RIYADH: A number of Saudi artists performed during a recent concert at the German Embassy in the Kingdom.

“An enthusiastic audience of young Saudi musicians, artists and music lovers, as well as members of the German and international community, gathered in the German Embassy in Riyadh for an ‘Open Stage Night’ for young Saudi musicians last weekend,” Rafael Heinisch, the press officer at the German Embassy, said on Tuesday.

The embassy sent out an open invitation for performers and gave as many as possible the opportunity to showcase their music on the night.

“With the Open Stage Night, the embassy seeks to provide a platform for the thriving Saudi music scene,” said German Ambassador Jorg Ranau. “The night brought together promising talents from the Saudi music scene and music enthusiasts from all walks of life.”

The acts were each allocated a time slot of 15 to 20 minutes. The first to take the stage was Saudi rock group N to the Bone, and they were followed by instrumentalists Salman and Friends. Khulood and Karim then performed a number of cover versions, before Salah delighted the audience with some skillful instrumental improvization.

Nawaf and Nourah were next, then Le Lieu Band, who performed a number of songs in Arabic and English. The evening concluded with more rock music, this time from Madani Band, and improvization by Salih and Friends.

Heinisch said that there are plans for further collaborations to expand the cultural ties.

“We have plans to bring some German performers and introduce them to the audience here in Riyadh,” he said. “A group of German artists will perform on Dec. 10 at the German Embassy, and at the Goethe-Institut, a nonprofit German cultural association, on Dec. 11.” The musicians will perform classical music at both events. However, there is no plan as yet for Saudi artists to perform in Germany. 

Heinisch added that music can help to forge good international relationships and would help bring people from the two countries closer together.