you will see her somewhere, standing here or there, or talking to her friends, or overseeing preparations for one of her concerts. Her voice was adored by millions of people in the Arab world and even farther field. Um Kulthoum is really there in a museum that carries her name inside the Manesterly Palace in Manial el-Roda. Um Kulthoum, whose career ran from the 1930s to the 1970s, was an internationally famous Egyptian singer, and film actress at times, known in Arabic as ‘Kawkab al-Sharq', meaning Star of the Orient. More than three decades after her death in 1975, she is still widely regarded as probably the greatest female singer in all history of Arab music. Bob Dylan has been quoted as saying, "She's great. She really is. Really great." Maria Callas, Jean-Paul Sartre, Marie Laforet, Salvador Dali, Farin Urlaub and Led Zeppelin are also known to have been among the celebs who admired Um Kulthoum's singing. When you walk into the museum, there is a big, coloured photo on the left-hand wall, depicting Um Kulthoum, President Gamal Abdel Nasser (who died in 1970), President Anwar el-Sadat (who died in 1981) and veteran composer Mohamed el-Mogi (1923-1995). The photo was taken in the Ewart Hall at the American University's original campus in downtown Cairo, where Um Kulthoum was singing 'Sound of the Homeland', celebrating the commencement of Nasser's second term in office in 1956. The Star of the Orient looks glowing in this photo. The exhibits in the museum were collected between 1998 and 2001, when it opened. Outside the entrance, there is a window where some of the wonderful dresses she wore in her concerts are on display. The dresses are clean and glittering, as if brand-new. Each dress was worn only once. There is also a description of each dress, when exactly Um Kulthoum wore it and what she sang that day. I would recommend the younger generation, who never saw her live, to really go and visit her museum. It is a worthwhile and memorable experience indeed. They can admire her brightly coloured dresses, as she always appeared on TV dressed in black and white. Her concert dresses were usually in pink, light green, orange and black with dark green. Many black-and-white and coloured photos adorn the walls of the museum. They record Um Kulthoum's life when she was a young singer, depicting her with her friends, and the musicians she worked with, like Mohamed el-Qasabgi (1903-1963), Mohamed Abdel-Wahab (1902-1991) and Riad el-Sonbati (1906-1981). Some of these photos are very touching, like the one of Sadat kissing her on the cheek, when, as an old lady, she congratulated him on the October 6 Victory. Another photo shows a sad Um Kulthoum sitting with her hand under her chin. It was taken in 1970, when she was in Paris for a concert and heard the news of Abdel-Nasser's death. She cancelled the concert and flew back to Cairo for his funeral. Some of her sunglasses, some inlaid with diamonds, are also on display. As a public figure beloved by millions of people, she was honoured with medals, certificates of appreciation, letters and telegrams from many individual citizens and leaders of Arab countries. One of her most prestigious decorations, on display in the museum, is the ‘Nishan el-Kamal', a decoration reserved exclusively for members of the royal family and politicians, which King Farouq bestowed on her in 1944. A number of her handbags and shoes are also on display, with a description detailing where each was made. The most magnificent piece in the museum is her diamond brooch pin, a gift from Kuwait, which she wore at every concert. You can even see her pen, diary, daily organiser, diplomatic passport and notebook, in which she wrote French words. The museum, which is open daily from 9am to 4pm except on holidays, offers visitors the facility of watching a 27-minute documentary film about Um Kulthoum, starting with her early life in the village of Tamay ez-Zahayra in the Nile Delta and ending with her funeral in 1975 with millions of grief-stricken Egyptians lining the streets, to catch a glimpse as her cortege passed.
