Ecstatic Moments

Music has always been an important source of inspiration for humans throughout history. Many philosophers and musicians have written about music and its influence on human life. For example, the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche wrote: “God has given us music so that above all it can lead us upwards. Music unites all qualities: it can exalt us, divert us, cheer us up, or break the hardest of hearts with the softest of its melancholy tones. But its principal task is to lead our thoughts to higher things, to elevate, even to make us tremble… The musical art often speaks in sounds more penetrating than the words of poetry, and takes hold of the most hidden crevices of the heart… Song elevates our being and leads us to the good and the true. If, however, music serves only as a diversion or as a kind of vain ostentation it is sinful and harmful.”

Personally, music has been a daily companion throughout my life, with some of my earliest memories of music going as far back as my childhood. I have been especially mesmerised by music’s magical ability to heal the deepest wounds. In 2010, I attended my very first official music concert. During the concert, a friend who had joined me, offered me to use his camera. I couldn’t resist the offer, and immediately grabbed it and went on to take my first official concert photographs. I realised that there’s a different language that music speaks in concerts, those special moments of live musical creation open up a  unique conversation. My way of communicating was to capture those moments that spoke to me during the concert -  moments of magic and ecstasy. Since then, I’ve never attended a concert without a camera. Clicking the little button on my camera allows me to capture the connection that unfolds in that very moment where magic happens.  

The Ecstatic Moments Project is a collection of those magical and ecstatic musical moments that have communicated with me, leaving me truly touched and inspired. 

The subjects of my photographs are artists that I may already know, musicians whose work I personally admire, or of performers whom I got introduced to for the first time.

2020 has proven to be a year like no other marked by the spread of a global pandemic. Yet this has not stopped the spread of chaotic and heartbreaking events, as well as the countless unfair wars that are being waged against humanity. However, 2020 also marked 10 years since I took my first photograph in a concert. With this memory in mind, the proceeds from the sale of these limited edition photographs will be used to provide basic necessities to the people in need, with the hope that music can once again play its role in improving humans life conditions, like it has done and still does to me and to many other humans in this world.

The end of 2022 marked a shifting point to my project as I have exclusively photographed Hooverphonic’s concert at the Dubai Opera, this helps my project continue reaching to its goal with the support of the musicians that I admire and who share the same values as I do. I am hopeful that more musicians will be ready to support this project in the future, and very much looking forward for it to fulfill its ultimate goal in helping humanity.