Dr. Ragheb Moftah (1898–2001) was an

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

ian

musicologist Musicology (from Greek μουσική ''mousikē'' 'music' and -λογια ''-logia'', 'domain of study') is the scholarly analysis and research-based study of music. Musicology departments traditionally belong to the humanities, although some mu ...

and scholar of the

Coptic music Coptic music is the music sung and played in the Coptic Orthodox Church (Church of Egypt) and the Coptic Catholic Church. It consists mainly of chanted hymns in rhythm with instruments such as cymbals (hand and large size) and the triangle. Coptic ...

heritage. He co-authored the article on "Coptic Music" for the ''

Coptic Encyclopedia The ''Coptic Encyclopedia'' is an eight-volume work covering the history, theology, language, art, architecture, archeology and hagiography of Coptic Egypt. The encyclopedia was written by over 250 Western and Egyptian contributing experts in th ...

''. He spent much of his life studying the recording and notation of Coptic

liturgical Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. ''Liturgy'' can also be used to refer specifically to public worship by Christians. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and partic ...

texts. The son of Habashi Moftah and Labiba Shalaby, Moftah was one of nine children.

Education

He studied in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

at the Faculty of Agriculture in the

University of Bonn The Rhenish Friedrich Wilhelm University of Bonn (german: Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn) is a public research university located in Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was founded in its present form as the ( en, Rhine U ...

in the

Rhineland The Rhineland (german: Rheinland; french: Rhénanie; nl, Rijnland; ksh, Rhingland; Latinised name: ''Rhenania'') is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly its middle section. Term Historically, the Rhinelands ...

and obtained a BSc in agriculture. His great passion was music. He obtained degrees in Music from Bonn and in Catholic Southern Germany at the

University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich or LMU; german: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Germany. It is Germany's List of universities in Germany, sixth-oldest u ...

. He made a studio at St. Mary

Coptic Orthodox The Coptic Orthodox Church ( cop, Ϯⲉⲕ̀ⲕⲗⲏⲥⲓⲁ ⲛ̀ⲣⲉⲙⲛ̀ⲭⲏⲙⲓ ⲛ̀ⲟⲣⲑⲟⲇⲟⲝⲟⲥ, translit=Ti.eklyseya en.remenkimi en.orthodoxos, lit=the Egyptian Orthodox Church; ar, الكنيسة القبطي� ...

Church Kasriet El-Rihan in Old

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...

. In 1927 he invited Prof.

Ernest Newlandsmith Ernest Newlandsmith (born 1875–after 1957), was a musicologist with strong Christian belief who formed the Laresol Society to promote artistic vocation of a religious nature. Together with Dr. Ragheb Muftah he was instrumental in noting down and ...

from

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, who transcribed all the Coptic Heritage 1928-1936.

Institute of Coptic Studies

In 1955 he was responsible for the Music & Hymn Department at the

Institute of Coptic Studies The Institute of Coptic Studies (معهد الدراسات القبطية) was founded in 1954 by the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria. It is based in Cairo. Description The institute is the Egyptian church's main research centre in subjects ...

and moved the primary studio he had already made in St. Mary Church. He began recording the hymns and all the Church services with Mlm. Mikhail's voice and then published in more talented voices on cassette tapes, for a total of 54 tapes.

St. Basil's mass

In 1970, he invited the scientist Margaret Toth to co-operate in achieving a transcription of St. Basil's Mass, which Prof. Ernest Newlandsmith had prepared only responses and the first part in each priest (solo) part, The work lasted until everything was accomplished, all the mass with hymns in Musical notation with the Coptic, English and Arabic text. In 1992, he offered all his works to the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

to be kept over generations using the latest technology. In 1998 The

American University in Cairo The American University in Cairo (AUC; ar, الجامعة الأمريكية بالقاهرة, Al-Jāmi‘a al-’Amrīkiyya bi-l-Qāhira) is a private research university in Cairo, Egypt. The university offers American-style learning programs ...

published the Music transcription of St. Basil's Mass.

Personal life

In 1963 Dr. Moftah married Mary Gabriel Rizq. He is the father of Micah Moftah, Architect.

References

"Coptic Music" (co-authored by Ragheb Moftah), Claremont Coptic Encyclopedia

External links