Gregorian puts new slant on rock music



An enchanting evening awaits Dubai music lovers with Gregorian performing tonight at Madinat Arena.

The seven-piece, robe-clad German group transforms modern pop and rocks songs into ethereal and elegiac Gregorian chants.

The vocalist Amelia Brightman explains that the covers approach is not a cynical cash grab but acts a bridge for audiences to the centuries-old art form: "It is taking something very familiar and putting it in a new and interesting place.

"People report spiritual experiences when they come to the concerts because there is that familiarity with that sacred environment that comes from the voices but at the same time you are hearing songs that are familiar. So there are two things that you are comfortable with and you feel good about it melded together."

Examples of the rock staples taken to another dimension include Gregorian's takes on Led Zeppelin's Stairway to Heaven and Pink Floyd's Comfortably Numb.

Where the latter had Roger Waters sounding angry and despondent, Gregorian's version is uplifting and hymnlike.

According to Brightman, songs are picked according to how vocally flexible they are. "There are certain musical necessities because of the seven-tone element of Gregorian chanting," she says.

Brightman says there is more to the Gregorian live experience than seven ashen-faced monks crowded together. There is a fair element of theatre woven in, enhancing the otherworldly feel of it all.

"There is a lot of fire, including a fire-breathing drummer. The choreography is amazing and there are effects all over the place," she says.

Thursday night at Madinat Arena, Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai. Doors open at 7.30pm. Tickets start from Dh295, available from www.timeouttickets.com

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Anxiety and work stress major factors

Anxiety, work stress and social isolation are all factors in the recogised rise in mental health problems.

A study UAE Ministry of Health researchers published in the summer also cited struggles with weight and illnesses as major contributors.

Its authors analysed a dozen separate UAE studies between 2007 and 2017. Prevalence was often higher in university students, women and in people on low incomes.

One showed 28 per cent of female students at a Dubai university reported symptoms linked to depression. Another in Al Ain found 22.2 per cent of students had depressive symptoms - five times the global average.

It said the country has made strides to address mental health problems but said: “Our review highlights the overall prevalence of depressive symptoms and depression, which may long have been overlooked."

Prof Samir Al Adawi, of the department of behavioural medicine at Sultan Qaboos University in Oman, who was not involved in the study but is a recognised expert in the Gulf, said how mental health is discussed varies significantly between cultures and nationalities.

“The problem we have in the Gulf is the cross-cultural differences and how people articulate emotional distress," said Prof Al Adawi. 

“Someone will say that I have physical complaints rather than emotional complaints. This is the major problem with any discussion around depression."

Daniel Bardsley