The opera composer inspired by Iron Maiden

Last month, the world’s first grand opera in Arabic was shown in London Will Hosie talks to its Australian composer, Lee Bradshaw, about his modern approach

THE composer Lee Bradshaw is staying in a hotel in Vienna across the street from Theatre an der Wien where Beethoven presented what would be his only opera, Fidelio.

"He was the Taylor Swift of 1806," Bradshaw, a native of Melbourne, Australia, who looks like a cross between Gandalf and popstar James Bay, quips. "And I think his Ninth Symphony is the greatest piece of music that has ever been written." Bradshaw's work on the composer, as creative director and producer of The Death of Beethoven (a recording cycle of the composer's late String Quartets produced in partnership with Radio Svizzera Italiana in Lugano, Switzerland), has been hailed "a revelation" - but we aren't here to muse on the 19th-century genius.

No, the reason for our meeting is a new opera, Zarqa AI Yamama, which Bradshaw has scored, and which showcased last month in London at Goldsmiths' Hall. It stars Dame Sarah Connolly in the role of the titular heroine, a legendary figure of the pre-Islamic Jadi tribe who was blessed with the gift of foresight, and who, like her Trojan counterpart Cassandra, was ignored when she warned of impending danger, to the demise of her civilisation. The production proper starts in Riyadh this month, where it opens on April 25.

Bradshaw, 47, is looking forward to warmer climes. "I must warn you I'm feeling a bit ill, so sorry if I sound weird," he says. His voice hasn't got so much as a hint of rasp, but that's an opera man for you - they hear things the rest of us cannot. To me, he sounds positively bell-like, with his clipped Aussie lilt and long, flowing hair framing a bespectacled face replete with warm, friendly eyes. He looks more like a video game designer than the first person to compose a Saudi grand opera.