63minutes conversation between Edward Said and Daniel Barenboim in Weimar (Germany), 1999 (in two parts).
Watch the first part:    • Conversation between Edward Said and ...  

WestEastern Divan Orchestra

The use of the words "WestEastern Divan" refers to a collection of poems by Goethe. As its founders once said, "The reason we named the orchestra this way stems from the fact that Goethe was one of the first Germans to be truly interested in other countries he started learning Arabic when he was over sixty."
The idea of the WestEastern Divan was conceived in 1998 in the minds of two artists and intellectuals the Israeli Daniel Barenboim, and the Palestinian Edward Said. They decided to create a workshop for young musicians from Israel and various countries of the Middle East with the aim of combining musical study and development with the sharing of knowledge and comprehension between people from cultures that traditionally have been rivals. In this workshop, young musicians build upon their musical knowledge while living sidebyside with people from countries that may be engaged in conflict with their own. The WestEastern Divan is not only a musical project, it is also a forum for dialogue and reflection on the PalestinianIsraeli problem. Through the crosscultural contacts made by the artists, the project could have an important role in overcoming political and cultural differences between the countries represented in the workshop. In this model, an orchestra serves as a good example of democracy and civilized living.
An equal number of Israeli and Arab musicians provide the base of the orchestra. They are joined by a considerable number of Andalusian players. An additional thirty students from Spain and Palestine attend the workshop as observers. Every year the Divan grants scholarships to particularly talented musicians to study in Europe or the USA. Some of the recipients of these scholarships now hold positions with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, the Damascus Symphony Orchestra and the Cairo Opera, among others.
The WestEastern Divan takes place during several weeks each summer in Andalusia. With an intensive work plan each session lasting an entire day and combining different activities the young artists develop their musical abilities within a peaceful and fitting environment. They also discuss different topics and offer different points of view of the ArabIsraeli conflict. This is then followed by a tour. Since 1999 the orchestra has performed in Germany, Spain, France, the United Kingdom, Switzerland and the United States. In August 2003 the orchestra played for the first time in an Arab country with a concert in Rabat, Morocco.
While music will obviously not solve the ArabIsraeli conflict, it does play a role in bringing people together and allowing them to get to know one another. The only political aspect that permeates the workshop is the understanding that there is no military solution.
The project, led by Barenboim and the late Said, is admired throughout the world due to the fact that it combines a love for music with the necessity for a better understanding among Mediterranean cultures. This project has consistently proved that music is a useful way to break down barriers that were, up until now, considered insurmountable. lt suggests that bridges can be built that encourage people to get closer, showing that it is possible for people from different backgrounds to coexist peacefully much in the same way that these young musicians will share scores, rooms, dining halls and, above all, a passion for music.

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