Doha, Qatar – World Premiere of Layla and Majnun
November 22 & 23, 2008

Invited by the Qatar Museums Authority (QMA) to perform at the inaugural celebration of the Museum of Islamic Art, Silk Road Ensemble members and Yo-Yo Ma traveled to Doha for two evenings of concerts that were highlights of the festivities.

The opening ceremony began when the Emir, H.H. Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, ceremonially unlocked the doors to the new museum, designed by I.M. Pei and itself a work of art. Following a program of speakers including the architect as well as H.E. Sheikha Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, a magisterial display of fireworks illuminated the sky for nearly ten minutes before the crowd's attention turned to the Ensemble.

More than 1,000 invited guests and hundreds of onlookers on the Corniche listened to a program of music from Azerbaijan, China and Egypt, a Silk Road Suite of works by Ensemble members Kayhan Kalhor and Rabih Abou-Khalil as well as improvisations on tabla, pipa, ney and santur.

The second evening featured the world premiere of Layla and Majnun, the Ensemble's new work based on a classic Azerbaijani opera by Uzeyir Hajibeyov, which incorporates mugham and instrumentation from Asian and Western traditions. Taking center stage were Alim Qasimov, a renowned vocalist and the leading performer of Layla and Majnun in Azerbaijan over the past two decades, and his daughter Fargana Qasimova, an accomplished mugham vocalist.

The Silk Road Ensemble's arrangement of Layla and Majnun was made possible in part by the generous support of the Qatar Museums Authority with additional support from the Académie Musicale de Villecroze. The multimedia arrangement will premiere in North America during the Ensemble's March 2009 concert tour.