One of Dubai’s most popular choirs came together to record a video performance for Christmas.
The 30-strong Christian Voices Chorale usually sings live during festive Mass at St Mary’s Catholic Church in Dubai.
However, Dubai’s Catholic churches have been closed for most of the year since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.
It was more important than ever to try and raise some Christmas spirit
That has not stopped the choir, which is predominantly made up of Filipino members, from coming together to record a number of carols and hymns to help raise some Christmas cheer in what has been a difficult year.
“Even though the church is still closed for Christmas we thought it was important to stay connected because people can still pray at home and watch the services,” said Sharon Elaurza, 44, one of the senior members of the choir.
“Christmas is an important ritual in the life of Christians. It is not about shopping and buying expensive gifts. It’s important to remind people of the true meaning of Christmas, which is supporting each other.
“We have a community in the choir who all look out for one another.”
The past year has been a difficult one for most people, with enforced pay cuts, redundancies and not being able to see loved ones because of social distancing and travel restrictions.
Members of Christian Voices Chorale were no different when it came to the effects of the pandemic.
“We had 44 members this time last year but many had to return to their home country because of redundancies,” said the Filipina.
“It has been a challenging year for our members because many of us haven’t been able to see loved ones back home.
"Some of us had close family members die and were unable to travel back for the funerals. That's why we thought it was more important than ever to raise some Christmas spirit and help put a smile on people's faces."
She said that recording the music video was the first time most of the choir had seen each other in person since the pandemic began.
"We used to see each other all the time at rehearsals, but obviously that changed when the churches had to close," Ms Elaurza said.
“It was an amazing opportunity to be able to perform again. It’s certainly been a huge help in terms of mental health.”
Earlier in the year, the choir did a number of performances from home, which were shared online to help boost the morale of frontline workers during the pandemic.
While the choir were able to perform together for the Christmas video, social distancing meant the group was divided into several groups, taking separate shifts to ensure the safety of everyone involved.
The recording sessions were split into two sections with the choir performing together for their music for the Mass, but then performing individually at home for the carols, which will be played before the service.
“It meant so much to us to be able see each other again,” said Filipino Ronald Trinio, 41, who sings baritone in the choir.
“Singing is our passion and it binds us together. It had been almost a year since a lot of us had seen each other.
“It has been a grim year with people losing jobs, having to take pay deductions and having family members pass away. There have been so many trials.”
The financial planner said the project would also allow the choir members to connect with family back home who could watch the Mass online.
“It’s a great way to reach out to people that we haven’t been able to see for one reason or another,” he said.
“Friends and family around the world have told us they are excited to get the chance to watch. It makes us very proud.”
You can watch the live services at 6.30am and 7.30pm from St Mary's Catholic Church online on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day by clicking this link.
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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