Text by Sohrab Saadat Ladjevardi

The Argentine-borne Israeli Daniel Barenboim is something special in the world of western classical music: he uses music as a platform to unite opposing parties. He isn’t afraid of performing or conducting aesthetically and politically controversial composers, such as Richard Wagner, Arnold Schoenberg and others. For example in 2001 he did something unbelievable by conducting Wagner in Israel. I couldn’t believe it when I heard about it. By many Jews he was hated for that, but he didn’t care.

He is not just a musician, conductor, educator, but also a musical activist. He has his own political views and is not afraid to express them in his music and choice of music materials. He supports the Palestinian rights and is an outspoken critic of Israel’s right wing governments. He is against the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories.

In 1999 the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra was founded by Barenboim and the Palestinian-American intellectual Edward Said. The idea was to bring a group of young classical musicians together every summer from Israel, Iran, the Palestinian territories, and European and Arab countries to demonstrate that music can unite musicians from opposing countries to collaborate peacefully. This orchestra’s purpose is to promote mutual reflection and understanding.