Al Ain: Al Jahili Fort will this week host a series of concerts as part of the wider Al Ain Programme of cultural initiatives.
The Memory of the Emirati Song series will begin on Thursday with young performers, headlined by Majed Hamad Shehab, playing familiar melodies from the 50s, 60s, and 70s, with the lyrics from original Emirati poetry.
The Emirati folk song comprises the three basic elements of poetry, melody and voice, representing a blend of social, artistic and cultural influences.
The UAE’s rich and varied artistic traditions include folk songs that emerged as accompaniments to traditional activities such as fishing and pearl diving, general desert life and celebrations to mark notable events. In the late 1940s, distinctive modern Emirati voices began to emerge, producing songs with a modern flavour still rooted in the traditional singing styles of the Emirates, yet influenced by contemporary music from elsewhere in the region.
Despite being only half a century old, the Emirati folk song plays an important socio-cultural role and forms the foundation of the nation’s collective memory. These songs serve as expressions of their wisdom and experience, embodying the nation’s architectural, economic and educational renaissance. Writers include Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and Dr Maneh Saeed Al Otaiba.
Poets from previous generations such as Shaikh Sultan Bin Khalifa Bin Zayed, Shaikh Khalifa Bin Shakhbout, Shaikh Saeed Bin Tahnoun, and Saeed Bin Otaij Hamli Joehr Al Sayegh are also notable contributors. Prominent poets from later generations include Sultan Al Darmaki, Abdullah Bin Zeban, Ahmed Al Kindi, Abdullah Bin Sultan Bin Salim, Ahmad Bin Sultan Bin Salim, Ali Bin Rahma Al Shamsi and female writers such as Ousha Bint Khalifa Al Suwaidi and Afra’a Bint Saif Al Mazroui.
