The Police Band of the Abu Dhabi Police General Headquarters also known internationally as the Abu Dhabi Police Brass Band (

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

: فرقة شرطة براس أبوظبي) is the official musical unit of the

Abu Dhabi Police Abu Dhabi Police is the primary law enforcement agency in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, one of the United Arab Emirates. Overview Under the command of Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, the Abu Dhabi Police ...

in the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia ( The Middle East). It is located at t ...

(UAE). It also serves as a military band of the

UAE Armed Forces The United Arab Emirates Armed Forces ( ar, القوات المسلحة لدولة الإمارات العربية المتحدة, Al-Quwwāt al-Musallaḥa li-Dawlat al-ʾImārāt al-ʿArabīyyah al-Muttaḥidah) are the armed forces of the Unit ...

. The band currently serves with the deep emphasis in the importance of motivating police officers and the public, with some of its pieces encompassing marching, traditional, Arab, and British genres. In 1963, Brigadier General Ishaq Suleiman, a sergeant in a

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

ian Army Band, while on tour in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

met with the niece of an official aide to the

Shakhbut bin Sultan Al Nahyan Shakhbut bin Sultan Al Nahyan ( ar, شخبوط بن سلطان آل نهيان; 1 June 1905 – 11 February 1989) was the ruler of Abu Dhabi from 1928 to 1966. On 6 August 1966, Shakhbut was deposed by members of his family with assistance f ...

, who wished to create a police band the city. She then invited Suleiman to the

UAE The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

to lead the band, giving him a ticket to Abu Dhabi so he could have the opportunity to consult with the

Emir Emir (; ar, أمير ' ), sometimes transliterated amir, amier, or ameer, is a word of Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person possessing actual or cer ...

. He began recruiting members for the band from foreign countries such as

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

due to the common sentiment at the time by

Emiratis The Emiratis ( ar, الإماراتيون) are the native Arab citizen population of the United Arab Emirates. Their largest concentration is in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), where there are about approximately 1.5 million Emiratis. Formerly ...

about playing music, of which they considered shameful. He eventually created a 60-member band, made up of 30 bagpipes and 30

brass Brass is an alloy of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn), in proportions which can be varied to achieve different mechanical, electrical, and chemical properties. It is a substitutional alloy: atoms of the two constituents may replace each other wit ...

instruments. The band originally performed military marches, but time went by, Suleiman started teaching them famous symphonies by

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky , group=n ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most popu ...

, Mozart. Suleiman, who left the band in 1980 and retired in 1991, designed the current ranking insignia worn band, as well as the police department. The 173-member band, who has received its training and experience from the Abu Dhabi Police College since 2004, has performed at venues all over the world, including at the coronation of ''

Sayyid ''Sayyid'' (, ; ar, سيد ; ; meaning 'sir', 'Lord', 'Master'; Arabic plural: ; feminine: ; ) is a surname of people descending from the Islamic prophet Muhammad through his grandsons, Hasan ibn Ali and Husayn ibn Ali, sons of Muhamma ...

Qaboos bin Said al Said Qaboos bin Said Al Said ( ar, قابوس بن سعيد آل سعيد, ; 18 November 1940 – 10 January 2020) was Sultan of Oman from 23 July 1970 until his death in 2020. A fifteenth-generation descendant of the founder of the House of Al Said ...

in 1970, the

Spasskaya Tower Military Music Festival and Tattoo The Spasskaya Tower International Military Music Festival is an annual military music event and military tattoo held in Moscow on Red Square. Participating in the festival are Russian and foreign military bands, folk groups, and honor guard units o ...

in 2013, and the Berlin Military Music Festival in 2014.

Videos

"Спасская башня - 2013". Оркестр полиции Абу-Даби

The Abu Dhabi Police Band in 2015

References

{{Reflist Organisations based in Abu Dhabi Musical groups established in 1963 Police bands 1963 establishments in the Trucial States

See also

Videos

References