DUBAI // At just 15 years old, Eiad Sughayer has achieved more than many musicians can dream of - and his personal dream is to use his piano-playing gifts to help the cause of peace. Last night he played Haydn's Concerto for Piano in D Major at the Dubai International Peace Music Festival for young virtuosos, and before his performance the young Palestinian, who was born in Jordan, spoke of his aspirations.
Eiad, who was accepted into the Conservatory of Music in Jordan at the age of five after learning to play on an electric keyboard, is now studying at the prestigious Chetham's School of Music in the UK. He said he hoped last night's fund-raising event would increase awareness of the power of music which he described as a "universal language" that transcended national, racial and linguistic boundaries.
"It's a great honour for me to be performing here," he said. "It's the first time I've played a fund-raising concert, so it really feels like a great point in my career." Eiad hopes talented young artists of his generation will promote the popularity of classical music in the region and, in turn, use it as a tool to promote peace. "Music is the only language which does not discriminate. I would love to see it used in a positive way such as a peacemaking tool in the Arab-Israeli conflict. No matter how big the conflict, you still have music."
Classical music, he says, is not widely known or appreciated in the region and since studying in the UK he has seen a new side to its popularity and influence. "They have a whole BBC radio station devoted to classical music so when people go to a concert, they know the music, they understand it. When you go to a concert there, the halls are full, and full of people who really appreciate the music.
"I would love to be able to introduce classical music to the region and, likewise, introduce the West to the music of the Arab world. Nobody in the outside world knows anything about it and I'd love to build that bridge." The proceeds of last night's concert, which was sponsored by the Red Crescent Authority, will go to needy children around the world, including Gaza. Other artists performing solos last night at the Emirates Youth Symphony Orchestra event, now in its fifth year, included the Palestinian opera singer Zeina Barhoum and the seven-year-old American violinist Elli Choi.
Eiad said he now wants to organise his own fund-raising concert in the UAE, later this year. "This would be my dream. It is the most logical place to hold it." Earlier this week he played at the American University of Sharjah and he will perform tonight at the Cultural Foundation in Abu Dhabi. @Email:mswan@thenational.ae
