An Egyptian band offers its audience a musical journey to the time of the pharaohs, through melodies inspired by inscriptions painted on temple walls, songs played with ancient musical instruments and lyrics sung by musicians dressed like pharaohs.

Ahfad el-Fara’na (Grandchildren of the Pharaohs) was founded in 2007 to revive, protect and spread the ancient Egyptian musical heritage. The unprecedented initiative, which is part of the National Project for the Revival of Ancient Egyptian Music, was launched by professor Khairy el-Malt, who has been interested in ancient Egyptian music since the 1990s.

"This idea came to me in 1990 when I got a glimpse of the temples from a plane as I was traveling to the upper Egyptian governorate of Qena to give a series of lectures. The view of the temples from the plane window encouraged me to dive into the world of ancient Egyptian music. I started working on the project a decade later," Malt, a professor of musicology at Helwan University, told Al-Monitor.

The project received a grant from the European Union in 2004 and another grant from the World Bank in 2005, to become the first entity teaching ancient Egyptian music and providing students with a master's degree. "The study [of ancient Egyptian music] on an academic level is required to ensure the continuation of the project. Without preparing qualified cadres, this project would fall into oblivion," Malt said.