Muscat: His Highness Sayyid Bilarab bin Haitham Al Said patronised on Sunday evening over the concluding ceremony and coronation of the winners of the 2nd cycle of the Aga Khan Award for Music (2020-2022 ).
The event was held at the House of Musical Arts in the Royal Opera House Muscat (ROHM).
The ceremony comprised several segments, including live performances by some of the winners, films highlighting the journey of winner artists and their service to music regionally and internationally. Those films showcase the journey of Zulkifli and Bur’am ensemble from Pakistan, Mohammed Mousavi from Iran and Daud Khan from Afghanistan.
Fairouz Nishanova, Director of the Aga Khan Music Programme (AKMP) expressed her thanks and appreciation for the Sultanate of Oman, represented by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth, the Royal Opera House Muscat (ROHM) and Royal Oman Symphony Orchestra, for hosting the Aga Khan Award for Music in its 2nd cycle.
She pointed out that the musicians who are gathered today come from various cultural backgrounds and countries and this fact ameliorates the positive effect of the awards.
Omani artist Musallam Ahmed Al Kathiri, who was awarded during the current cycle of the Aga Khan Award for Music, told Oman News Agency (ONA) that he is honoured to receive the approval and satisfaction of the award’s steering committee. This award, he added, motivates him to exert further efforts in the field of music research and composition.
On his turn, Asin Khan Langa from India, one of the laureates of the Aga Khan Award for Music, told Oman News Agency (ONA) that his work in the artistic and musical field enabled him to contributing to his society and to serve the art of playing the Sindhi Sarangi musical instrument.
At the conclusion of the event, HH Sayyid Bilarab bin Haitham Al Said felicitated the winners of the Aga Khan Award for Music in its 2nd cycle.
The awards were presented to Afel Bocoum from Mali, Asin Khan Langa from India, Coumbane Mint Ely Warakane from Mauritania, Daud Khan Sadozai from Afghanistan, Peni Candra Rini from Indonesia, Soumik Datta from the United Kingdom, Yahya Hussein Abdallah from Tanzania, Yasamin Shahhosseini from Iran and Zarsanga from Pakistan.
Meanwhile, the winners of the Aga Khan Special Awards for Music in its 2nd cycle are Dilshad Khan from India, Golshan Ensemble from Iran, Sain Zahoor from Pakistan, Zulkifli and Bur’am from Indonesia, Seyyed Mohammad Musavi and Mahoor Institute from Iran.
Musallam Ahmed Al Kathiri was awarded a special award for excellence in service to Omani musical heritage.
The Aga Khan Award for Music was established in 2018 and is held every three years to celebrate exceptional and promising talents, as well as specialized projects in all fields of music—right from performance to innovation and education, with the overall goal of preserving and reviving musical traditions in societies where Muslims have a large presence around the world.
The Aga Khan Music Programme consists of four interrelated areas: “education and orientation”, “creativity and performance”, “production, documentation and publishing” and “online projects and digital archives”.
In a bid to realizing the 11 strategic objectives, Oman’s hosting the event reflects its cultural diversity and its openness to global transformations in accordance with its economic, social, political and cultural texture.
The event also indicates harmony with the objectives of national, regional and international strategies through which Oman hopes to enrich its cultural strategy that stems from creativity, cultural development and creative cultural applications, to name a few.
