The Barenboim-Said Akademie
The Barenboim-Said Akademie, a new music academy in Berlin, is starting operations.
Yamen Saadi from Nazareth is 19 years old and plays the violin. 26-year-old Shira Majoni is from Israel; her instrument is the viola. The two musicians often play next to each other during performances, and will soon be sitting next to each other for lectures on general studies at the Academy. The Barenboim-Said Akademie in Berlin will begin operations on 17 October 2016. The Academy combines musical training with an academic education for gifted Arab and Israeli musicians. To begin with there will be 30 students in the first semester of the three-year training programme; later, up to 90 musicians will be able to study here.
Video: The Federal Foreign Office’s Open House Day 2016 with Yamen and Shira
Musician Shira Majoni describes the concept as follows: “We have courses in the fine arts such as music theory and harmony, but also in philosophy, literature and history. The fact that we will all study here together is a concept for the future.“ In 1999, Daniel Barenboim, Musical Director of the Berlin State Opera and Academy President, and the American-Palestinian literary scholar Edward W. Said developed the idea of overcoming borders by making music together, and founded the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra. They founded an ensemble made up of an equal number of young Israeli and Arab musicians, which, in the meantime, has earned an excellent reputation thanks to numerous concerts all over the world. The establishment of the Barenboim-Said Akademie in 2012 has raised the project to a new level.
Ground-breaking reconciliation project
Germany’s Federal Government and private sponsors are sharing the costs of building the Academy, 33.7 million euros. Not only rehearsal and seminar rooms but also a 620-seat chamber music hall are being built on the former site of the Berlin State Opera’s former depot for stage sets. 20 million euros, as well as funds for day-to-day running costs, come from the budget of the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media, Monika Grütters.
“Peace is possible“
“Peaceful coexistence between the cultures in the Middle East based on mutual respect now seems more utopian than ever,“ says Minister of State Grütters, “which makes the vision of this ground-breaking cultural reconciliation project all the more bold – a project here in Berlin, in a protected location far from everyday crises and war, to encourage young people to become ambassadors of the idea that peace is possible.“ Her government’s sponsorship can “certainly be also understood as a contribution by the Federal Republic of Germany to the peace process in the Middle East.“ The Federal Foreign Office is supporting the project with four million euros for scholarships and for building up the practical academic structure.
The first semester at the Barenboim-Said Akademie begins on 17 October 2016
