Musical evening to pay tribute to late composer Riad Al Sunbati

أمسية موسيقية لتكريم الملحن الراحل رياض السنباطي

The Ministry of Culture and Sports has announced to organise a musical evening to pay tribute to late composer Riad Al Sunbati, which will be presented by the Music Affairs Center in cooperation with the Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra with the participation of 30 Turkish musicians.

A new symphonic interpretation of the famous masterpiece (The Holy Trilogy) composed by the late composer Riyad Al Sunbati will be presented at 7:30pm on Wednesday (February 5) at the Al Mayassa Theatre in the Education City. 

The audience will enjoy listening to the trilogy whose new symphonic interpretation was prepared and composed by the Turkish artist Ismail Zafer Haznedaroglu, conducted by the composer and music conductor Orhan Salliel.

The choice of Al Sunbati’s masterpiece to be presented in the awaited concert is due to his role in the modernization of Arab music during the historical period that he lived in. In tribute to Al Sunbati’s musical effort, the Ministry of Culture is organizing this concert, which is not only an ordinary cultural activity, but an exceptional one as well.

Although the concert features a monumental musical work of one of the most famous Arab musicians, the music that the audience will listen to will not be merely a reproduction of Al Sunbati’s masterpiece, but a new musical approach and interpretation of this masterpiece, as if Al Sunbati is recomposing it. 

The Ministry of Culture’s intention is to add contemporary touches, so that the music surpasses the historical limits of the era during which the work was composed, which makes it compatible with the rhythm of modern twenty-first century life. Therefore, this musical work is intended to express unity of human values and the concept that the values shared by humanity are greater and more than its differences, as well as that human bond is an essential link between all peoples of all ethnic and geographical differences.

Khaled Al Salem, Director of the Center for Music Affairs, said, “The Ministry of Culture is moving forward with its strategy to spread awareness among members of the society by opening up to cultures and providing everything that improves public taste and all that contains positive messages.” He said the choice of Al-Sunbati’s masterpiece to present it in the expected evening comes within the framework of cooperation with international musicians who have new artistic interpretation of our immortal Arab works and within the endeavors that aim to modernize Arab music and in appreciation of Al-Sunbati’s musical effort.

“The Holy Trilogy” means the three holy cities of Makkah, Medina, and Baytul-Maqdis (Jerusalem), which are holy places that played a civilized and historical role in the lives of the peoples of the region and even the whole world.

Moreover, the message transferred by those cities is a humanitarian and global message. In 1993 and 1994, he worked as an orchestral conductor and assistant art director of the “Kuhmo Music Chamber Festival” in Finland. In 1995, he started his career in Turkey by performing Richard Strauss’s “Salome” at the Turkish Opera and Ballet without rehearsing beforehand. This performance was brilliantly successful. 

Following that he became the founding conductor of the symphony orchestra of the “Bursa Province” (1999-2011), then the conductor of the symphony orchestra of “The City of Antalya” (2011-2015). He is still the conductor and director of the symphony orchestra of “Çukurova”. He has conducted many symphony orchestras in Turkey and abroad.

أعلنت وزارة الثقافة والرياضة عن تنظيم أمسية موسيقية لتكريم الملحن الراحل رياض السنباطي الذي سيقدمه مركز شؤون الموسيقى بالتعاون مع أوركسترا قطر الفيلهارمونية بمشاركة 30 موسيقيًا تركيًا.

سيتم تقديم أداء سيمفوني جديد للتحفة الشهيرة (The Holy Trilogy) من تأليف الملحن الراحل رياض السنباطي في الساعة 7:30 مساء يوم الأربعاء (5 فبراير) في مسرح الماسة في المدينة التعليمية.

سيستمتع الجمهور بالاستماع إلى الثلاثية بأدائها السمفوني الجديد وألحان الفنان التركي إسماعيل ظافر هازنار أوغلو ، التي أضافها الملحن والموسيقي أورهان ساليل.