Recently, I had the good fortune of attending several performances at the Royal Opera House in Muscat, Oman. As a seasoned opera lover and arts enthusiast, I was particularly intrigued when I landed an invitation to attend what turned out to be an exquisite soiree that would feature musicians from across the Arab world performing a musical tribute to Omani women, in honor of the country’s women’s day celebration.
As the performance began, with pomp and circumstances, the Royal Oman Police’s all female marching band, dressed in white uniforms and elegant blue hats, marched from the far end of the auditorium unto the stage while playing drums and bagpipes.
While the evening’s repertoire listed legendary classical masterpieces by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and by Johann Sebastian Bach, such as the ‘Divertimento in D-major-Allegro’ and ‘Air on the G String,’ performed by an all female segment of the Royal Orchestra, a Syrian female oriental ensemble who had ventured from the war torn country chanted classic Arabic songs such as ‘Akzib aleik’ (‘I Lie to You’), a piece particularly well-received by the audience.
To a Western observer such as myself, accustomed to the grand European opera tradition, I was particularly intrigued by the evening’s harmonious balance between Arabesque, Omani, and Occidental musical themes, a bridge of civilizations masterfully accomplished by the Muscat institution.
While the Royal Opera resembles a classic European grand opera house, the institution's majestic architectural splendour also draws its inspiration from traditional Omani architecture; combining a facade and interior made out of desert rose limestone with an interior gracefully decorated with meticulous Islamic-inspired carving, while its doors and panels are made by Burmese imported timber.
Upon its 2011 inauguration, Oman's ruler, His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said said, "The Royal Opera House-Muscat is conceived to be the organization that will host all these musical institutions under one magnificent hall dedicated to the promotion of Omani, Arab, Western, and international music and dance."
In sync with the Royal Opera’s commitment to bridge various musical traditions, as testified by the evening’s diverse programming, the performance not only celebrated Omani women’s full emancipation into the arts but more broadly shed a light on the government’s quest to enhance gender equality.
In a tribute to the Omani Women's Day celebration, Qaboos said, “Since the beginning of this era, we have advocated the involvement of Omani women in the march of the blessed renaissance, providing them with education, training and employment opportunities, and supporting women’s role and status in society.”
Judging by the audience, enthusiastically clapping and shouting “bravo, bravo,” the performance reached its musical and artistic climax when dancers dressed in traditional Omani folk dresses in all colors began dancing past one another while drummers kneeling behind provided an unforgettable beat. Slowly, from both sides of the stage, all of the evening’s performers filled the backstage while a conductor masterfully orchestrated the dancers, the members of the Royal Symphony Orchestra, the Royal Police Band, the Syrian Oriental Ensemble and a group of British singers, harmoniously performing together.
As I walked out into the warm Arabian night, it became apparent to me that this fine institution was artistically on an equal footing, if not even superior to the many grand American and European opera houses that I have visited over the years.
Sigurd Neubauer is a Washington, D.C.-based defense and foreign affairs specialist. Follow Sigurd on Twitter @SigiMideast.
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Magic At The Royal Opera House
March 5, 2013
Recently, I had the good fortune of attending several performances at the Royal Opera House in Muscat, Oman. As a seasoned opera lover and arts enthusiast, I was particularly intrigued when I landed an invitation to attend what turned out to be an exquisite soiree that would feature musicians from across the Arab world performing a musical tribute to Omani women, in honor of the country’s women’s day celebration.
As the performance began, with pomp and circumstances, the Royal Oman Police’s all female marching band, dressed in white uniforms and elegant blue hats, marched from the far end of the auditorium unto the stage while playing drums and bagpipes.
While the evening’s repertoire listed legendary classical masterpieces by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and by Johann Sebastian Bach, such as the ‘Divertimento in D-major-Allegro’ and ‘Air on the G String,’ performed by an all female segment of the Royal Orchestra, a Syrian female oriental ensemble who had ventured from the war torn country chanted classic Arabic songs such as ‘Akzib aleik’ (‘I Lie to You’), a piece particularly well-received by the audience.
To a Western observer such as myself, accustomed to the grand European opera tradition, I was particularly intrigued by the evening’s harmonious balance between Arabesque, Omani, and Occidental musical themes, a bridge of civilizations masterfully accomplished by the Muscat institution.
While the Royal Opera resembles a classic European grand opera house, the institution's majestic architectural splendour also draws its inspiration from traditional Omani architecture; combining a facade and interior made out of desert rose limestone with an interior gracefully decorated with meticulous Islamic-inspired carving, while its doors and panels are made by Burmese imported timber.
Upon its 2011 inauguration, Oman's ruler, His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said said, "The Royal Opera House-Muscat is conceived to be the organization that will host all these musical institutions under one magnificent hall dedicated to the promotion of Omani, Arab, Western, and international music and dance."
In sync with the Royal Opera’s commitment to bridge various musical traditions, as testified by the evening’s diverse programming, the performance not only celebrated Omani women’s full emancipation into the arts but more broadly shed a light on the government’s quest to enhance gender equality.
In a tribute to the Omani Women's Day celebration, Qaboos said, “Since the beginning of this era, we have advocated the involvement of Omani women in the march of the blessed renaissance, providing them with education, training and employment opportunities, and supporting women’s role and status in society.”
Judging by the audience, enthusiastically clapping and shouting “bravo, bravo,” the performance reached its musical and artistic climax when dancers dressed in traditional Omani folk dresses in all colors began dancing past one another while drummers kneeling behind provided an unforgettable beat. Slowly, from both sides of the stage, all of the evening’s performers filled the backstage while a conductor masterfully orchestrated the dancers, the members of the Royal Symphony Orchestra, the Royal Police Band, the Syrian Oriental Ensemble and a group of British singers, harmoniously performing together.
As I walked out into the warm Arabian night, it became apparent to me that this fine institution was artistically on an equal footing, if not even superior to the many grand American and European opera houses that I have visited over the years.
Sigurd Neubauer is a Washington, D.C.-based defense and foreign affairs specialist. Follow Sigurd on Twitter @SigiMideast.
