Check out our chat with Christine Belbelian, founding member of The Emirates Opera Project in Dubai.
What brought you to Dubai?
I grew up in Jordan and my parents moved to Dubai when I was a teenager. I always had a natural aptitude for classical music - first piano, then singing, so I studied in various music conservatoires in Eastern Europe for many years, but eventually came back to Dubai as it always felt like home. I am now settled here with my very wonderful husband and two beautiful children.
Describe a typical day.
Well being a mother means I have the usual chores of dropping off and picking up children from school and organising our family, dealing with typical parental duties. During the day I also have many private students who come for piano or singing lessons. I spend a lot of my time organising events, planning musical programmes, following up admin and organisational issues with other musicians and rehearsing. On days that I perform, I spend a lot of time warming up my voice and try to have as little stress as possible throughout the day so that I am calm and composed by the time I get on stage.
What is the best thing about your job?
The best thing about my job is that I get to do what I love, which is singing and performing. Music and singing have always been my passions and I am lucky as not many people have the chance to work in the field that they love. Many musicians end up having to work in different areas as it is hard to make a living from music. I also went through a time when I had to work in an office as a marketing and events manager to make ends meet, but this turned out to be useful in developing skills that are I now use for organising our concerts. Part of the reward is also being able to bring classical music to a new audience and to spread the love of Opera, and that is perhaps something that there is more scope to do here as there has not, until recently, been an opera scene here in the culture of Dubai.
What is the worst thing about your job?
The worst thing is that as Opera is not such an established art form in this region, there is little funding and support for what we do. So while I would like to spend all my time singing, arranging concerts, planning musical programmes, etc, I end up spending a great deal of my time trying to gather support for what we do, which inevitably means seeking commercial sponsors or securing corporate gigs. We would like to see more support for the art. We hope, now that Dubai Opera has opened, that more awareness and interest in Opera will be generated, and a grass roots movement like ours, the Emirates Opera Project, will be more appreciated and will be able to work on obscure and culturally interesting projects.
What was a standout moment in your career?
There have been several amazing experiences but the one that stands out the most is the Verdi Bicentennial concert in 2013 which took place on the actual date of the 200th Anniversary of Giuseppe Verdi’s birth, on the 13th of October 2013 (Verdi was born on the same date in 1813). Giuseppe Verdi is the world’s most accomplished and loved composer of Operas, and his bicentennial was celebrated all over the world. The concert was organised by Montegrappa, the Italian pen company who had launched a Giuseppe Verdi pen for the occasion, and was supported by Rivoli as well as Dubai Culture, the Italian Consulate in Dubai as well as the Verdi foundation in Italy as part of their ‘Verdi 200’ celebrations. The concert was attended by many VIPs including a direct descendant of Giuseppe Verdi who was in Dubai for the occasion. Most notably, the entire orchestra, the conductor, and all the soloists, were Dubai or UAE residents, which was a first time that an Opera event on such a scale had been done in the UAE without any international production or performers and this event gave birth to the Emirates Opera Project. It was a true honour to be part of this incredible occasion.
What advice would you have for any young person wanting to get into your field?
Being a classical musician can be a challenging profession and is most often not very financially rewarding. Classical music worldwide is increasingly dependent on government support and corporate sponsors as interest in the art, especially as you move away from the mainstream, is declining. Opera singers take years to perfect their voices. Orchestras are expensive and the cost of supporting an Orchestra in the current economic climate is becoming more difficult to justify. I really hope that some young people will fall in love with classical music, as I did, and want to join the fight to keep this art alive. However, it is often a passion and a calling and can be very fulfilling and rewarding to the spirit. There is nothing like standing on stage knowing you’ve just moved the audience and hearing them clap and cheer with genuine thanks and praise. It is also fun singing in fancy Opera Houses, wearing fabulous ball gowns, receiving bouquets of flowers and signing autographs. Most importantly, it is a beautiful art and we have a great responsibility to keep this art form alive for generations to come. Classical music is the foundation of all modern music and a good foundation in classical music will equip a young musician with the skills to pursue any musical career.
Your motto?
There is so much trouble in the world these days, but one thing that brings people together is the love of music. It is a powerful, peaceful and uniting force. So I guess my motto is, “The world needs more music, so that we can live, sing and dance together to one rhythm”.
Christine and members of the Emirates Opera Project will be performing at Opera Delights at The Act Dubai in December.
Visit www.emiratesopera.com.