Art instead of war
Syrian musician sets the story of his escape to music
From the street to the stage: Hesham Hamra, a Syrian musician, plays the string instrument oud in the Rhineland-Palatinate State Philharmonic. photo
© Uwe Anspach/dpa
Hesham Hamra fled to Germany in 2016 and studied composition in Mannheim. Today he writes works for the State Philharmonic Orchestra in Ludwigshafen. Sometimes, he says, he can hardly believe his luck.
Sometimes the bloody civil war in his native Syria still comes to mind when Hesham Hamra plucks the strings of his pear-shaped oud. “Every now and then I close my eyes and mentally walk from our house in Damascus to a friend’s apartment,” says the musician. “Then I smell the scent of jasmine on the streets.” Jasmin is also the name of a virtuoso piece that Hamra composed for the Ensemble Colourage Ludwigshafen.
Colourage is a poetic word play on color, courage and collage. It’s about bringing together music from the Orient and Occident. The ensemble is made up of eight musicians and was founded four years ago by the German State Philharmonic of Rhineland-Palatinate as well as the Oriental Music Academy Mannheim (OMM) and the Pop Academy Mannheim. Some musicians have Turkish or Syrian roots – like Hamra.
Studies after street music
On this cloudy day, the Ensemble Colourage is rehearsing at the State Philharmonic Hall in Ludwigshafen. The distinctive tones of the Oud can be clearly heard. For some, the Arabic lute is considered the “mother of plucked instruments”. “My father is also a musician and often had students at our house,” says Hamra. “I was always there and learned to play the oud early on. I always wanted to be a musician.”
The outbreak of war in Syria intervened. “I moved to Dubai at the end of 2011 and worked as a musician there,” says Hamra. “But I wanted more. I wanted a new life. So in 2016 I flew to Turkey, from there took the boat to Greece and then traveled on foot to Germany, so to speak. After 25 days I was in Passau.” Was it dangerous? “Yes. But you only live once.”
After his arrival in Germany, Hamra plays a concert in Mannheim with a borrowed Oud and is asked whether he would like to attend the Pop Academy? With the help of a scholarship, he eventually earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in world music and studied composition at the University of Music. At the same time he is learning German.
Language learning with “Little Nick”
“I realized on the first day in Germany that I needed the language. It’s not easy. Television helps me a little – such as children’s series like “Little Nick,” says the 32-year-old and laughs. His German is remarkable. Sometimes, Hamra admits, he can hardly believe his luck. He came with nothing and is now writing pieces for an orchestra.
This is a remarkable story, not only at a time when Germany is discussing a shortage of skilled workers and migration, says André Uelner, project manager at Colourage. “Hesham works incredibly hard. Even his professor Sidney Corbett at the Mannheim University of Music says he never thought someone could accomplish so much in such a short time.”
For Uelner, Colourage, whose founding was funded by the Federal Cultural Foundation, is primarily about music. “How is music thought in other parts of the world? When I deal with it, a light comes on and spaces open up.” Everyone in the ensemble had curiosity from the start. It’s also about tolerance. “We tried to create eye level on a structural level,” he says.
“Seized the opportunity and used it”
Hamra now has German citizenship. The learning is far from over, he says. “Why do you make music? Why do you go on stage? Why do people come to a concert? What connection is there? I’m interested in all of that. Also things behind the scenes: How are decisions made in the organization? What kind of contracts are there it? I deal with something like that.”
And with music. In addition to “Jasmin”, Hamra composed the piece “Journey” – the story of his escape. “Hesham came to Germany via the Balkan route with a cell phone and a credit card,” says Uelner. “On the way, he hummed a tune into his phone and saved it.” The melody is now the leitmotif of the composition “Journey,” which was premiered in January by the German State Philharmonic Orchestra.
“Actually, that’s too cheesy to be true,” says Uelner and laughs. “But seriously: Many people have contributed to this success story – especially Beat Fehlmann.” The director of the State Philharmonic made cultural participation a management theme with confidence and trust. “Hesham seized his opportunity and used it – through talent, conviction and, last but not least, hard work.”