Bagri Music Awards: Ayman Hlal - Solo Performance

A solo performance by the leading Syrian violinist and composer Ayman Hlal.

Leading violinist, composer, and educator, Ayman Hlal was born in As-Suwayda, a city in Syria that is particularly famous for producing artists. Now based in Berlin, Ayman specialises in both Middle Eastern and Western classical music. Since leaving Syria as a result of war, he has participated in several national and international events and projects, and performed with multiple orchestras and bands, including the Syrian Expat Philharmonic Orchestra (SEPO), and Nai’ Oriental Orchestra in Austria. In 2024, Ayman took part in the Making Tracks Residency at Cove Park.

Recipient of the 2026 Bagri Music Award presented by Cove Park and the Bagri Foundation, this live performance takes place during Ayman’s two-week residency at Cove Park.

In 2025, international residency Cove Park announced a new two-year partnership with the Bagri Foundation, to launch Sound Series, a new programme of residencies bringing acclaimed international musicians to the UK. The Bagri Foundation works within a network of leading cultural organisations that champion artistic excellence and provide extraordinary artists from across Asia, wider visibility on the global stage. Working collaboratively with Cove Park to nominate and select the artists, the Bagri Music Award is aimed at artistic development and is a unique opportunity for acclaimed emerging or mid-career musicians from West Asia to spend quality time in Scotland.

This performance marks the culmination of Ayman’s Cove Park residency, developed in close collaboration with SEPO, the first Symphony Orchestra for professional and academic Syrian musicians who live in the European Union. SEPO was founded in September 2015 in Germany by the Syrian musician Raed Jazbeh.