West-Eastern Divan Orchestra

The West-Eastern Divan Orchestra was founded in 1999 by Daniel Barenboim and the Palestinian literary scholar Edward Said. At its core is the vision of a peaceful coexistence of cultures — a guiding principle summed up in its motto: “Equal in Music.” The orchestra — composed in equal parts of young musicians from Israel and Arab countries, along with several members from Spain, Turkey, and Iran — prepares its programs in intensive working phases and subsequently presents these on international concert tours. The West-Eastern Divan Orchestra has performed at venues including the Berlin Philharmonie, the Vienna Musikverein, Teatro alla Scala in Milan, Salle Pleyel in Paris, New York’s Carnegie Hall, the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, and the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, as well as in Rabat, Ramallah, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi. Most recently, in the spring of 2025, the orchestra toured with Zubin Mehta, performing in the Chinese metropolises of Beijing, Suzhou, Shenzhen, and Guangzhou, as well as in Vienna, Geneva, and Budapest. During the summer season, the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra appeared in Bremen, at the Waldbühne in Berlin, at the Schleswig-Holstein and Rheingau Music Festivals, as well as at the Salzburg Festival. Numerous CDs and DVDs, along with Paul Smaczny’s film Knowledge Is the Beginning, document the work of the orchestra, which was designated a UN Global Advocate for Cultural Understanding in 2016. The West-Eastern Divan Orchestra is also affiliated with the Barenboim-Said Academy, a state-recognized institution of higher education for music and the humanities.

Lucerne Festival debut on 21 August 2007, when Daniel Barenboim led a program of works by Beethoven, Schoenberg, and Tchaikovsky.

Further Information: www.west-eastern-divan.org

June 2025