Last week we had a great piece on the Israeli Chamber Project highlighting their mission of using music “to heal and to transcend geographical and cultural boundaries.” This week we have another great example of this: a collaborative musical efforts between Spanish pianist Jose Enrique Bagaria Villazan and Lebanese violinist Claude Chalhoub. Earlier in the month they gave a riveting performance which some say helped to “bring Spain and Lebanon closer together.”
The pair performed four pieces, beginning with “Sonata for Violin and Piano in A major,” one of the best known compositions of Belgian composer Cesar Franck, which he wrote in 1886. Villazan and Chalhoub moved on with a pair of dissonant 20th-century works – Spanish composer Manuel de Falla’s “Fantasia Betica” for piano alone, composed in 1919, and Maurice Ravel’s “Tzigane,” composed in 1924.
The duet’s performances have been featured in several film scores, including Sean Penn’s 2007 film “Into the Wild” and Nadine Labaki’s 2007 feature film debut “Caramel.”
Friday evening’s concert set out to symbolize the close relationship between Lebanon and Spain, with the aim of transcending cultural and language barriers through music.
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These stories are only the most recent examples of music used to break through cultural and geographic barriers. One of the most well-known movements in this vein is Daniel Barenboim’s West Eastern Divan Orchestra. But it’s important to note that there are a great many smaller-scale and unpublicized initiatives from groups and individuals alike working towards bringing people of different cultures and socio-economic backgrounds together. Next time you are practicing your instrument or enjoying a concert, take a moment to reflect on the magnitude of impact your music can have.
Revitalizing classical music – stories in the news this week:
- The San Diego Trio is pushing the boundaries of how accessible we can make classical music
- A local orchestra keeps classical music alive for its community
- Provocative Korean-born violinist Hahn-bin tells classical music fans to “Wake Up!”
- Adult music workshops show that it is never too late to learn and that some dreams can be recaptured
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