The Ensemble was founded in 1967, by a republican decision from the late president Gamal Abdel Nasser, under the name of the Arab Music Ensemble. However, the main impetus for founding the Ensemble was the late artist, Abdel Halim Nowera, whose name it still bears in honor and in memory of him. The main goal of founding this Ensemble was to preserve, develop and present the Arab music heritage in a style that suits the contemporary taste of the listener without any prejudice or distortion of the artistic content of this heritage; an approach adopted by the Ensemble since its founding. Music ensembles in different Arab countries tried to follow suit by presenting this kind of art, Abdel Halim Nowera Ensemble for Arab Music continued to occupy a unique and unrivaled position in this field. 

Th concerts of Abdel Halim Nowera Ensemble are regularly held on the stages of the Cairo Opera House and in various governorates of Egypt. In addition to this, the Ensemble toured in many countries all over the world such as: Turkey, Spain, France, Italy, Japan, Greece, Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Iraq, Libya, Qatar, Lebanon, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, the USA (Michigan, North Carolina, Chicago, New York and Washington).

The Ensemble also participated in many international festivals such as: the Jerash Festival for Culture and Arts in Jordan, the International Festival of Carthage in Tunisia, the Babylon International Festival in Iraq, Zanzibar Music Festival, and the International Cultural Festival of Andalusian Music in Algiers.

Abdel Halim Nowera Ensemble received the Medal of Arts from the Republic of Tunisia, and was honored to hold concerts that were attended by kings and heads of state. These concerts gained critical acclaim and met with tremendous ovations.

The Ensemble also accompanied top singing stars of the Arab world in the Festival and Conference of Arab Music, which is hosted annually by the Cairo Opera House since 1991.