First Saudi opera singer hopes to encourage home-grown creativity

Sawsan Al-Bahiti is no stranger to the stage and has been charming audiences with her powerful opera performances for over a decade.

Billed as Saudi Arabia’s first professional opera singer, Al-Bahiti is also a certified voice coach at the New York Vocal Coaching Center.

The opera singer graduated from the American University of Sharjah with a bachelor’s degree in mass communication, before she fell in love with opera after taking a course in choir singing.

“I did not realize how big it would be for my future, but the passion took me and I fell in love with it,” Al-Bahiti told Arab News.

Al-Bahiti performs in five languages — English, French, German, Italian and Arabic — and revealed that “singing in Arabic seems to be easier, but it’s not. It’s my mother tongue, but because I want to apply it to the opera form it is a bit challenging.”

But the most difficult part of operatic singing, according to Al-Bahiti, is not related to the language of the song at hand, but rather the “strength of the voice it requires.”

The performer showcased that strength in Riyadh on Friday, when she made her national singing debut by accompanying the Teatro alla Scala Academy’s symphony orchestra at the King Fahad Cultural Center.

The show opened with a surprise performance of the Saudi national anthem by Al-Bahiti, who received a standing ovation.

“When I performed… I was beyond proud of myself and my country. It was my first time performing opera in the Arabic language in public,” she told Arab News.

But receiving public support for her craft didn’t happen overnight.

“As a Saudi woman, there were a few obstacles (to attaining) public acceptance as an opera singer because it is a brand new art form on the (local) scene… but now, since things are changing, my family has given me a lot of support for my passion.”

She hopes that her performances will encourage other Saudi talents to come forward and share their creativity in the publish sphere.

“I will participate in events as much as I can just to show myself to others and help them grow,” she said, adding that she is “planning to open an institute for vocal coaching… instrumental lessons and a proper theater to create a platform for up-and-coming talents to showcase (their craft).’’