AR Rahman to mentor all-female music studio in Dubai

Music
maestro A.R. Rahman will mentor musicians and compose for a state-of-the-art,
all-female music studio in Dubai, which will perform at Expo 2020.

The Firdaus
(Paradise) Women’s Orchestra will become a permanent facility at District 2020,
according to an announcement on Sunday.

Other than
mentoring and composing, Rahman will be attached to the studio’s name. The
composer, who is credited with revolutionising Indian cinema music in his over
25-year illustrious career, said: “This world-leading studio will attract
the cream of the industry to Dubai. Working with the most exciting female
musical talents of the region, the Firdaus Women’s Orchestra will enable Dubai
to become a focal point for making ground-breaking new music, and I look
forward to being part of that.”

The studio
and orchestra are part of the state’s plan to promote Dubai as an international
hub for music recording and production, the announcement added.

The
orchestra, which will bring together 50 women musicians from the UAE, wider
Middle East, North Africa and Afghanistan, will draw inspiration from the
country’s centuries-old rich musical traditions that use instruments such as
the oud, rebaba and darbuka.

The
orchestra will perform two concerts led by Rahman at Expo 2020 Dubai, a special
show for International Women’s Day on 8 March 2021, among a number of other
events.

Dubai will
host Expo 2020 after the Bureau International des Expositions, an
intergovernmental organization created to supervise international exhibitions
falling under the jurisdiction of the Convention Relating to International
Exhibitions, awarded the rights in 2013.