Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — The Ministry of Culture announced on Monday the decision to set up a music museum dedicated to the late Saudi music maestro Tariq Abdul Hakim. The museum will be inaugurated at the end of 2022 in Jeddah’s historical area in Balad, which was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2014.

The museum’s contents will represent the richness of the local musical history and the contributions of the late musician to the art scene in the Kingdom. The museum will showcase a collection of the archive and personal belongings of Abdul Hakim, including musical instruments and reels for his recordings, photo albums, and some musical compositions by major Arab singers such as Umm Kulthum and Abdul Wahhab, in addition to visual and audio documents of Abdul Hakim while performing his compositions with others, besides his musical compositions of national anthems.

The museum is divided into two main sections, the first is to display the personal history of the late musician, and the second will be a music research center that includes articles and writings on Saudi music in addition to research on the music of the Arab world. It will serve music researchers looking to expand their knowledge of diverse music.

Abdul Hakim is considered as one of the symbols of Saudi culture, and the museum is being established in recognition of his vast contributions to his country in the fields of culture and music, which made him one of the influential pioneers in shaping the Saudi musical identity. The museum will preserve the history made by the late musician in particular and the musical heritage in general.

Tariq Abdul Hakim, who is known as the Dean of Saudi Art, made outstanding contributions as a music composer, singer, music researcher, in addition to a historian who collected documents and musical instruments. He was also interested in folk arts and was the leader of a band.

Born in 1920 in the suburb of Muthanna in Taif, he excelled in singing local songs and performing famous dance types and popular music in Taif from a very early age. Later he got acquainted with playing the lute and contemporary music in the western region.

After joining the army, he was sent to Egypt in 1952 as the first Saudi to study the music of the military band, and he learned there to read and write musical notes, and at that time he composed and recorded musical pieces, some of which were sung by Arab artists and aired on the Egyptian radio.

After returning to the Kingdom, he established the Saudi Army Music School in 1954 and trained 14 ensembles for a full military march, covering different cities and regions of the Kingdom.

Abdul Hakim had an avid interest in the national folklore. He has written more than a dozen books and manuscripts covering regional music, instruments, and musicians, and has penned several works on a range of cultural and heritage topics from traditional food to games, myths and sayings. Moreover; he has authored more than 500 compositions and several popular songs.

In 1972 Abdul Hakim helped establish the Saudi Arabian Society for Culture and Arts. In 1976, he was appointed head of the folklore department in the Kingdom. He also formed a national band that performed in major events.

He gained recognition locally and internationally. In 1981 he won the UNESCO International Prize for Music as the first Arab to receive this award and the sixth musician in the world to be presented with this honor. In 1983, he was elected president of the Arab Music Council under the Arab League and in 1987 he was re-elected to the post as the representative of Saudi Arabia.

The Ministry of Culture seeks to make the Tariq Abdul Hakim Museum as an inspiring and inclusive platform for new generations of those interested in Saudi music, from which they draw musical history and knowledge, and rely on them in their research and creative projects.

The ministry’s selection of the late artist comes in the context of its keenness to celebrate and honor the pioneers of art and culture in the Kingdom.