Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra team during the concert held at QNCC on Friday. PIC: Hana Ramadan/ The Peninsula
Doha: The Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra (QPO) presented Sounds of Mexico at the Qatar National Convention Centre (QNCC) on Friday, bringing Mexico’s music and cultural heritage to Doha as part of the Qatar-Canada and Mexico 2026 Year of Culture. The concert was led by acclaimed Mexican conductor Enrique Arturo Diemecke, who returned to Qatar following his collaboration with QPO during the Qatar-Argentina and Chile 2025 Year of Culture.
The evening began with remarks from Mexico’s Ambassador to Qatar H E José Guillermo Ordorica Robles, followed by an address from Years of Culture Advisor for Latin American Affairs Mohammed Jassim Al Kuwari.
The national anthems of Mexico and Qatar were performed before the orchestra began the programme.
Speaking to The Peninsula, Ambassador Ordorica Robles said the concert offered an opportunity to share Mexico’s culture and music with audiences in Qatar.
“We’re trying to present to the audience here in Qatar a little of our very beautiful culture, our very beautiful music that we have in Mexico,” he said.
He also mentioned that the music represented different regions of Mexico and highlighted the role of culture and music in representing the country.
“This is probably the most important thing, to have this kind of events, as the best ambassadors of Mexico,” he stated.
Al Kuwari highlighted the concert’s place within the 2026 Year of Culture, saying it was an opportunity to experience Mexico’s musical tradition while the country celebrates its Independence Day. The programme featured works by Mexican composers including Arturo Márquez’s Danzón No. 2, Carlos Chávez’s Chacona in E Minor, Blas Galindo’s Sones de Mariachi and Silvestre Revueltas’s Redes, Second Suite.
The concert concluded with José Pablo Moncayo’s Huapango, inspired by traditional melodies from Mexico’s Huasteca region.
The conductor Diemecke, previously conducted QPO in Doha in September 2025 during the Qatar-Argentina and Chile Year of Culture. He later led more than 70 QPO musicians during the orchestra’s debut at Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires. The concert series will continue with Sounds of Canada on November 7 at QNCC, conducted by Charles Olivieri-Munroe.
