Thanks to the foresight and imagination of the Education and Outreach team of the Royal Opera House Muscat, an array of activities for young and not-so-young took place last Saturday at various locations throughout the building and Opera Galleria. Some were Musical, others were Arts and Crafts, but they all had one amazing feature in common – they were all free and open to any participants who signed up and registered.
Subtitled, ‘Map of the World’, this season’s Open House took families on an interactive exploration of countries around the world, from photography of foreign travel in ‘Le Grand Tour’, a ‘Camera Obscura’, Origami (paper-folding) from Japan, to the Gamelan orchestras of Bali and drumming from – well, everywhere there is rhythm.
For the tiny tots of the family, there was a Music Making Workshop with Federica Falasconi, exploring natural sounds found in the world around us. Every activity on the programme had three sessions, so everyone had the opportunity to participate in a couple of workshops.
In collaboration with the Omani Society for Fine Arts, Anwar Sonya, the “father” of all Omani artists and one of the founding pioneers of contemporary art in Oman since 1980, led a creative group called, “Paper Marbling” for children aged 8-12. Originating in Turkey and Japan, ‘marbling’ is a design technique which involves dropping paint onto a liquid surface and then onto paper. ‘Paint swirls and rolls on the waves of water, creating beautiful abstract patterns”.
Origami is the Japanese art of paper folding, traditionally out of one sheet of paper. Under the expert guidance of Chinese origami creator, Jiang Xiao Chun, children aged between five and thirteen were shown how to make flowers and dolls to take home, while developing their skills of patience, concentration and eye-hand coordination. This craft activity took place in the Opera Galleria space along with Face Painting and Drawing for younger children. There was also a photography exhibition and a game to test visitors’ knowledge of famous international land marks. This was definitely a challenge for adults as well as children!
Where parents and other adults were also welcomed with their children was Adrian Clifford’s Gamelan Workshop in the East Porch. Adrian brought along a beginner gamelan orchestra, courtesy of the British School Muscat, to share the techniques of repeating melodies with enthusiasts of all ages. It comprised three large, resonant gongs and a fleet of different sized metallophones, rather like out-of-tune metal xylophones with pentatonic tuning, for learning the Indonesian traditional music. Gamelan music is performed in every village in Bali and Java and accompanies shadow puppets and dancing, Mr Clifford explained.
Somebody who has been a regular contributor at Open House over past seasons is Ernesto Raymat and his ‘Drum Circle’. It is a very popular group, and playing rhythm based activities on various drums provided by Tunes is a therapeutic, hypnotic yet physical creativity. The three sessions were packed, and the afternoon one aimed at teens and adults enabled extensive improvisation to develop.
Finally, the day rounded off with a little concert of students aged under sixteen who wanted to showcase their own particular skills and talents. Seated on cushions and carpets with a keyboard provided, it was great to hear six-year violinists perform at the beginning of their musical journeys, alongside older pianists and singers. Well done to the Outreach team at the Royal Opera House Muscat for another successful celebration of all things creative and artistic in ‘Map of the World’ Open House, shared with the youth of the Omani community.
Photos by khalid al busaidi
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
