French singer M describes Louvre Abu Dhabi as 'landing on the moon'

The artist will perform at the Louvre Abu Dhabi tonight.

The French rocker M, real name Matthieu Chedid, will the perform the first of four concerts celebrating the opening of the Louvre Abu Dhabi. Photo by Yann Orha

M is raring to go when it comes to his performance at the Louvre Abu Dhabi tonight.

The French rocker, real name Matthieu Chedid, spoke to The National moments before completing a personalised tour of the newly opened museum at Saadiyat Island.

He describes the experience as awe-inspiring.

“It is a feeling as similar as landing on the moon,” he says.

“I was really touched to see the fusion of all the different cultures and the humanity all in one place. It is a beautiful place for art and it has definitely inspired me to put on a great show.”

M says he is already receiving calls from colleagues back in France about his impressions on the Louvre Abu Dhabi and its comparisons to the museum in Paris.

“One should be careful when it comes to comparisons,” he says.

“Both places have its own spirit and the Louvre Abu Dhabi is beautiful inspiring place on its own.”

With nine Victoires de la musique (the French equivalent of the Grammy Awards) to his name, M is one of the most successful modern music artists in France.

He describes his performance as an introduction to his expansive three-decade career.

“It will be a career retrospective and a chance to tell the Abu Dhabi audience about the story of M,” he said.

“There will also be songs from the different styles of music that I have performed and some friends will help me with this.”

One of which is Malian singer Fatoumata Diawara who will perform her own set at Louvre Abu Dhabi’s plaza on Monday.

She will join M tonight to perform two cuts from his collaborative new album Lamomali which explores the blues and roots music tradition of Mali.

“I am very happy and excited that she will come to Abu Dhabi early enough to perform with me,” M said.

“That album is really about my love for Mali’s culture and I wanted to show the great music that comes from there but fusing it with my own style.”

M’s performance is the first of four concerts held nightly until Tuesday to celebrate the launch of Louvre Abu Dhabi.

Sunday will have Diawara taking the stage with her modern take on her homeland’s Wassoulou folk music tradition.

Monday will see the pioneering Lebanese-French trumpeter Ibrahim Maalouf performs a jazz interpretation of the late Egyptian diva Um Kalthoum’s opus One Thousand and One Nights.

The series will come to a close on Tuesday with the evocative sounds of Totó La Momposina. The 77-year-old Colombian singer and dancer will showcase her body of work and its influences from the African, Native Indian and Spanish music traditions.

M performs at the plaza of Louvre Abu Dhabi tonight. Shows starts at 9pm. Tickets are from Dh200 from www.louvreabudhabi.ae

_______________

Read more:

_______________