Music of Queen in symphonic concert with National Symphony Orchestra

Get ready to hear Queen’s classic songs in symphonic splendour at the Dubai Media City Amphitheatre.

Peter Eldridge, one of the theatre vocalists for the Queen night. Courtesy Louder Entertainment

Epic rock riffs and majestic symphonic strings will come together in perfect harmony on Friday for a charity performance paying tribute to one of the all-time great bands.

The Music Of Queen: A Rock & Symphonic Spectacular will feature Abu Dhabi's 42-piece National Symphony Orchestra performing alongside four vocalists from We Will Rock You, the West End musical based around the band's songs, plus a 16-piece rock and rhythm section, backing vocalists and a conductor.

In all, there will be no fewer than 70 musicians on stage, conjuring up the power and drama of Queen classics such as Somebody to Love, A Kind of Magic and Don't Stop Me Now. To celebrate UAE National Day next week, entry to the concert will be a minimum donation of Dh50, with the proceeds going to local charities.

A new orchestra

Necessity is the mother of invention. When the NSO director and founder Janet Hassouneh considered the request for the orchestra to take part in the event, she had to make a big decision.

“We had another performance that day, a government show at Al Mamzar Park in Dubai,” she says. “At the same time, we really wanted to be involved with this great opportunity to perform the songs of Queen.”

With the NSO roster including more than 100 professionally trained musicians, Hassouneh decided on a whim to create the NSO’s Symphonic Pop Orchestra – an offshoot of the main orchestra that would be available for events requiring more accessible performances.

For the Queen music, Hassouneh says a couple of rehearsals were all that was needed for the musicians to get ready by Friday. “You have to remember that we have a lot of real professionals in the orchestra,” she says. “We have people who played with the London Symphony Orchestra, the BBC Orchestra and also in New York and Cincinnati. They are studio musicians as well and they are ready to go.”

Headbanging on stage

When pop artists want to add a touch of pomp or splendour to their tracks, they often call on Richard Sidwell. The British conductor has worked and toured with an array of pop stars and music legends, including Robbie Williams, Duran Duran, Tom Jones and Bob Geldof – and that’s as well as his other work orchestrating numerous West End productions. He has also performed similar Queen- inspired concerts with orchestras in Europe, America and, most recently, Australia.

He describes his arrangements of Queen classics not as reinventions but, rather as enhancements. “At the end of the day, Queen are a rock band,” he says. “Where I come in to create arrangements that would sound similar to what the guys would have had in mind if they had an idea to put an orchestra to a particular song.” Sidwell says the show will in no way be a stuffy affair. He expects people to dance – and not just the audience.

“Earlier in the year I did three shows with Sydney Symphony Orchestra,” he says. “At the beginning they were very cold and standoffish. By the third night they were wearing wigs and they were headbanging on stage. They really enjoyed playing these arrangements, and for a musician to enjoy playing my work is really something thrilling.”

Freddie to go

As a testament to the late Freddie Mercury’s remarkable vocal range, no fewer than four theatre vocalists – Jason Wooten, Peter Eldridge, Julie Stark and Jenna Lee James – have been enlisted to perform the legendary Queen frontman’s variety of singing styles, ranging from his bluesy growl to his almost operatic high tenor.

Wooten says that the multi- vocalist approach is the best way to pay tribute to Mercury, who was known for his pitch-perfect performances. “He is to me the greatest singer,” says the American. “He has a voice that can go so high that it can take you to the stratosphere – at the same time he also has this big rock roar.

“That is why we have the two female vocalists as well, to maintain that energy, to sing the higher notes and keep it all consistent.”

Wooten says don’t expect any of the singers to mimic Mercury’s movements on stage. Instead, they hope to channel some of the trademark passion Mercury delivered on Queen’s classic tracks.

"It is me on stage, but there are many times where you need to draw inspiration from Freddie, particularly in those deeper songs such as Who Wants to Live Forever and The Show Must Go On, which are really heart-wrenching," " he says.

• The Music Of Queen: A Rock & Symphonic Spectacular is at the Dubai Media City Amphitheatre on Friday, November 28. Entry is a minimum donation of Dh50 at the door