Dubai, United Arab Emirates: Digital Bell Studios has shared new details of IRIS, a large music and storytelling project that brings together more than 100 artists from different countries, cultures and musical backgrounds. The company says the project is now in its final stages of production, with completion planned for December 2026.
IRIS is created by Ukrainian music producer and composer D-BELL, who has lived and worked in Dubai for the past ten years. According to the company, the project combines original music, live instruments, orchestral and choir recordings, comic art and an original science fiction story.
The idea, the company says, was to create something that goes beyond a traditional music album, giving audiences two ways to experience the same world: through sound and through pictures.
Every composition in IRIS has its own character and identity, the company says, but all of the pieces are connected through one story. The music and the comic were developed together, so each track is linked to particular moments, characters or emotions in the narrative. For listeners, that means a piece of music can be heard on its own and also understood as part of a larger story.
A story told through music and comic art
The story of IRIS is an original science fiction concept written by the composer. It takes place in a world that exists within music, a reality with its own characters, rules, conflicts and deeper philosophical ideas. The story follows a group of musicians who must come together to save music from destruction.
The story is told through a comic, while the music acts as its soundtrack. Each composition is connected to a moment, a character or a feeling in the story. The company says the aim is to let people enter the story not only by reading and looking at the artwork, but also by listening to the music and discovering how it connects to what is happening on the page.
Live instruments and artists from many cultures
Over the years, the composer has built his own studio and developed relationships with musicians from different musical backgrounds. For IRIS, that has meant working with instruments and musical traditions that are sometimes difficult to find or bring into a recording session.
The recordings include instruments such as grand harp, as well as traditional and less commonly heard instruments from different cultures. The project also involves collaborations with Arabic and Emirati musicians and other artists from the region. Orchestras and choirs have been brought together and recorded as part of the production, adding scale and depth to the sound.
A significant amount of the work has taken place in the composer’s personal studio, alongside recording sessions in larger professional studios in Dubai and other locations. Every track has been approached as its own musical production, with individual arrangements, performers and sound. Some compositions have their own distinct musical direction, while others are closely connected to the characters and events of the comic.
More than 100 artists have contributed to the project, each bringing their own experience, background and musical perspective. Working with so many different people has meant bringing together musicians with different approaches, finding the right sound for each composition, and making sure that all of the individual contributions work together.
The composer is personally leading the entire project, from writing the original story and developing the concept to composing, arranging, recording, producing, mixing, mastering and coordinating the work of the participating artists.
It is described as the composer’s largest project to date, both in terms of its musical scale and the number of people involved.
What comes next for IRIS
IRIS is currently in its final stages of production, with completion planned for December 2026. The company is also exploring possibilities for presenting the project in Dubai, with a potential launch or presentation event in December 2026 or January 2027. The date, venue and format have not yet been confirmed, the company says.
Further announcements regarding the music release, participating artists, comic and presentation plans will follow as the project develops, according to Digital Bell Studios.
Media Contact
- Website: https://www.d-bell.com/
Disclaimer: All information in this article was shared by Digital Bell Studios. UAE Startup Story has not verified or confirmed its accuracy and accepts no responsibility for it.
