According to UN reports, Yemen is experiencing one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises as a result of the 2014 war. Despite this, after a decade of pain and suffering, a musical band led by a young Yemeni man was able to make a positive impact on the souls of Yemenis.
Yemeni war caused divisions within political parties, but Yemenis on social media agreed that music has the power to unite the colours of Yemen’s artistic heritage, which is found in all regions of the country. This elevated the language of music above hate speech and contributed to the promotion of peace in Yemeni hearts, despite the political conflict.
Maestro Mohamed Alghoom stated, “Through musical compositions, I try to spread hope to young people living inside Yemen.”
We can feel the magnitude of his responsibility by thinking about these words that came from his heart, accompanied by his beautiful smile, especially since his musical team faces pain on a daily basis in a difficult country.
Yemenis have been affected by the conflict, the economic crisis, and poor services. Many people have died, been imprisoned, or been displaced from war zones to semi-safe areas as a result of the war. This crisis has had a negative impact on Yemenis’ lives.
Yemen has one of the Middle East’s oldest civilizations, dating back to the tenth century BC. Yemen was known as Arabia Felix in classical Greek writings, but Yemen’s diplomatic presence today is very weak, and it has no influence on regional and international policies due to the war. As well as poverty.
As a result, Maestro Alghoom considered reviving Yemen’s cultural and historical heritage through music. In the same year that the Yemeni war began, He took the first steps towards forming his musical band. He was able to obtain independent funding from the Hadhramout Culture Foundation for the heritage symphonies project performed by his orchestra by integrating the traditional artistic colours that abound in all regions of Yemen into a global orchestral template, but the first concert was delayed due to the many difficulties that the project faced at its inception.
The musical band, led by Maestro Mohamed Alghoom, made its debut in April 2019 at “Istana Budaya” in Kuala Lumpur, with about 90 musicians and dancers from Yemen, Malaysia, and Japan performing one of Yemeni musical art’s masterpieces.
The band performed its second concert at the Cairo Opera House in March 2021, two years after its first appearance, with the participation of 120 Yemeni and Egyptian musicians. The band performed a piece of music in this concert that combined Yemeni, Saudi, and Egyptian art in an orchestral form, which is conceived to be the first of its kind in the Middle East.
Mohamed Alghoom stated: “I started the project with traditional Yemeni artistic colours, but now I aspire to attract the Arab audience by presenting musical pieces that integrate Yemeni heritage with traditional arts in Arab countries so that the peoples of the world know that the Yemeni people love art and love peace and coexistence. Especially since most news about Yemen is negative, I want to change this stereotype and show the world that Yemeni youth are creative and enjoy life.”
After all of this success, the band’s ambitions grew, as the Theatre Mogador hosted Maestro Alghoom’s third concert in Paris in October 2023. Approximately 70 musicians performed 10 pieces of orchestral music inspired by Yemeni and Arab heritage at the concert.
Maestro Alghoom performed two concerts in Kuwait in February 2024 with the participation of musicians from Yemen, Egypt, Tunisia, Morocco, Turkey and Europe. The singer Aboud Khawaja participated in both concerts.
As the band prepares to perform its fifth show in Washington, DC, in 2025, Maestro Alghoom will become an official ambassador of Yemeni art around the world, as well as a minister of art and peace in the hearts of Yemenis.