FILE - Veteran Musician Naseer Shamma
CAIRO – 15 January 2019: Veteran Iraqi musician Naseer Shamma is set to perform on the Philharmonie Theater in Luxembourg on Jan. 17 at 8 p.m.
The Philharmonie Luxembourg, also called Grande-Duchesse Joséphine-Charlotte Concert Hall, is a concert hall located on the Kirchberg plateau in the City of Luxembourg.
Opened in 2005, it now hosts up to 400 performances each year and is one of the main concert halls in Europe.
The concert of Naseer Shamma will be accompanied by three artists from Tunisia, Al-Assa’ad al-Athary, Munir Kubba and Lotfy Soura.
Iraqi maestro and Oud master, Shamma, has held three concerts in Saudi Arabia recently and dazzled the masses by the orchestra of the oriental oud, composed of 35 musicians.
The concert set to be held in the Philharmonie Theater in Luxemburg has been sold out within a few hours.
Naseer Shamma is an Iraqi artist and a distinguished oud player born in 1963 in Kut, Iraq.
Graduating from the Institute of Music Studies in Baghdad in 1987 was the beginning of a long array of achievements in his musical career; he also obtained his PhD in Musical Philosophy.
Shamma was recognized with over 60 awards, starting in his graduation year with “Best Emotional Melody in Iraq” and working his way up to obtain the honors of the Iraqi Artist Syndicate for three consecutive years from 1988-1990, Best Artist in Iraq in 1994, 1998 Royal British Academy Award, the Rotterdam Arab festival Award and many more.
From mid to late 80’s, Shamma began exporting his musical culture to Europe with memorable performances such as that of the Armani Theatre of Paris, followed by amazing performances in Germany, Switzerland, London and others.
Releasing his first albums in Italy, UK, Egypt and Algeria, Shamma has presented over 60 compositions that translate his musical vision.
Advancing Music
During his stride, Shamma went on to launch The Arab Oud House with its first establishment in Cairo in 1999, where he would orchestrate and manage the advancement of Oud students to an expert level, sharing his techniques and additions to the instrument. The Arab Oud House includes other instruments such as the Saz, Nay, Qanun and oriental percussion.
The Arab Oud House has then been established in Abu Dhabi in 2008, Alexandria in 2011 and Baghdad in 2018 all continue to be monitored in terms of developments by Shamma himself. Graduates of the Arab Oud House gain the opportunity of performing with Shamma in concerts across the world as part of the Arab Oud House Orchestra which has not only set a new standard for the Arab Orchestra as a whole but has also managed to bridge to western audiences the Arab musical culture on an academic level.
Shamma has taken great interest in group and orchestral music, holding dozens of performances with prominent elements such as the Metropolitan Orchestra of Montreal, leading Jazz artists such as Wynton Marsalis, and The Lebanese Oriental Orchestra. His own establishment of the Global Ensemble grouped leading artists from across the western world; the ensemble was led by Shamma and then raised the caliber with the establishment of the Eastern Orchestra which binds over 75 artists mainly from Asia, the Middle East, the Mediterranean and Europe.
Humanitarian
Throughout Shamma’s career, he has always prioritized his humanitarian contribution in promoting peace across the world. Projects such as T.A.Z.C which treats vulnerable children in India, the Ahluna Foundation which has supported over 3 million refugees since its establishment, and Alaq Baghdad that aims to rebuild 21 main squares in Baghdad have all witnessed generous contributions from Shamma.
Furthermore, Shamma used music to raise funds for a long list of vetted projects that serve his humanitarian vision. Shamma has been credited for his humanitarian work with awards such as the 2012 International Gusi Peace Prize; he was also assigned the Ambassador of the Iraqi Red Crescent and the Ambassador of the International non Violence Association.
Moreover, Shamma continues to serve as the UNESCO Artist for Peace.
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