Saudi Arabia, 8 Ramadan, 30 March 2023
After being absent from his mosque since the beginning of Ramadan, Mohammed Hafez al-Rahman appeared today on the frequenters of the largest mosque in the British capital, the East London Mosque, through the Otr Elkalam show, one of the initiatives of the General Entertainment Authority, that has allowed distinguished talents in recitation and adhan to participate in the largest Quran recitation and adhan competition in the world.
The East London Mosque, which has been associated with the voice of Hafez al-Rahman, is unique among the rest of the capital’s mosques because it is the only one where adhan is raised through external loudspeakers. It is one of the largest mosques on the continent of Europe and the most attractive to worshipers during Ramadan.
Hafez al-Rahman, who raises adhan and teaches the Holy Quran in East London Mosque, competed in today’s episode of Otr Elkalam with the Egyptian muazzin Mohammed Tariq, who discovered his talent while traveling between France, South Africa, Mauritius, Indonesia and Nigeria and became a famous muazzin on social media. However, Tariq lost the competition to his British rival, who won the highest share of the votes of the jury.
In the recitation track, the Ethiopian Mohammed Nour Ibrahim, who memorized the Quran at an early age, qualified for the next stage at the expense of his Libyan rival, Hamza Al-Misrati, who memorized the Quran as a child and has been teaching it all his life.
Otr Elkalam aims to show the vocal talents and capabilities of reciters and muazzins based on the rules of melody and sensations that contribute to conveying the feelings of contestants to listeners. The show is broadcast daily on MBC and the Shahid digital platform.