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Renowned military musician Major General Dr Mubarak Najem aims to spread his symphonic sound throughout the kingdom in a bid to encourage aspiring artists to never give up on their musical dreams…especially after his finally came to fruition.
The father-of-four’s passion for composing music, listening to music, playing oud, flute and piano flourished from a young age. As he put in many occasions: “I never chose music, it chose me … and I’m glad it did.”
He studied conducting and composing at The Academy of Arts Cairo Conservatoire in Egypt in the late 1970s and after completing his baccalaureate in music, he joined the military ranks as a cadet in the hopes of growing to become the first Bahraini to lead the Bahrain Police Band.
He studied for two months in 1983 with the Manchester Police Band in London. He then returned to UK in 1988 where he achieved his Band Master degree, a diploma from the Licentiate of the Royal Academy of Music and from the Associate of the Royal College of Music as well as an advanced certificate of qualification for a staff band appointment as director of music from the Royal Marine School of Music. He also has two PhDs.
Mubarak became Bahrain’s band leader in 1998 and the rest is history. He achieved more accolades along the way such as establishing the Bahrain Music Institute. He is honoured to have played for British royals, the Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall when they visited the kingdom for the celebrations surrounding the 200th anniversary of UK-Bahrain relations. He also has composed songs for Bahraini TV shows and has heard his music performed by different artists.
However, perhaps one of his biggest aspirations was to someday compose and record his own traditional Bahraini orchestra. In 2016, he finally had his chance.
“Gulf Air’s former chief executive officer, Maher Salman Al Musallam, had suggested having Arabic influenced music playing on the plane during boarding.
“His suggestion stirred something in me. I always dreamed of writing an orchestra or a symphony. I’ve composed military symphonies for the winds section before and wrote Arabic songs but never at such an orchestral level.
“I studied classical music and specialise in orchestration and arrangement. I am certified in this field but never had a chance to do it. All these years and this man moved something within my subconscious.
“He gave me a chance to create. I could have composed regular Arabic music that everyone is used to or go back to my original dream of creating a classical Bahraini orchestra or better yet, a series or Bahraini orchestral works.”
He pitched his passion project to them and began his musical journey handpicking popular Bahraini songs such as Koo Koo, Taw AlNahar, Jerooh Qalby Watar and Kam Sena Wa Sh’hoor dating back from the 60s to present day. He then reworked them, taking a year to compose his masterpiece.
Once fully written, he travelled to Bulgaria to play and record his 10-track album entitled Orchestral Bahraini Tunes with the Bulgarian Symphony Orchestra.
After two years of daily play time on flights, Mubarak began to then promote his album by spreading it to shores across the region as well as online.
“It received such rave reviews and success, not just in Bahrain but all over the Middle East because it was an unbelievable musical movement. People were pondering about how the music was rewritten and treated in such an orchestral way.
“It also showcased to the world as well that Bahrain features talented musicians and instrumentalists.”
On December, 16, 2017, Mubarak became the first Bahraini composer to conduct his orchestra at the National Theatre of Bahrain. The orchestra was performed by the Bulgarian Symphony Orchestra and conducted by Mubarak and the Maestro Deyan Pavlov, as part of National Day celebrations.
It was organised by the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities. It wasn’t long before Mubarak composed another orchestra, but this time, paying a tribute to the Bahraini women and women all over the world.
He said: “Everyone knows traditional Bahraini male band music and dances such as Sawt and Al Ardha. However, no one pays attention to the local female bands. I wanted to showcase their style and work which is why I decided to feature traditional Bahraini female band music.
“These women added to the music movement in Bahrain. Women in general have given the scene a boost. A woman is a mother who has helped build and shape the kingdom. She sacrifices; she would care for her home while her husband went diving and she can also liven up a party as well as spread joy.”
The album called Traditional Bahraini Women’s Songs was commissioned by the office of Her Royal Highness Wife of the King. Every song in the album features a brief description of what each song means. It was also recorded with the Bulgarian Symphony and was launched in October 2018 as part of the 27th Bahrain International Music Festival.
Since then, Mubarak has created an orchestral album for the Emirates formed from popular songs written by Shaikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the founding father of the UAE. He also launched a Kuwaiti orchestral single online and a Saudi Arabian song too.
He is currently working on a major musical project with a big Arab artist which will be revealed next year.
Meanwhile, countries such as France, Czech Republic and Italy have already reached out requesting concerts for both his albums.
His wish now is that the youth may learn from his experience and perhaps someday follow in his footsteps to further develop music and never be afraid to try new things. The Police Band he leads, for example, is using innovative technology to train and strategise for a performance before a major event.
“My aim is to encourage the young to keep learning and striving for their dreams. I didn’t give up and mine came true.”
