Nasser Shamma to fill the air at AlUla’s Jabal Ikmah heritage site with “Music in Ancient Eras”

AlUla Moments announced a special concert to close the events season in the ancient desert city. Music in Ancient Eras will take place on 24th March in the open-air library at Jabal Ikmah, a site considered to have the highest concentration and most diversity of petroglyphs and inscriptions in AlUla.

As the event title suggests, the concert will celebrate musical instruments used in AlUla in ancient times performed by celebrated Iraqi oud player Nasser Shamma and his ensemble. Attendees will be immersed in a unique and mystical evening that highlights historic music interpreted into original compositions of new music written by the artist.

Evidence of music being part of life over millennia of civilisations is suggested through engravings on rock surfaces at Jabal Ikmah and beyond. Petroglyphs in the shape of the oud and harp have been carbon-dated to 2500 years old, and it is largely agreed by archaeologists and rock art specialists that these engravings illustrate important elements of life religious customs and rituals by inhabitants by inhabitants of AlUla at that time.

Music in Ancient Eras also highlights AlUla as a crossroads for ancient trade routes stretching from Mediterranean ports across the Levant and Egypt through Northeastern Africa and Arabia to India. The city received thousands of travelers from the ancient kingdoms surrounding AlUla; travelers took respite under the shade of the oasis to trade goods and cultural exchange of customs, rituals, arts, and traditions and enjoyed the music. This transformed the city into an open museum through the diversity of culture, languages, and arts introduced in AlUla throughout antiquity.

Nasser Shamma is one of the world's pre-eminent oud players and composers; the well-known Arabic Maestro and Oud player will enchant the people and visitors of AlUla with soulful live musical masterpieces, giving the audience an unforgettable evening celebrating musical pieces inspired by ancient eras.

Named "The UNESCO Artist for Peace," Shamma has performed hundreds of concerts in countries worldwide and received more than 60 music and humanitarian awards.
Shamma created an eight-string oud instrument inspired by a manuscript from the ninth-century music theorist Al-Farabi. He also innovated a new method for playing the oud with one hand. Shamma established Bait Al Oud, "The House of Oud," in several countries, including Cairo and Abu Dhabi, to promote the GCC region's talents and develop a new generation of musicians.

To book your ticket, enjoy a moment of music from the ancient Eras, visit www.experiencealula.com.