International Composers Translated Religion To Music For The Abrahamic Symphony
Ihab Darwish and orchestra at one recording of the Abrahamic Symphony. Photo courtesy of Artwish Music and Events.
A new achievement in music — being billed as the first ever interfaith symphony — is an international celebration of religion and art.
The Abrahamic Symphony was released on audio streaming services on Sept. 30. It was commissioned by the Abu Dhabi Festival — a showcase of art, culture and values of the United Arab Emirates — and will have a digital world premiere on Nov. 18 as part of the festival.
The symphony was created alongside the Abrahamic Family House, a cultural space that will open next year in the heart of Abu Dhabi. The space houses a church, mosque, temple and nonreligious education center with the goal of creating harmony and religious diversity.
Emirati composer Ihab Darwish, who spearheaded the project, says the symphony draws heavily from these cultural ties.
“When I started building this concept in my mind, I wanted it to align with the vision of UAE and the leadership from an artistic perspective,” Darwish said. “My country is a big promoter of peace, tolerance and love because there's a lot of religions and cultures living in our country.”
And while it was created alongside these cultural milestones in Abu Dhabi, Darwish says his ideal audience for the symphony spreads worldwide.
“It's a strong message for every single person on earth to start believing that all religions are respected,” Darwish said, “believing that we're all equal and believing that we need to live in coexistence together and create a dialogue of cultures and religions.”
Darwish was joined on the project by well-known composers John Debney and David Shire. Each composer represents one of the Abrahamic faiths: Darwish for Islam, Debney for Christianity and Shire for Judaism.
Likewise, the symphony is split into four movements, arranged chronologically. The first, “Earth,” begins with the creation of man and the search for God. “Peace” represents Judaism, “Love” represents Christianity and “Tolerance” represents Islam.
“Religion is one of the most complicated and controversial subjects, and it's extremely difficult to showcase in a music platform,” Darwish said. “It has to justify the purity and how deep the religion is.”
Creating the symphony was a laborious and precise process that Darwish says the composers and creative directors were more than prepared to take on.
To bring their music to life, composers enlisted the talents of international orchestras, choirs, vocalists and solo musicians.
The resulting symphony is a musical experience of epic proportions with a decidedly cinematic flair.
It’s easy to note the swells of several grand moments throughout the piece that feel straight out of a movie. With these composers, that comes as no surprise.
Shire is a renowned pianist and composer of the stage and screen. A pianist in the pit for Broadway’s original run of “Funny Girl,” he became a regular accompanist to legend Barbra Streisand. He composed film scores for “The Conversation,” “All the President’s Men” and more. In addition, he composed the Broadway adaptation of “Big” and has composed and contributed music to several other musicals.
Debney is primarily a composer for film. He’s a regular collaborator on Disney projects and composed the score for “Elf” and others. Most notably, he composed the score for Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of the Christ.”
“We selected composers from film specifically,” Darwish said. “They are the best because they're experts on how to create stories to melodies that you can visualize easily.”
Darwish himself is a frequent collaborator with the Abu Dhabi Festival. His first album, “Waves of My Life,” was commissioned by the festival in 2018 — as was his symphony “Hekayat,” which was recorded in the middle of COVID-19 isolation by 128 artists internationally.
He takes inspiration from the diversity of his home country, as well as Islam and other cinematic influences.
“Being born into a Muslim home in an Arabic country, I have this Arabic audio in my ears and of course a classical background and influences from movies,” Darwish said. “I created a fusion between both.”
Just as the cinematic sound is prevalent throughout the piece, the music contains several Arabic influences. The percussion line was created with a blend of classical and Arabic percussion instruments and techniques. The symphony features instruments like the duduk — an Armenian woodwind instrument — and the ney — a flute with an important role in Arabic music that’s played by blowing air over a top hole in the instrument.
The symphony is enhanced with narration of poems, lyrics and various Scripture throughout, telling the story of the Abrahamic religions that culminates in a celebration of harmony.
Lebo M., a South African composer, narrates the first movement “Earth,” joined by his South African choir. His voice is deep and booming, the kind that demands attention. It’s likely familiar, too: Lebo is the writer and voice of the iconic Zulu chant that kicks off Disney’s “The Lion King.”
“We brought Lebo and the South African choirs to create the tribal feeling of early mankind,” Darwish said. “Lebo has this powerful male voice, and we brought in Sumi Jo, a Korean singer. Together, they resemble Adam and Eve.”
The vocalists are the primary feature of “Earth,” which begins with the creation of the world and concludes with the birth of Abraham. It reveals mankind’s distress into the darkness it was born into and the search for guidance, which God — and Abraham, by extension — can provide.
“Lord Almighty have mercy upon us / Show us the light / Show us the way,” the lyrics plead.
For “Peace,” Shire uses nine different lyrical sections that represent the birth of Judaism and man’s continual search for divine wisdom. His composition reflects on peace as a light to guide mankind and views God as the Everlasting Light. Lyrics include original compositions, verse from Israeli poet Yehuda Amichai and adaptations of traditional Jewish prayers and hymns.
It begins with Isaiah 2:4, which reads: “They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will no longer lift up sword against nation, and neither shall learn war any more.”
“Love” tells the story of Jesus within Christianity from his birth to his death and resurrection. A choir sings throughout the narrative, featuring some verse from English poet John Donne.
Sir Derek Jacobi, the English star of stage and screen known for his powerful Shakespearean performances, narrates choice Bible passages — including Genesis 1:1 and John 3:16-17. His voice carries a certain nobility that inevitably inspires awe.
“Tolerance” concludes the symphony by first exploring Islam, from the birth of Muhammad to the first migration to Medina to the death of Muhammad. This section also includes original lyrics and poems performed in Arabic.
“You are my companion in sickness / You are my partner in company and solitude / You are the beacon of those walking to their lord / And you are the guide to all my roads / You light up my heart after it was dark,” a traditional Sufi passage proclaims.
At last, as the movement’s title suggests, comes the “Tolerance Call” that advocates for unity and love between all:
“Jesus is your brother Mohammed
Moses is your brother Mohammed
Both of you strong and earnest
For the Muslims are in the mosques
And the Christians are in the churches
And the Jews are in the temples”
“This is the moment where I feel the audience fully understands the message of unity,” Darwish said.
It’s a powerful message, one that is spread best when the accompanying music is powerful, too.
“I have tried to use some lyrics and some musical form that will give people goosebumps,” Darwish said.
The Abrahamic Symphony is streaming on various platforms, accessible through the symphony’s website.
Jillian Cheney is a contributing culture writer for Religion Unplugged. She also writes on American Protestantism and evangelical Christianity and was Religion Unplugged’s 2020-21 Poynter-Koch fellow. You can find her on Twitter @_jilliancheney.