The Abu Dhabi Festival co-production with the Festival des Musiques Sacrées & MARS, with support from Festival Musical du Hainaut, was a moving opera that mourned the victims of war, offered a peaceful atonement and celebrated cultural tolerance.
Abu Dhabi Festival 2022, in its 19th edition held under the theme “Crafting The Emirates State of Mind: Creation, Innovation, Joy’” presented the world premiere of Confluence by Iraqi-Belgian composer Qoutayba Neaimi and Franco-Portuguese composer Judith Adler de Oliveira, on Friday.
The Abu Dhabi Festival co-production with the Festival des Musiques Sacrées & MARS, with support from Festival Musical du Hainaut, was a moving opera that mourned the victims of war, offered a peaceful atonement and celebrated cultural tolerance.
Both the compositions and the libretto in six languages explored the common roots of the Occidental and the Middle Eastern worlds on a musical and a literary level.
The performance took place at Arsonic Hall in Mons, Belgium. A second performance, coinciding with the inaugural season of Namur Concert Hall, will be presented in Namur, Belgium, on May 6, 2022.
H.E. Huda Ibrahim Alkhamis, Founder of ADMAF and Founder and Artistic Director of Abu Dhabi Festival, said “Peace and cultural understanding are at the heart of Abu Dhabi Festival, and we are proud to support Confluence, a powerful homage to the victims of war and an overture for peace and tolerance. With a libretto sung in six languages, the opera addresses the human soul and overcomes linguistic barriers”.
The performance took place at Arsonic Hall in Mons, Belgium. A second performance, coinciding with the inaugural season of Namur Concert Hall, will be presented in Namur, Belgium, on May 6, 2022.
“In its nearly two decades, Abu Dhabi Festival has sought to extend cultural bridges between civilisations. Promising young composers Qoutayba Al Neaimi and Judith Adler de Oliviera continue those efforts with an intensely beautiful musical work that connects the common roots of Occidental and Oriental traditions”.
With musical compositions and operatic text consistently focusing on the close relations between the musical and literary cultures of the Middle-Eastern and Occidental worlds, the opera featured 9 singers and 8 musicians, both from the Middle East and the West.
The vibrant musical homage to the founding civilisations of the Middle-Eastern and Occidental worlds celebrated their common roots, intertwining the timeless sonorities of Aramaic, Arabic, Hebrew, Latin, French and English.
Qoutayba Neaimi, Belgian / Iraqi composer, researcher and specialist in Arab and Western music sciences, said: “This project brings together music and instruments from the Arab and Western worlds to sing the values of tolerance and hospitality, personified by the figure of Abraham. Accompanied by the best world musicians, I have put all my experience in this piece to deliver a carefully crafted musical composition rich in uniquely accurate interpretations.”
The 19th edition of Abu Dhabi Festival 2022 is held under the patronage of Her Highness Sheikha Shamsa Bint Hamdan Al Nahyan and supported by lead partner Mubadala Investment Company (Mubadala) and energy partner GS Energy. Abu Dhabi Festival 2022 encompasses over 1,000 participating artists from around the world to present more than 300 performances and events. The 19th edition will also include two world tours and 17 world premieres.
The 2022 Abu Dhabi Festival programme is part of the contribution that the Abu Dhabi Music & Arts Foundation makes to the UAE capital’s designation as a UNESCO City of Music.
For more information, visit Abu Dhabi Festival’s website, https://bit.ly/2SgFoZ4, and its digital platforms: Facebook (abudhabifestival), Twitter (@abudhabi_fest) and Instagram (@abudhabifestival).
About Abu Dhabi Festival
The Abu Dhabi Festival was established in 2004 under the auspices of H.H. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Media and Culture at the time (and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation at present). The Festival also received support from H.H. Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces during the period from 2007 to 2011.
Abu Dhabi Festival is considered one of the most prominent culture and arts events in the world. It acts as a time of celebration in the region as it contributes to the enrichment of Abu Dhabi’s cultural vision and establishes the city as a leading cultural destination, a capital of culture and arts and a gathering place of global cultures.
The Festival, supported by a growing global network of over 30 cultural, strategic and international partners, also plays a pivotal role in sponsoring creativity and innovation through art within the framework of its main event program, its youth platforms and community initiatives in the seven Emirates, in addition to its commissions and international cooperations. These partnerships allow the audience access to national, regional and world premiers.
Abu Dhabi Festival celebrates Emirati values, and enables entrepreneurship in the service of culture and humanity, inspired by the great legacy that the founding father Sheikh Zayed instilled in the Emirati society, that focuses on the values of respect, tolerance and openness to other cultures, and excellence in education and knowledge. In collaboration with over 35 International strategic partners, the Festival offers more than 100 events including local, regional and world premiers and exclusive commissions across its programs, main events, educational and community programs with events across the UAE and the world.
About the Abu Dhabi Music & Arts Foundation (ADMAF)
Founded in 1996, ADMAF is among the oldest, non-profit cultural organisations in the Arabian Gulf. The Foundation focuses on supporting culture and arts, and sustaining cultural development, by embracing creativity for the good of society as a contribution to enriching the cultural vision of Abu Dhabi. ADMAF also offers a wide array of initiatives, including Abu Dhabi Festival and several youth and societal programs and platforms and supports creative talents in the UAE and abroad in cooperation with major local and international cultural institutions.
About Mubadala
Mubadala Investment Company — a sovereign investor — manages a diverse business portfolio around the world, to generate sustainable financial returns for its shareholder, the Government of Abu Dhabi.
Today, Mubadala is a AED 894 billion ($243.4 billion) business that spans six continents with interests across multiple sectors and asset classes. Supporting efforts towards establishing a comprehensive, diversified economy in the UAE as well as a global one, Mubadala employs its rich multi-sectoral experience along with its long-term international partnerships to enhance profitability and promote sustainable growth.
Headquartered in Abu Dhabi, Mubadala also has offices in London, Rio de Janeiro, Moscow, New York, San Francisco and Beijing.
Further information on Mubadala can be found on the company’s official website, www.mubadala.com