Ey Raqib (Oh Enemy) is the national anthem in the Kurdistan Region and northeast Syria (Rojava): “Let no one say Kurds are dead. Kurds are alive, are alive. Their flag will never fall.”
It is one of the rare things that are unanimously recognized by Kurdish parties across ideological lines. The lyrics were written by poet Dldar (1918-1948) and it was first named the official anthem of the short-lived Mahabad Republic in present-day Iran, founded 75 years ago today.
However, lack of a musical score has made it difficult for bands to play the anthem. Until now. Dalshad Said, a Kurdish musician and conductor living in Austria, has scored the music for both military band and symphony orchestra.
In his publication of the music, Said explains the score was requested by the French government to use during a ceremony to receive Masoud Barzani, former president of the Kurdistan Region, at Elysee Palace on September 7, 2016.
“Unfortunately, the only hindrance that prevented the ceremony from taking place was not having the music score of the Anthem. Therefore, their initiative was the real incentive for me to execute the arrangement with the orchestration of Ey-Reqib in a manner suited to the standard requirements of military bands (wind orchestras) and symphony orchestras,” wrote Said.
The anthem is regularly played in the Kurdistan Region, including at schools in the morning.
Said was born in Duhok in 1958. He graduated from Baghdad Fine Arts Institute in 1977 and established Duhok Music Band in 1979. He later moved to the UK, receiving a Master’s Degree before moving to Austria, where he has lived since 1991, teaching music. He studied traditional Kurdish music and dance and, in 2018, received his doctorate.
He is known for mixing elements of Western classical music with traditional Kurdish styles. His symphonic and choral compositions Peshmerga and Shingal, released in 2015 and sponsored by Rudaw, were performed by the Czech National Symphony Orchestra.
“We, the Kurds who want to build our own state in the future, need to protect our language and culture. An important element of culture is music, so we need to protect our folk music,” he told Rudaw in a 2015 interview. “Without culture and language no nation can survive.”
