The Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra performs “The Holy Trilogy” at Qatar National Convention Center’s Al Mayassa theatre on Wednesday. Pic: Abdul Basit/The Peninsula
Doha: A monumental musical masterpiece by the late celebrated Egyptian composer Riad Al Sunbati was met with standing ovation when it was performed at the Qatar National Convention Center (QNCC) on Wednesday.
Organised by the Ministry of Culture and Sports in cooperation with the Music Affairs Center and the Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra, the concert served as a fitting tribute to the philosopher of classical Arab music who gifted the world with an immense legacy of more than 500 compositions including “The Holy Trilogy” which was performed at the show.
At a loss for words when he addressed hundreds in the audience, Turkish composer, arranger and music producer Ismail Zafer Haznedaroglu could only say, “It is better to let music, our most common language, speak and communicate with you.”
Haznedaroglu breathed new life into Sunbati’s masterpiece with his fresh symphonic interpretation of “The Holy Trilogy”- a treasure in Arab music in which Sunbati intended to describe the three holy cities Makkah, Medina, and Baytul-Maqdis. These important cities are considered beacons of change and evidence of the reform project that exalts the value of man and affirms love, tolerance and determination that humanity shares to build human civilization and needs in today’s world.
The show was both an aural and visual feast with spectacular lights in sync with music as it transformed from tender to intense during the hour-long stellar performance by Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of composer and conductor Orhan Salliel. The audience was taken on a journey into Sunbati’s masterful composition which was given a new flavor to suit the taste of 21st Century music aficionados.
Called “The Genius” by no less than Egyptian iconic diva Umm Khultum who was his long-term collaborator, Sunbati took the classical Arabic music to new heights during his lifetime and inspired millions of people around the world with his music regarded as ‘Treasures of Arab Culture” by Unesco and other international institutions. Sunbati’s composition was specifically chosen to be performed for the concert due to his significant role in the modernization of Arab music during his time. Adding contemporary touch to the composition had allowed for even more appreciation of the masterpiece in the present milieu.
The concert came within Music Affairs Center’s framework of cooperation with international musicians who have new artistic interpretation of immortal Arab works and within the endeavors that aim to modernize Arab music.
With a career as composer and arranger spanning 26 years, Haznedaroglu has collaborated with many prominent musicians across different genres from jazz, rock, pop and classical to traditional Turkish, folkloric Balkan, Khaleeji and flamenco. Salliel has conducted many orchestras in Turkey and around the world such as Holland, Denmark, Finland, Germany, United States, China, Mexico, Japan, Spain, Poland, Uzbekistan, Hungary, Korea and Russia.
