Note to Correspondents

CONCERT IN HONOUR OF SECRETARY-GENERAL KOFI ANNAN

 

TO TAKE PLACE ON MONDAY, 18 DECEMBER

Daniel Barenboim to Conduct West-Eastern Divan Orchestra in General Assembly Hall

The renowned pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim will conduct the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra on Monday, 18 December 2006, at 6:45 p.m. in the General Assembly Hall.  The concert, sponsored by the Government of Spain and promoted by the Barenboim-Said Foundation, will be held in honour of Secretary-General Kofi Annan and in support of the Alliance of Civilizations initiative.

The West-Eastern Divan was conceived in 1999, by Mr. Barenboim and the late scholar and writer Edward Said, as a workshop for young musicians from Israel and various countries of the Middle East.  The workshop was finally established in 2002 in Seville, Spain, under the institutional and financial support of the Junta de Andalucia (Andalusian Regional Government).  The orchestra aims to combine musical study with the sharing of knowledge and comprehension between peoples who have known hostility.

So far, the West-Eastern Divan has performed in concert halls in Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States and Uruguay.  In August 2003, the Orchestra played for the first time in an Arab country with a concert in Rabat, Morocco, and in 2005 performed in the Middle East for the very first time with a concert in Ramallah.  The Barenboim-Said Foundation, founded in 2004, aims to promote peace, dialogue and reconciliation, primarily through music.

On 18 December, under the baton of Maestro Barenboim, the West-Eastern Divan will play two orchestral compositions, Sinfonia concertante for oboe, clarinet, bassoon, horn and orchestra in E-flat major, K.297bby Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 68 by Johannes Brahms.

In addition to the concert, the Government of Spain is sponsoring an exhibition entitled “An Encounter of Civilizations:  Ibn Khaldun”, which is on display until 17 January 2007 in the Main Gallery of the General Assembly Visitors Lobby.  The exhibit explores the life and work of Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406), as well as the political, economic and social framework existing in the 14^th century between East and West, and between Europe and the Arabic-Maghribian world linked by the Mediterranean Sea.

Tickets to the concert will be made available to United Nations staff members through the Staff Committee.  United Nations accredited correspondents can obtain tickets through the Media Accreditation and Liaison Unit in Room S-0250A.

For further information please contact Mr. Vikram Sura, Associate Information Officer, Department of Public Information at sura@un.org

* *** *

For information media • not an official record