RIYADH: Popular Egyptian violinist Mahmoud Sorour has added another string to his bow by opening a new music institute in Saudi Arabia.
Hundreds of the artist’s fans have already signed up to learn how to play the wooden string instrument at the first dedicated center of its kind for Riyadh.
Sorour said he had been overwhelmed by the level of interest shown by Saudis, especially among women.
The musician, who has become a major star in Saudi Arabia after taking part in concerts staged throughout the Kingdom during 2018, said he was amazed at how many women wanted to register for the institute with some even hoping to make a career out of playing the violin.
Business analyst, Mariam Al-Hazmi, said she could not wait to sign up to join Sorour’s classes. “I started learning to play the violin at home as a hobby, but I didn’t have very good learning resources and couldn’t find any music teachers in Riyadh to train me. This is a dream come true.” she said.
At the request of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Sorour aims to train 50 Saudi violinists to a level that will allow them to perform at a new opera house in Jeddah, due to be completed by 2022. And Al-Hazmi would love to become one of those violinists.
“I had never considered making a career out of playing the violin, but now there is the institute it becomes a real possibility. I can see myself part of the violin band playing at the new opera house three years from now,” she said.
Noura S., a Saudi art education PhD candidate, also expressed her excitement about the new institute.
“I will definitely register once I graduate and return from the US, especially if they have evening classes that do not interfere with my job,” she said.
She added that playing the violin was not as easy as it looked. “Violinists dazzle me, especially when they dance while playing the instrument. I feel it creates an intimacy between the musician and the violin, and that is why I want to learn to play. It would be nice to one day play as a professional in public.”
Sorour said he got the idea to open the institute in the capital from his adoring followers.
“A lot of people were saying how much they loved my music, and they started asking me through social media to teach them how to play the violin,” he told Arab News.
As a result, he decided to set up the music institute in Riyadh, with support and sponsorship from the Saudi Arabian government.
Sorour already hopes to expand the project by teaching instruments such as the flute, oud and piano and to run singing and songwriting classes.
Meanwhile, he said that more than 250 people had registered to join the institute and he expected that number to double.
The institute is open for all age groups, but Sorour is particularly looking for budding talent aged between 10 to 20 years old.
Sorour expressed his thanks to the Kingdom’s General Authority for Entertainment and the General Culture Authority for their support in establishing the institute.
He added that plans were in the pipeline for his music institute in Riyadh to collaborate with a similar venture at Taif University.
Women flock to join top violinist’s new Saudi music institute
Women flock to join top violinist’s new Saudi music institute
Riyadh symposium explores challenges in theater training
- This year’s festival features 20 performances selected by experts, reflecting the diversity of Saudi theater and its developmental initiatives
RIYADH: The Riyadh Theater Festival, organized by the Theater and Performing Arts Commission, is being held at Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University until Dec. 26.
A dialogue symposium at the festival explored challenges and opportunities in theatrical training in the Arab world, focusing on issues such as limited specialized programs, financial constraints, and cultural barriers.
Participants emphasized the need for stronger partnerships between Arab countries to support training, research, and the role of theater in education and public awareness, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
The symposium also highlighted the importance of innovative educational programs that foster skill development and produce tangible results in the performing arts.
Sultan Al-Bazie, CEO of the commission, called the festival a cornerstone for advancing theater in the Kingdom and raising public awareness of the performing arts.
This year’s festival features 20 performances selected by experts, reflecting the diversity of Saudi theater and its developmental initiatives.
It supports Saudi talent and enhances the Kingdom’s presence on regional and international stages. The event will conclude with awards for outstanding performers.
Saudi authorities seize drugs, arrest two suspects in Riyadh
- Authorities sezied 35 kg of hashish and 32,338 controlled medical tablets
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s drug control authority seized quantities of narcotics and arrested two suspects for drug promotion in Riyadh on Tuesday.
The General Directorate of Narcotics Control reported the seizure of 35 kg of hashish, 32,338 controlled medical tablets, as well as amphetamine and methamphetamine drugs.
It said that it had arrested two suspects in the case — a Syrian resident and a national — in Riyadh’s region, and referred them to prosecution, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
Saudi security authorities are urging people to report any activities related to drug smuggling or promotion by calling 911 in the Makkah, Riyadh and Eastern Province regions, and 999 in the rest of the Kingdom.
Alternatively, information can be emailed to [email protected]. All reports are treated in confidence.
KSrelief concludes urology surgery project in Yemen
- Project included nine volunteers from different medical specialties
- KSrelief medical team successfully performed 109 specialized urology surgeries
RIYADH: King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center has completed a medical project for urology surgeries in Yemen’s Aden governorate.
The project included nine volunteers from different medical specialties and was carried out from Dec. 15-22 in collaboration with the Saudi Program for the Development and Reconstruction of Yemen.
The KSrelief medical team examined 53 cases and successfully performed 109 specialized surgeries, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
KSrelief’s project is one of Saudi Arabia’s medical initiatives to assist the Yemeni people and ease their suffering amid the humanitarian crisis.
Saudi interior minister rewards winners of King Abdulaziz Falconry Festival
- Prince Abdulaziz awarded the prestigious King’s Sword to falconers Barghash Mohammed Al-Mansouri and Faisal Al-Qahtani
- He honored the winners of the festival’s elite rounds with King Abdulaziz Cup
RIYADH: Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Naif, Saudi minister of interior and chairman of the Saudi Falcons Club, honored on Tuesday the winners of the 2024 King Abdulaziz Falconry Festival.
Prince Abdulaziz awarded the prestigious King’s Sword to falconers Barghash Mohammed Al-Mansouri and Faisal Al-Qahtani, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
He also honored the winners of the festival’s elite rounds, who received the King Abdulaziz Cup. The champions included Al-Mansouri, Amin Abdullah Al-Mallah, Mohammed Hafez Al-Marri, Fahd Mohammed Al-Mansouri, Mohammed Ibrahim Al-Buainain, and Hamid Mohammed Al-Mansouri, the SPA added.
Additional awards were given to winners in the Mazayen falcon beauty pageant, covering both amateur and professional rounds, the SPA reported.
Prince Abdulaziz also honored the sponsors of the 2024 Saudi Falcons Club events at the end of the ceremony.
King Abdulaziz Falconry Festival was held from Dec. 3-19 at the club’s headquarters in Malham, north of Riyadh.
The event drew 1,032 falconers from nine countries, including 160 international participants, and showcased 3,322 falcons from countries such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the UAE and Italy.
The festival featured 138 rounds in Al-Malwah, highlighting falcon speed and talent, along with Mazayen competitions. It awarded more than SR 36 million ($9.6 million) in prizes, marking a record-breaking year for the festival.
Festival in Riyadh finds Common Ground between Iraqi and Saudi cultures
- We are ‘all one culture, one society and one message,’ says Iraqi official
RIYADH: From heritage to long-standing traditions, the deep connections between Iraq and Saudi Arabia span thousands of years to the pre-Islamic era.
The second Common Ground festival, an initiative by Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Culture, is an immersion in the bonds of the two nations through art, cuisine and performance.
Alataf Ebrahim, the head of the festival department at the Iraqi Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Antiquities, told Arab News: “Baghdad and all the Iraqi governorates are passionate about embracing Saudi culture. While the event is called Common Ground, with pride, we say that we are all one culture, one society and one message.
“This is a big and very important event, and the project is bold for planning and drawing joint cultural events now, and in the future. As the Ministry of Culture, this venture has been initiated for two years and we plan on having Saudi cultural nights in Baghdad as well as in 2025.”
HIGHLIGHT
Common Ground festival features an exhibition dedicated to the history of traditional clothing, musical instruments, songs, and significant cultural figures of Saudi Arabia and Iraq.
One of the main festival attractions is Al-Mutanabbi Street, which is recreated based on the historical road in Baghdad along with its iconic main gate. The renowned hub for intellectual life hosts various bookstores, clothing stores, live painting and oud performances, and panel discussions around various cultural crossovers.
In the heart of the bookshop district is one of Baghdad’s oldest coffee shops, Shabandar cafe, which opened its doors over a century ago and has since become a landmark in the city. The establishment has born witness to the twists and tragedies of Iraq’s tumultuous history.
“Shabandar cafe is an open corner for poets and intellectuals, and visitors as well, as they read about the latest cultural news through physical newspapers that are always on each table. This area is where the most prominent cultural activities in the capital (take place),” Ebrahim explained.
Al-Mutanabbi’s poems are also honored through 10, 3-meter-high scrolls. The works are written in a font that has the characteristics of the 4th century in the style of Ibn Al-Bawwab, the famous calligrapher who was born about a year after Al-Mutanabbi’s death.
“We’re presenting a mini cultural week that encompasses many experiences, not just books and literature, but also extends to musical performances; and an absorption between the two cultures and deepening that relationship,” he added.
As the Ministry of Culture, this venture has been initiated for two years and we plan on having Saudi cultural nights in Baghdad as well in 2025.
Alataf Ebrahim, Iraqi Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Antiquities official
Visitors can also indulge in local delicacies from both countries while enjoying the live folk music and dance performances that take place twice daily on the main stage.
The festival’s concert series featured an iconic performance by Iraqi singer Kadim Alsahir on the opening day, and a joint oud performance by Saudi singer and songwriter Abadi Al-Johar and Iraqi artist Naseer Shamma on Dec. 21.
The last show of the series will be on Dec. 25, featuring Aseel Hameem and Nawaf Al-Jabarti.
Over 100 artworks are on display at the “Beneath the Gaze of the Palms” exhibition, which examines questions of identity and heritage in Iraq and Saudi Arabia. The showcase includes Islamic, Mesopotamian and contemporary art.
At the entrance of the exhibition is a large structure known as the Mudhif, which is a traditional reed house, particularly in the Al-Ahwar region of southern Iraq. It is a type of communal guesthouse or gathering space that plays a central role in the social and hospitality traditions of the region.
A large part of the exhibition highlights Darb Zubaida, one of the historical pilgrimage routes from the city of Kufa to Makkah that not only facilitated the movement of people, goods, and ideas but also played a crucial role in the cultural and religious life of the Islamic world.
“This road became a place for exchanging ideas with our communities in the Kingdom. Saudi poetry and handicrafts were transferred to Iraq while Iraqi literary and cultural heritage was transferred to Saudi Arabia.
“This is an important aspect of the exhibition, alongside the many artworks that spotlight the traditional, modern, and contemporary art and the traditional tales that are embodied by the contributions of the participating artists.”
The festival also features an exhibition dedicated to the history of traditional clothing, musical instruments, songs, and significant cultural figures of Saudi Arabia and Iraq.
The festival, which runs until Dec. 31, is being held at Mega Studio in Riyadh’s Boulevard City.
