Rhythms That Remember: Inside Oman’s Living Soundscape

On a serene morning, the Exhibition Hall at the House of Musical Arts hums with anticipation. The wide doors to Rhythm of Life, a new exhibition running from 19 November 2025 to 7 February 2026, opened into a space where sound becomes memory, geography, and identity. Within the Royal Opera House Muscat, visitors are invited to experience Oman’s musical heritage not as something distant, but as a living and evolving presence.
“It is an exhibition that celebrates our rich traditions,” says Dr. Nasser Hamed al Taee, Curator of Exhibitions and the Music Library. His voice carries both calm and pride. “For the first time, we are introducing people to the different genres and the instruments, and how they are used within the culture of Oman.” The exhibition mostly coincides with National Day, Military Day, Omani Women’s Day, and an upcoming night dedicated to the compositions of Sayyid Khalid Al Busaidi, anchoring it within a season of cultural significance.

The visitor’s journey begins with an encounter with Oman’s diverse landscapes. Photographs of sea, desert, mountain, and village unfold like scenes from a collective memory. Here, listening becomes an act of understanding. The rhythm of waves merges with mountain winds, while echoes of ancient trade routes that linked East Africa, Arabia, Persia, and South Asia emerge through layered sound. In these connections, Oman’s musical heritage appears expansive, shaped by movement and enriched through centuries of cultural exchange.
Music in Oman has long served as a repository of lived experience. Rhythms carry stories of migration, celebration, harvest, and grief. Traditions passed down through generations preserve not only sound but the social bonds that accompany it. “It is open to everyone,” Dr. Nasser says, emphasizing that the exhibition is designed to welcome visitors of all ages and backgrounds.

In the instruments gallery, sound transforms into physical form. Drums such as al Kasir, al Rahmani, and al Mendo are arranged in warm light, their skins stretched with care and tradition. Visitors observe the grain of wood, the stitching of leather, and the natural materials that tie each instrument to a particular environment. Crafted from coastal woods, desert palms, and animal hides, they reflect the intimate relationship between craft and geography.
Nearby, stringed instruments embody the lyrical quality of Omani music. The oud, tanbura, and rababah stand quietly, their shapes recalling the curvature of dhows and dunes. Wind instruments, including the surnay and mizmar, rise like reeds shaped by the landscape. “Never before have we seen these instruments under one roof,” Dr. Nasser says, marking one of the exhibition’s most distinctive achievements.
As visitors move forward, the musical map of Oman comes into focus. Coastal rhythms evoke the sway of boats against the sea. Mountain melodies rise and fall with the uneven cadence of stone paths. Desert chants echo across projected orange landscapes, while rural sounds convey the warmth of communal gatherings. Diversity appears not as separation but as harmony. Each region contributes its own tone, movement, and emotional resonance, yet all reflect a shared connection to the land and its history.

The exhibition then shifts into the Omani Renaissance, beginning in the mid 1970s. During this period, institutions such as the Royal Oman Symphony Orchestra, the Oman Centre for Traditional Music, and various cultural ensembles emerged as pillars of preservation and education. Archival photographs trace the transformation from traditional village performances to formal stages. This evolution culminates in the opening of the Royal Opera House Muscat in 2011, where heritage and modernity now coexist in dialogue.

At the center of the exhibition lies the immersive gallery, a multi layered acoustic dome that places visitors inside Omani soundscapes. Archival field recordings bring listeners into wadis, villages, and coastal towns. Moving images respond to sound, and interactive screens allow visitors to test rhythms and melodies themselves. In this space, one does not simply observe the culture, one participates in it. As Dr. Nasser notes, the entire concept, curation, and construction were carried out by Omanis, marking the first time folklore has been presented in such an immersive form.
The final section showcases books, manuscripts, and rare postage stamps, some unseen since 1985. These items highlight the importance of documentation and scholarship in sustaining musical heritage. Stamps depicting musicians mid movement freeze moments that once pulsed with life, reminding visitors that preservation is an ongoing dialogue with the past.

Open daily from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. except Fridays, the exhibition welcomes anyone interested in exploring the beauty and depth of Omani musical arts.
Ultimately, Rhythm of Life offers more than an exhibition. It offers a way of listening, a way of understanding how a nation’s story is carried through rhythm, melody, and memory. “We look forward to seeing everybody,” Dr. Nasser says, and in that simple invitation lies the exhibition’s essence, a celebration of Oman’s cultural heartbeat