This past weekend, I had the opportunity to witness an extraordinary program at Lincoln Center in New York City. This program illustrated how having a commonality in music and the shared experience of performing music can act as a bridge across differing cultures and political orientations. The Lincoln Center program was focused on an effort that has been going on to build understanding across Israeli and Palestinian cultures through the vehicle of a joint Israeli-Palestinian youth orchestra. During the movie, I felt that I was immersed in the experience along with all of the participants in the orchestra.
The program at Lincoln Center was comprised of a number of components. There was a lecture given by Karen Armstrong who is an author on religious culture and myths. She spoke about the role of myth in Judaism, Christianity and Islam - myth that reaches deep into the psyche. She mentioned how artists in our time are the authors of a new mythology. She also spoke about compassion which she defines as: knowledge gained by feeling with the other and making room for the other in your mind.
The core of the evening was a movie entitled "Knowledge Is The Beginning" by Paul Smaczny. This movie focuses on the efforts of Israeli conductor and pianist Daniel Barenboim and the late Palestinian-American writer and professor at Columbia University, Edward Said to found an orchestra in 1999 comprised of Israeli and Palestinian youth. The movie was introduced by Mariam Said, the widow of Edward Said and Ara Guzelimin, the Provost and Dean of the Julliard School of Music.
The orchestra which is called the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra started out based in Weimar, Germany and then moved to Sevilla, Spain. The thesis underlying the creation of the orchestra is that the experience of playing together in the orchestra can in time lead to knowledge and understanding of the other by the participating musicians and the debunking of the societal myths that each maintains of the other.
Edward Said was a brilliant writer and thinker and his articulate comments throughout the movie are inspiring. Daniel Barenboim aside from being a superb musician also is eloquent as to the reasons behind the creation of the orchestra. Maestro Barenboim conducts the orchestra and along with several other music teachers who are a part of the program provide musical guidance to the participants. As part of the experience in the annual summer school music program, both Said and Barenboim lead discussions with the young musicians that support gaining knowledge of the other. While in Germany, the young musicians visited the nearby Buchenwald Concentration Camp.
Professor Said spoke about how the orchestra counteracts the stereotype that Arab Middle Eastern cultures cannot produce good musicians. The recruitment efforts for the orchestra identified many talented musicians in the Arab countries of the Middle East - far more than could be included in the orchestra. Over a period of several years, one witnesses how these talented musicians - Syrians, Egyptians, Jordanians, Lebanese and Palestinians along with their Israeli counterparts develop their musical skills. One example is the young pianist Karim who started in the orchestra as a ten year old. The young musicians grapple in their time together with the stereotypes, fears and lack of knowledge of the others. The orchestra is composed of all of these nationalities as well as some representatives from Spain. Throughout the movie, the musicians themselves articulate the experience of playing together in this orchestra and learning from each other.
The movie focuses on the orchestra over its first five or six years of existence and its concert tours throughout Europe. The movie highlights the difficulties encountered in having the orchestra play in the home countries of its participants. One of the great goals for the orchestra was to be able to play in Ramallah in the Palestinian territories. The movie describes the many challenges involved in finally being able to do this. The performance in Ramallah does take place. It required that all of the musicians be provided with Spanish passports. The Arab musicians had to travel through Jordan and the Israelis through Israel. The amazingly poignant end of the movie focuses on the concert that did occur in Ramallah.
Throughout the film, one is fortunate to hear the orchestra play a number of works by Tchaikovsky, Schumann, Beethoven and Debussy.
I have an increased understanding from this program how the artists involved with this orchestra are developing a new myth - which exists on a cognitive, psychological, emotional and artistic level that acts as a different narrative from those existing in their various home cultures.
Barenboim and Said were the closest of friends over many years and spoke daily. Their ongoing conversations are to some extent captured in their joint book, "Parallels and Paradoxes: Explorations in Music and Society."
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