Dana Alfardan, the country’s preeminent composer, and CEO and founder of Qatar’s only record label, DNA Records, will bring her classical repertoire to the iconic Theatre Royal Haymarket in central London on September 17.
The concert, orchestrated and arranged by renowned London-based conductor, arranger and composer, Dave Arch, will be performed by the London Metropolitan Orchestra (LMO). 
The concert will be conducted by musical director Andy Brown in a rare showcase of the Qatari composer’s interpretation of world music to an international audience.
Alfardan, composer, songwriter, and symphonic artist, is already garnering international attention, enhanced by her most recent album release, Sandstorm. 
The work blends sumptuous strings, choral vocals and soloists with traditional Middle Eastern rhythms. 
The album was recorded at Katara Studios in Doha. As Qatar Airways’ official composer, her music entertaining international passengers on boarding, Alfardan is flying the flag as the first composer and performer to bring the music of her small Gulf nation to the rest of the world. 
Next month’s concert will be the first time the complete album has been performed outside Qatar.
The LMO is an ensemble of world-class musicians that has been engaged by all the major Hollywood studios and worldwide record labels for more than 20 years. 
On September 17, the curtain will rise on the orchestra, performing a full programme of a unique interpretation of contemporary classical music for the first time to an international audience for one night only.
Despite the strength of Qatar’s presence in the UK property and sporting portfolio in the form of high-profile assets (from Harrods to The Shard and Glorious Goodwood), little is reported of Qatar as a nation, its people and culture, beyond recent negative press reports of regional disputes and embargoes. 
An aspiring musician from a young age, Alfardan has long hoped for an opportunity to bring the international spotlight to the music and culture of her Qatari homeland. 
“The State has invested a lot in culture, education and in human capital to give nationals the opportunity and resources to expand their cultural understanding and stand out at a global level. As an artist, my job is to show this to the world,” she said.
Part of Qatar’s “National Vision 2030” impresses the importance of women in the country’s future. 
As the nation’s most prominent female musician, composer and music entrepreneur, having set up the country’s first and only record label, Alfardan represents a strong and internationally appealing role model for the women of her nation and an example of the Qatari woman of 2017 who is proud to present her country’s culture to the world.
She is building Qatar’s music industry from within the nation as a means to export Qatari culture to the international community.