The Royal Opera House Muscat will soon present the very first grand opera in Arabic, mounted by Opera Lebanon under the auspices of ROHM. The announcement was made during a press conference headlined by four distinguished protagonists of the project: Umberto Fanni, Director General of ROHM; Professor Dr Issam El Mallah, adviser to the Board of Directors, ROHM; Maroun Rahi, composer of the score and Artistic Director of Opera Lebanon and Farid Rahi, Co-founder of Opera Lebanon.
Fanni shared that the project would be the first truly balladic two-act opera in Arabic, from Lebanon. It is based on the mediaeval Arabic fable, ‘Antar and Abla’ which stresses the traditional Arabic values of bravery and trust with qualities of selfless tolerance. It puts aside prejudice in its message of love through the sharing of rich Arabic culture and music. With this journey into the world of classical Arabic culture, it opens new doors for future development of operas in Arabic.
Professor Dr Issam El Mallah, adviser to the Board of Directors, shared that the project was begun three years ago, striving to achieve art of high quality and substance. The result will meet with the ethos and expectations of an “Opera” which will include solos, duets, trios, chorus and ballet in true classical, European form.
Such a conception will result in a production which will rate among other works of similar stature on an international stage. In the past, he explained, such attempts failed as Arabic composers could not find their own voice as they were trying to copy Western styles and forms.
The musical language needed to be developed to create a true Arabic Opera form, accommodating the natural metre and internal rhythm of the language. Therefore having Maestro Maroun Rahi, as a native Lebanese Arabic speaker on board means he can capture the element of the text, the rhythm and metre of the words as they fall naturally.
Locally, ‘Opera Lebanon’ has been reaching out to all artists and performers, actually creating a performance Renaissance in Beirut, while also creating jobs and enhancing the Arts generally in the country.
Internationally, the objective of Opera Lebanon is to reach out globally and gain international recognition. Their focus in basing ‘Antar and Abla’ in a historical/literary context is expressing cultural identity and spreading its message of peace and prosperity internationally with presentations of a high standard and quality. When asked if taking a folk-based story as a fable for its subject matter is appropriate to elevate as high art, the floor was told, on the contrary, this is the perfect platform for sharing cultural morals, attitudes and values through opera.
The composer himself, Maroun Rahi, is fundamentally immersed in and influenced by the ‘belcanto’ style of Italian opera, such as Bellini and Donizetti. But clearly this is only a starting point, and his own language and interpretation of the fable, translated into his distinctive 21st-century idiom, has yet to be experienced.
Members of the public are invited to book for the performances on the evenings of May 3 and 4, Friday and Saturday, to discover for themselves just how successful this unique and ambitious production will be.
Photo credit Khalid Al Busaidy
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