Some artists enter the stage to perform. Others enter it to widen the meaning of what is possible. Reemaz AlOqbi, known online as reemazsings, is doing both. She is a Saudi soprano, flautist, musician, media host, and cultural practitioner helping shape the sound of a new Saudi music era. As Artistic Manager and musician with the Saudi National Orchestra & Choir, she works at the intersection of performance, programming, heritage, and cultural development. For Reemaz, Western classical music and Saudi heritage are not opposing forces. They are materials for creation.
“Balancing Western classical music with my Saudi identity is not a contradiction but a fusion. I don’t see them as opposing forces, but rather threads that can be woven to create something new and essential.”
That idea carries the heart of her journey: a Saudi artist using classical discipline to build something rooted, global, and deeply personal.
A Life Shaped by Sound
Reemaz AlOqbi is originally from Madinah, but much of her early life was shaped in California, where her relationship with music began young. She started performing at the age of seven. At that age, music was not yet a career. It was discovery. It was expression. Her first foundation was voice. Singing gave her language, feeling, and stage confidence. Soon after, she found the flute, an instrument that trained her in breath, patience, and musical control. Together, voice and flute formed the two sides of her artistic identity.
Her musical world was also wide from the beginning. She explored choir, musical theatre, marching band, jazz, R&B, and other forms of performance. This is why Reemaz’s work today does not feel narrow. She does not approach classical music as a closed room. She approaches it as a living language.
Education and a Global Cultural Mindset
Reemaz’s academic path also shaped her artistic voice. She studied at the American University of Sharjah, where she pursued a path connected to International Relations while also developing her musical education. Her music minor added technical grounding to a wider global perspective. Reemaz is not only a performer. She understands culture as communication. She understands how art can represent a country, open dialogue, and build bridges between communities.
That global mindset is visible in her career today. Whether she is performing, managing artistic programs, or hosting cultural conversations, her work keeps returning to one question: How can Saudi music speak to the world while staying true to itself?
Becoming a Soprano and Flautist
As a soprano, Reemaz AlOqbi entered one of the most demanding vocal forms in music. Opera requires discipline, stamina, technique, and emotional honesty. It asks the singer to carry drama through the body, not only through sound. As a flautist, she also holds a rare place in Saudi music history. She has been recognized as the first Saudi female flautist and as one of the early Saudi voices helping introduce opera into the Kingdom’s emerging classical scene. For Reemaz, being first is not only an achievement. It is a responsibility.
“Being ‘number one’ isn’t just a privilege, it’s also a responsibility, and sometimes a burden. But on the other hand, it’s a great gift because you’re redefining what’s possible.”
This line reveals her awareness of the role she carries. A pioneer does not only walk forward. A pioneer makes the road visible for others.
Firdaus Orchestra and the Road Back Home
Before fully returning to Riyadh, Reemaz AlOqbi gained professional experience in the UAE’s music scene. She worked with Firdaus Orchestra, the all-women ensemble connected to Expo Dubai, for two years. That period gave her international exposure, professional grounding, and a clearer sense of what she wanted to bring back home. Then came Riyadh. Returning to Saudi Arabia became one of the most important turning points in her story. In Riyadh, she found something larger than opportunity. She found purpose.
“I’m now able to genuinely do what I love, do it well, have the opportunities to do them, and also see it in the next generations after me. What we’re building now is not for us.”
That final sentence is key. Reemaz is not only building a career. She is helping build cultural infrastructure.
Saudi National Orchestra & Choir: Artistic Manager, Musician, Builder
Today, Reemaz AlOqbi is connected to one of Saudi Arabia’s most significant music institutions: the Saudi National Orchestra & Choir. As Artistic Manager and musician, she contributes from both sides of the stage. As an artistic manager, she supports planning, programming, coordination, and creative direction. As a musician, she understands the lived reality of performance: rehearsal, discipline, breath, timing, and presence.
This dual role gives her work depth. She is not only helping organize Saudi music. She is part of its sound. The Saudi National Orchestra & Choir represents a major cultural shift in the Kingdom. It brings Saudi musical heritage into orchestral and choral formats, while also presenting Saudi music on international stages. This aligns with the wider cultural goals of Vision 2030, where music is becoming part of national development, cultural diplomacy, and creative-sector growth. For Reemaz, being part of this institution is not only a professional role. It is a contribution to the Kingdom’s musical future.
A Saudi Voice at the Metropolitan Opera House
One of Reemaz’s most important performance moments came in New York City in 2023, when she performed with the Saudi National Orchestra & Choir. The concert took place at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, one of the world’s most recognized opera venues. It was part of the Masterpieces of Saudi Music initiative, which presented Saudi musical heritage to international audiences through orchestral and choral performance. The New York concert followed earlier international stops connected to the initiative, including Paris and Mexico City, and featured musicians representing Saudi Arabia’s national sound on a global stage. In a way, Reemaz was not simply performing abroad, but helping carry Saudi music into a global cultural conversation.
Global Stages
Reemaz AlOqbi’s work with the Saudi National Orchestra & Choir is part of a wider international movement. The orchestra’s performances and cultural programs have brought Saudi music to major global cities and venues, including Paris, Mexico City, New York, London, Tokyo, Riyadh, Sydney, Versailles, AlUla, and Rome. In London, the Saudi National Orchestra and Choir performed at Central Hall Westminster in September 2024, in a program connected to collaboration with the UK’s Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
In Tokyo, Saudi musicians performed alongside Japanese musicians, including the Tokyo College of Music Orchestra Academy. The evening brought together more than 150 musicians in total, with a large Saudi presence from the National Orchestra and Choir. In Rome, the orchestra’s tour reached the Temple of Venus and Rome within the Colosseum Archaeological Park in May 2026. The performance brought together Saudi and Italian musicians and included a special appearance by Andrea Bocelli. Reemaz was identified among the performers during the Rome stop. These stages show the scale of the cultural movement Reemaz is part of. She is not only representing herself. She is helping represent a country.
A Distinct Saudi Voice in Classical Music
Reemaz’s mission is not to copy Western classical tradition. It is to enter it with a Saudi voice. She believes Saudi Arabia and the wider Arab world carry deep musical resources that have not yet been fully explored within classical music. Poetry. Maqams. Stories. Rhythms. Regional sounds. Emotional structures. These are not decorative additions. They are creative foundations. Reemaz does not see Saudi identity as something to place on top of classical music. She sees it as something that can shape classical music from the inside.
Inspired by Arab singers such as the iconic Syrian-Egyptian artist Asmahan, Reemaz incorporates classic Arab sounds into Western classical forms to create new musical expressions rather than simply repeat traditional compositions. One example captures this beautifully: she has explored moving from Carmen’s “Habanera” into the emotional color of maqam Hijaz. It is a small musical decision with a larger message. Classical music can hold Arab feeling. Opera can meet maqam. A Saudi artist can enter a global form without leaving herself behind.
Zarqa Al Yamama: A Landmark in Saudi Opera
Reemaz AlOqbi is also part of another historic chapter: Zarqa Al Yamama. The production has been presented as Saudi Arabia’s first grand opera and one of the most significant Arabic-language opera productions. It brought together Saudi artists, Arabic language, international opera talent, and large-scale cultural production. Reemaz performed as one of the Saudi artists in the opera, alongside other Saudi voices such as Khayran Al Zahrani and Sawsan Albahiti, with international artists also joining the cast.
Octave: Making Classical Music Feel Human
Reemaz’s influence also extends beyond the stage. As host of Octave on Althaqafiyah TV, she opens conversations around music, culture, and artistic development. This role positions her as more than a performer. She becomes a cultural translator. Many people see classical music as difficult, distant, or elitist. Reemaz works against that perception. She invites audiences in through warmth and curiosity, not through complexity.
“Cultural media, when managed properly, has an immense power to democratize the arts. It can bring what seems elitist closer and make it more intimate.”
Through Octave, she combines education and enjoyment. Storytelling and knowledge. Performance and explanation. This matters for the future of classical music in Saudi Arabia. The art form cannot live only in concert halls. It must also live in conversations, classrooms, neighborhoods, and media platforms. Reemaz AlOqbi understands that access is part of cultural development.
Representation, Women, and the Weight of Firsts
Reemaz’s journey carries a powerful women-in-culture story. She has faced doubt from society and from herself. That honesty makes her story stronger. She does not describe the pioneering path as easy. She describes it as meaningful.
“Overcoming challenges required me to find strength in society, in friendship, in the silent stories of women who paved the way in other fields,”
For Reemaz, standing on stage is not only personal expression. It is visibility.
“Every time I stood on stage, especially with the Saudi National Orchestra, I reminded myself that representation isn’t a luxury, it’s a necessity.”
That sentence captures the emotional weight of her work. When a young Saudi girl sees Reemaz sing opera or play the flute, she sees a door opening. She sees that classical music can include her. She sees that excellence does not require abandoning identity. Reemaz also speaks about the strength of women supporting women. Music may be performed by individuals, but cultural change is built through community.
Recognition and Youth Impact
Reemaz AlOqbi’s work has also gained recognition beyond performance spaces. She received the Bravo Award for Best Classical Performer, a milestone that reflects her growing place in Saudi and regional classical music. She has also appeared in youth-focused cultural education spaces. At XP Music Futures, she led a GenXP workshop titled “Decoding the Classics: The Language of Music, Heritage, and Modern Sound.” The session was designed for teens aged 12 to 16 and focused on how classical techniques can support modern creativity. This part of her work is essential.
Legacy: Building a Path, Not Just a Career
Reemaz AlOqbi’s impact is still growing. But her direction is already clear. She is helping shape a Saudi classical music identity that is rooted, open, disciplined, and brave. She is showing that opera can carry Arab feeling. She is showing that the flute can belong in the hands of a Saudi woman. She is showing that cultural leadership requires both artistry and administration.
Her story reflects the larger transformation of Saudi Arabia’s creative sector. Under Vision 2030, music is becoming part of national development, cultural diplomacy, and youth opportunity. Reemaz stands inside that movement not only as a symbol, but as a working artist helping build its foundations.
“My work now focuses on building bridges, artistically and administratively, so that the next generation doesn’t have to choose between distinction and identity.”
That is the legacy she is shaping. Reemaz AlOqbi is building a bridge wide enough for the next generation to cross.
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