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13 OCTOBER, 2023

"Our Message Must Be Stronger Than Ever": Opinion article by Daniel Barenboim


The current events in Israel and Gaza have deeply shocked us all. There is no justification for Hamas' barbaric terrorist acts against civilians, including children and babies. We must acknowledge this, and pause. But then the next step is, of course, the question of: what now? Do we now surrender to this terrible violence and let our striving for peace "die" - or do we continue to insist that there must and can be peace?

I am convinced that we have to move on and keep the larger context of the conflict in mind. Our musicians of the West-Eastern Divan, our students in the Barenboim-Said Academy, they are almost all directly affected. Many of the musicians live in the region, and the others also have many ties to their homeland. This strengthens my conviction that there can only be one solution to this conflict: one on the basis of humanism, justice and equality - and without armed force and occupation.

Our message of peace must be louder than ever. The greatest danger is that all the people who so ardently desire peace will be drowned out by extremists and violence. But any analysis, any moral equation we might draw up, must have as its core this basic understanding: there are people on both sides. Humanity is universal and the recognition of this truth on both sides is the only way. The suffering of innocent people on either side is absolutely unbearable.

The images of the devastating terrorist attacks by Hamas break our hearts. Our reaction clearly shows: the willingness to empathise with the situation of others is essential. Of course, and especially now, one must also allow for emptions like fear, despair and anger - but the moment this leads us to deny each other humanity, we are lost. Every single person can make a difference and pass something on. This is how we change things on a small scale. On a large scale, it is up to politics.

We have to offer other perspectives to those who are attracted to extremism. After all, it is usually people who are completely without prospects, who are desperate, who devote themselves to murderous or extremist ideologies, who find a home there. Education and information are equally essential, because there are so many positions based on absolute misinformation.

To reiterate quite clearly: The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not a political conflict between two states over borders, water, oil or other resources. It is a deeply human conflict between two peoples who have known suffering and persecution. The persecution of the Jewish people over 20 centuries culminated in the Nazi ideology that murdered six million Jews. 

The Jewish people cherished a dream; a land of their own, a homeland for all Jews in what is now Palestine. But from this dream followed a deeply problematic, because fundamentally false, assumption: a land without a people for a people without a land. In reality, however, the Jewish population of Palestine during the First World War was only 9%. 91% of the population was therefore not Jewish, but Palestinian, grown over centuries. The country could hardly be called a "land without a people" and the Palestinian population saw no reason to give up their own land. The conflict was thus inevitable, and since its beginning the fronts have only hardened further over generations. I am convinced: the Israelis will have security when the Palestinians can feel hope, that is, justice. Both sides must recognise their enemies as human beings and try to empathise with their point of view, their pain and their hardship. Israelis must also accept that the occupation of Palestine is incompatible with this.

For my understanding of this more than 70-year-old conflict, my friendship with Edward Said is the key experience. We found in each other a counterpart who can take us further and help us to see the supposed other more clearly and understand him better. We have recognised and found each other in our common humanity. For me, our joint work with the West-Eastern Divan, which finds its logical continuation and perhaps even its culmination in the Barenboim-Said Academy, is probably the most important activity of my life.

In the current situation, we naturally ask ourselves about the significance of our joint work in both the orchestra and the academy. It may seem little - but the mere fact that Arab and Israeli musicians share a podium at every concert and make music together, that is of immense value to us. Over the years, through this commonality of music-making, but also through our countless, sometimes heated discussions, we have learned to better understand the supposed other, to approach them and to find common ground in our humanity and in music. We start and end all discussions, no matter how controversial, with the fundamental understanding that we are all equal human beings who deserve peace, freedom and happiness. 

This may sound naïve, but it is not: for it is this understanding that seems to be completely lost in the conflict on both sides today. Our experience shows that this message has reached many people in the region and around the world. We must, want and will continue to believe that music can bring us closer together in our humanity.


Daniel Barenboim
October 13, 2023



10 OCTOBER, 2023

West-Eastern Divan Ensemble: Autumn Concerts in Europe and Asia


In November 2023, the West-Eastern Divan Ensemble will embark on a tour with concerts in Europe and, for the first time, in Asia. The musicians, led by Michael Barenboim, will perform a wide-ranging program from different styles and eras, which features chamber music works by Carter, Mendelssohn, Beethoven, and Mozart.


This will be the fourth tour of the West-Eastern Divan Ensemble since its foundation in 2019, following two tours in the United States (2020 & 2023) and one in Europe (2022).


14 JULY, 2023

2023 Summer Concerts with Daniel Barenboim


During August 2023, the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, led by the baton of Daniel Barenboim, will grace the stage with two distinct programs. The inaugural concert series will showcase Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 1 in C major, Op. 15, along with Johannes Brahms' Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 73. Originally set to take the soloist's role, Martha Argerich unfortunately had to withdraw due to health reasons. In her place, Igor Levit will be performing the solo part in Ludwig van Beethoven's First Piano Concerto. We wish Martha Argerich a speedy recovery and extend our sincere thanks to Igor Levit for stepping in at short notice. These performances will be the first opportunity to hear the Igor Levit with Maestro Barenboim and the Divan Orchestra.


Two special concerts at Berlin's Pierre Boulez Saal, as part of the Edward W. Said Days 2023 of the Barenboim-Said Akademie, will round off the summer performances. In the remarkable hall designed by Frank Gehry in Berlin, the musicians, together with Daniel Barenboim, will present Mozart's last three symphonies.


■  Sat, August 12, 2023, 20:00 - Kölner Philharmonie

■  Tue, August 15, 2023, 19:30 - Lucerne Festival

■  Thu, August 17, 2023, 19:30 - Salzburger Festspiele

■  Sat, August 19, 2023, 19:00 - Waldbühne Berlin

■  Sat, August 26, 2023, 19:30 - Pierre Boulez Saal

■  Sun, August 27, 2023, 19:30 - Pierre Boulez Saal



23 MARCH, 2023

The West-Eastern Divan Ensemble at the United Nations


The United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and the United Nations Department of Global Communications (UNDGC) introduced to the UN community the West-Eastern Divan Ensemble on February 23, 2023. 


In an event, entitled “Equal in Music,” the West-Eastern Divan Ensemble led by Michael Barenboim, performed Felix Mendelssohn’s String Octet in E-flat major, Opus 20 at UN Headquarters, and took part in a public discussion about the project. 


Michael Barenboim said “we have musicians that come from countries that are in conflict with each other in one way or another. And we show that by cooperating in a project such as this one, which is, you know, performing a string orchestra in this case, it's possible to bring together these people from conflicting States so that they're able to work together to, to and to this goal.”


Barenboim added, “I think that's showing an alternative model and alternative way of thinking for the Middle East region. Which is not based on arms, bombs, war, blood and conflict, but based on understanding and on dialog and on listening to the other. That's very important. When you play music, you play, but you also have to listen to the others.”


Mariam C. Said, Vice President of the Barenboim-Said Foundation USA, also attended the event. She is the wife of the Palestinian author-scholar Edward Said.


She said, “The message I think that it sends to the world is that by living, by getting an education, by having a career, by having something in common with the people who are in the same field as you are, you are bound to overcome many, many hurdles. And the humanism is behind this idea of being open, being ready to listen to the others, to have various ideas.”


The West-Eastern Divan Orchestra was designated by SG Ban Ki-moon in 2016 as a United Nations Global Advocate for Cultural Understanding.  



23 FEBRUARY, 2023

The Edward W. Said Memorial Lecture


Lenfest Center for the Arts

The Edward W. Said Memorial Lecture:

Education Through Music: A Legacy of Edward W. Said

 

Thursday, February 23, 2023

6:30 PM - 8:30 PM 

The Lantern

 

 

This year marks the twentieth anniversary of Edward W. Said's death. Professor Said was co-founder, with pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim, of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, the acclaimed orchestra that promotes coexistence and intercultural dialogue by bringing young Israelis, Palestinians, and Arabs together to make music. Education Through Music is at the core of the project they initiated. This panel discussion will cover their collaboration, the orchestra and the many projects that have developed since this journey began, including the Barenboim-Said Akademie in Berlin, and the Barenboim-Centre for Music in Palestine. 

Panelists include Mariam C. Said, Vice President of the Barenboim-Said Foundation (USA); Michael Barenboim, Dean of the Barenboim-Said Akademie; and musicians Miriam Manasherov and Samir Obaido. The panel is moderated by Professor Rashid Khalidi, Edward Said Professor of Modern Arab Studies.

 

 

The Edward W. Said Memorial Lecture is given in honor of the public intellectual and literary critic, Edward W. Said, who taught in the English & Comparative Literature Department at Columbia from 1963 until 2003. University Professor Said was perhaps best known for his books Orientalism, published in 1978, and Culture and Imperialism, published in 1993, both of which made major contributions to the field of cultural and postcolonial studies. The Edward W. Said Memorial Lecture, organized by the Society of Fellows and Heyman Center for the Humanities, pays tribute to University Professor Said by bringing to Columbia speakers who embody his beliefs and the legacy of his work.

 

Co-presented by The Society of Fellows and Heyman Center for the Humanities, Department of English and Comparative Literature, the Center for Palestine Studies, and Barenboim-Said Foundation (USA).



1 SEPTEMBER, 2022

US Tour of the West-Eastern Divan Ensemble


The West-Eastern Divan Ensemble is embarking on a tour across the United States. The ensemble led by Michael Barenboim will perform a wide-ranging program from different styles and eras, which features chamber music works by Dvořák, Attahir, Hindemith, Mendelssohn, Ravel, Enescu, Widmann, or Spohr. 


  • Wed, 22 February: 92NY, New York City, NY
  • Fri, 24 February: Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, Troy, NY
  • Sun, 26 February: Baldwin Auditorium, Durham, NC 
  • Tue, 28 February: UGA Performing Arts Center, Athens, GA
  • Thu, 2 March: Cherry Logan Emerson Concert Hall, Atlanta, GA
  • Sat, 4 March: Adrienne Arsht Center For The Performing Arts Of Miami, Miami, FL
  • Wed, 8 March: Segerstrom Center for the Arts, Costa Mesa, CA
  • Fri, 10 March: Mondavi Center, Davis, CA 
  • Sun, 12 March: California Center For The Arts, Escondido, CA
  • Tue, 14 March: Colburn School Zipper Hall, Los Angeles, CA

The musicians taking part in this tour of the West-Eastern Divan Ensemble will be: Michael Barenboim Mohamed Hiber, David Strongin, Samir Obaido (violins), Miriam Manasherov, Sindy Mohamed (violas), Astrig Siranossian and Assif Binness (cellos).

These performances will be the Ensemble's second tour of the United States, following its initial tour in the winter of 2020, just before the start of the pandemic. The Ensemble hit the road again this year, performing to great acclaim in Europe in the autumn.


10 OCTOBER, 2022

Daniel Barenboim awarded 2022 Empress Theophano Prize


The third Empress Theophano Prize is focused on Art in intercultural dialogue, and is awarded to the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra co-founder Daniel Barenboim.


Maestro Daniel Barenboim stated, “It is an honour for me to receive this award on behalf of the musicians of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, since it is they who, through their participation in the orchestra, set an example of openness, dialogue and a strong will to listen to the narrative of the “other”. […] The “Divan” musicians show outstanding courage and vision by coming together every year to tirelessly send out a call for dialogue and mutual understanding. It is in this spirit that I am personally very grateful for the recognition of our work through such a symbolic prize as the Empress Theophano Award”.


The Award Ceremony will take place on Tuesday 11 October 2022 in Thessaloniki, at the monument of the Rotunda, a symbol of multiculturalism and the intersection of peoples. Η.Ε. the President of the Hellenic Republic Ms Katerina Sakellaropoulou and the Prime Minister of Greece, Kyriakos Mitsotakis will honour the event with their presence and they will address a greeting. 


The West-Eastern Divan Ensemble with Michael Barenboim will attend and perform at the ceremony.


FOR TRANSLATION IN GREEK HERE

FIND THE PROGRAMME OF THE EVENT HERE




Following the themes of Education and Science for the Common Good, and the awarding of the prize to the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen for the ERASMUS student exchange programme (2020), and the pair of scientists who developed the first vaccine against the novel coronavirus, Dr Uğur Şahin and Dr Özlem Türeci (2021), this year’s prize aims to highlight the role of Art in intercultural dialogue, in the figure of a legend of music and a great thinker of political and human collaboration, Daniel Barenboim.