A BAHRAINI musician is hitting the right keys, and soaring from success to success in her new home – Vienna.
Noor Al Qassim – listed as one of Bahrain’s most successful women in the field of arts and music in the Supreme Council for Women’s annual catalogue 2006 – moved to the Austrian capital city 12 years ago.
“Vienna is the capital city of music,” the talented classical pianist and culture activist told the GDN.
“It used to be the city which attracted musicians and composers from all over the world; Mozart moved from Salzburg to Vienna, as did Beethoven, who moved from Bonn.
“It is the city of Haydn, Schubert, Mozart, Beethoven, Strauss and the list continues.
“But the idea was not only that Vienna was a good atmosphere for artists to learn, produce and become creative; composers in Vienna have contributed to the development of music.”
Ms Al Qassim’s love of the piano began when she was four years old and received her first piano lessons at the Classic Institute of Music in Bahrain.
There, Bulgarian music teacher Professor Rumyana Ganova was the “most influential person” to nurture her passion for piano and especially the music of Frederic Chopin.
Later, Ms Al Qassim continued her lessons at Bahrain Music Institute under the guidance of Dr Meglena Apostolova (also from Bulgaria).
Though she continued her education with a focus on music, Ms Al Qassim also obtained a degree in business administration and management.
Last year (2017), she graduated from the Conservatory of Music and Dramatic Arts in Vienna and obtained her Austrian postgraduate diploma in piano/concert performance.
“I have a lot of favourite pianists and musicians, but I can’t compare because each is in a world of his or her own.
“Character-wise my favourite is Vladimir Horowitz (Russian-born American classical pianist and composer); I have a very soft heart for him.
“He had a witty character through which one could impossibly mix humour with seriousness in music.
“He was often known as ‘the last romantic’.
“His interpretations of romantic music as well as Mozart were simply fascinating.
“His octaves and fingerings were unbelievable; moving from ‘forte to piano’ (and vice versa) was incredible.”
Ms Al Qassim said she also admired Argentine classical pianist Martha Argerich, often known as a ‘lioness on the piano’, pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim, who was born in Argentina, for his interpretations of Beethoven and Polish virtuoso pianist Krystian Zimerman for his Chopin interpretations.
In recent years she has been creating special projects under the motto ‘Sound and Motion’ and working on choreographing piano music for ballet and modern dancers.
She also works regularly with Tango dancers and choreographers.
Earlier this year (2018), the Economic Development Board supported Ms Al Qassim’s performance of a solo classical music concert in Vienna in a celebration of International Women’s Day.
“Between 2009 and 2014, I was obsessed with motion,” she said.
“I wanted to learn Tango, classics and more, so I joined a special programme designed by the Peruvian choreographer Alberto Rosas with his wife, the Austrian ballet dancer Brigitte Rosas Rondinelli, in Vienna.
“He taught me a lot of valuable things and choreography, most importantly discipline.”
This led to her interest in integrating the music of Chopin with motion.
“I wanted to see it visually rather than just listening to it or moving my own fingers on the keys,” said Ms Al Qassim.
“The movements I did on the piano were what I wanted to see choreographed for ballet dancers, so I decided to work with dancers from the Vienna State Opera.”
Goals
After choreographing Chopin Waltzes and Argentinian Tango pieces, Ms Al Qassim felt it wasn’t something new to the field and moved into Arabic tango which saw her achieve some of her goals.
However, she felt it didn’t serve her Bahraini identity and thus she stays closer to classical music.
“This was the time I felt the need to work with Bahraini folklore and dancers to be able to create something special,” she said.
Ms Al Qassim’s music has taken her worldwide including working closely with Unesco in Paris on various cultural projects and to festivals in Amsterdam, Spain Turkey, Morocco and more.
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