The UAE National Orchestra commemorates the national memory in a concert"Your fortress, my homeland"

ABU DHABI, 30 APRIL / WAM / The National Orchestra of the United Arab Emirates has announced the organization of a special concert entitled “Your Fortress, O Homeland”, which will be held at the Dubai Opera Theater on May 8, 2026, and provides the audience with a shared musical experience that celebrates the country’s national identity and enhances feelings of national pride.

The upcoming concert takes the audience in a musical experience different from the usual musical performances, to provide a shared interactive experience, as it invites the audience to participate in the performance of songs that have formed part of the cultural fabric of the country over many decades.

The concert program includes musical works extending from the 1970s to the present, reviving a group of songs that accompanied national celebrations and prominent milestones in the history of the United Arab Emirates.

The upcoming concert, presented by the UAE National Orchestra and its choir, includes a group of songs that formed part of our national memory and accompanied the nation’s journey over the decades. We meet with “Dar Zayed” the feelings of belonging that unite the people of the country, and we evoke with “We Will Protect the Union” the spirit of responsibility and pride that reflects the depth of the relationship between society and its nation.

The concert program also includes the song “Men, by God, Men”, from the poetry of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the State, “may God protect him”, which celebrates those heroes who are dedicated to protecting the homeland, and highlights the role of the UAE Armed Forces in maintaining its security and stability, in addition to the song “Zhaha Zayed”, which brings back to memory the story of the transformation that the country has experienced and whose impact we can still feel in our present day.

The program also includes artistic works by a number of the most prominent poets and composers who contributed to shaping the country’s musical identity, through songs that are still present in the national conscience and circulated across generations.

Her Excellency Noura bint Mohammed Al Kaabi, Minister of State and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Orchestra of the United Arab Emirates, said that culture plays a pivotal role in strengthening feelings of connection to the homeland and consolidating a sense of common identity, pointing out that this concert reflects the country’s national identity by presenting musical works present in our collective memory, which enhance the solidarity of society during this critical stage, and celebrate the protectors of the nation who are dedicated to defending its security and stability, and supporting its continuous progress.

For her part, Sheikha Alia bint Khalid Al Qasimi, Director General of the Orchestra, said that the concert program revolves around songs firmly established in the public’s conscience and memory, and musical melodies that he can recognize as soon as he hears their first notes.

She added that this concert comes at a time when the importance of such moments that bring people together is increasing, especially in recent weeks when the need has become more apparent for common spaces to meet and express the spirit of solidarity, noting that the concert brings together citizens and residents in one artistic experience, and invites them to participate in singing as an expression of the spirit of the nation that brings us together.

She stressed the keenness to carefully design the program to reflect this meaning, based on the belief in the role of music in bringing members of society together and enhancing the spirit of togetherness, making it a language that expresses steadfastness, reconnects people with each other, and embodies the strength and unity of society.

The concert includes famous musical works presented through live orchestral and choral performances, in a manner that encourages the audience to interact directly with the music to build a participatory musical experience. The program thus presents a renewed vision of songs that have formed an established part of the cultural scene of the UAE.

• For more: Follow Khaleejion 24 Arabic, Khaleejion 24 English, Khaleejion 24 Live, and for social media follow us on Facebook and Twitter