Clarinet player Abdulateef Ghazi is blind. His lack of sight, however, seems to only fuel his beautiful music. His playing, along with partner guitarist Mohammed Jabbari brought tears to the eyes of the judges and the crowd and won the duo the ‘Golden Buzzer’.

Kuwait was proud to see several of its best talents performing on the popular Arabs Got Talent competition this year. One young Kuwaiti musician proved not only his musical talent but the strength of those who can overcome any obstacle. Clarinet player Abdulateef Ghazi is blind. His lack of sight, however, seems to only fuel his beautiful music. His playing, along with partner guitarist Mohammed Jabbari brought tears to the eyes of the judges and the crowd and won the duo the 'Golden Buzzer'.

Kuwait Times spoke with the young musicians to learn more about their performance and their experience in the show.

Kuwait Times: Tell us more about yourselves.

Jabbari: My name is Mohammed Jabbari. I was born and raised in Bahrain. I am 27 years old. I work as a banker in the morning and as a guitarist the rest of the day.

Ghazi: I'm Abdulateef Ghazi. I'm 22 years old and a Kuwaiti. I'm a law student at London University.

KT: What drew you to audition for Arabs Got Talent?

Jabbari: It is a global program that motivates and supports all kinds of talents. It was an opportunity to get involved in it. We participated in Arabs Got Talent to give us the push to do what we love and for people to discover our talent.

KT: How was your audition?

Jabbari: It was great. We lived the moment and played from our hearts to reach the audience.

KT: What was your feeling when you got the Golden Buzzer?

Jabbari: It was a shock to know that we touched the judges' hearts. We were very happy.

KT: How did you'll get started? How did you become friends although you are from different countries?

Jabbari: Abdulateef asked me to join him and become a team, since we play the same type of music, only on different instruments. I was in Kuwait to meet up with artist friends and they introduced me to Abdullateef. When I saw him playing, I couldn't hold back my tears, seeing how talented this guy is. He is the only musician that made me weep.

KT: What was the first musical piece that you did together in front of an audience?

Jabbari: 'Ala bali' by the great Egyptian singer Sherine Abdulwahab. She is full of feelings when she sings.

KT: Abdulateef - how did you manage to learn how to play the clarinet?

Ghazi: I was never into music. But when I heard Turkish music, the musical instruments that they used touched my feelings. I worked hard and became professional in no time.

KT: Do you think you hear music differently because of your blindness - or do you think it is unrelated?

Ghazi:  Music flows in my body through my feelings.

KT: Mohammad - when did you start playing the guitar?

Jabbari: I started playing in 2004.

KT: How did you'll learn to integrate two musical instruments in a beautiful way?

Jabbari: Talent is a gift from God that makes us both special. Plus, we feel the music we play and what comes from the heart goes to the hearts.

KT: How do you choose the best musical piece to play together?

Jabbari: Our feelings tell us what to play.

KT: How supportive of your goals are your parents?

Jabbari: Supportive all the way.

KT: What do you find harder - playing solo or together and why?

Jabbari: Both are fine - we complete each other.

KT: What is the best sound in the world to you?

Jabbari: Turkish music.

KT: What can we expect from you in the future and what are you coming up with?

Jabbari: This is a surprise that we will reveal soon - wait for it!

By Faten Omar