New competition set to make stars out of Qatar’s rising musical talents
In what promises to be a springboard into the international arena for the country’s musical prodigies, Moving Young Artists (MYA), the Qatar-based non-profit foundation that has been nurturing and inspiring young local talent for more than three years, will host a grand, one-of-its-kind musical spectacle in October, this year.
The Qatar National Music Competition (QNMC), under the patronage of Qatar National Commission for Education, Culture and Science, seeks to create a competitive platform that would encourage the finest in music creativity and performance in Qatar.
The competition will be a significant artistic event on the national and international stage and will showcase the best of Qatar’s musical talent, thereby emerging as an inspiration to Qatar’s youth.
The much-awaited event will be held from October 15 to October 19 at the Katara Drama Theatre, culminating in a gala concert and felicitation of the prize winners on October 19, the concluding day at the Katara Opera House.
Split into various categories, the competition is open to anyone involved with music and younger than the age of 18; for registration details, please visit www.qnmc.org.
To keep the contest fair, the categories are sub-divided according to the participants’ age — 11 and under, 14 and under, and 18 and under — and instrument of choice — solo piano, solo winds, solo strings, solo vocal, percussion/harp/guitar, and composition.
Featuring both Arabic (sub-divided into singing, instrumental, and Arabic composition, and also according to age) and Western music categories, QNMC will throw open the stage for both performing musicians and young composers. There will also be a Special Needs category for differently abled children.
The age limit for participants is 18 years old except for one distinctive category, which is open only for Qatari citizens.
Prizes will be in no short supply at QNMC. In each category, three winners will be awarded medals. Every participant will receive a certificate of merit for their performance.
The Grand Prize, reserved for the best performance in the entire competition, will be provided by Vodafone. A special award for best performance by a Qatari artist will be provided by the Qatar National Commission for Education, Culture and Science.
Three winners of the Concerto category will be granted an opportunity to perform in a concert with QPO, as a soloist. Some of the chosen few will also be invited to record in the state-of-the-art Katara Studios.
Ramping up the reach and scale of the competition, several embassies have pledged their support and involvement by handing out a long line of signature awards: Switzerland, Singapore, Spain, Germany, France, Russia, the UK, Republic of Korea, India, The Netherlands, Sweden, Indonesia and Kazakhstan.
MYA, which aspires to develop music education programmes for children, believes that music participation is an integral element in the fabric of an enduring society. It is out of a desire to inspire a deep love and knowledge of music with the Qatari community that MYA has put together this first edition of QNMC.
For further information, please visit:
For Enquiries, please contact:
Sonja Park - ([email protected]/+974 66088565)
Joris Laenen - ([email protected]/ +97466089033)
