A rare meeting of two legends: Daniel Barenboim and Yo-Yo Ma have shaped musical history over the past half-century. But there is more that binds them. Both regard music as the most powerful path to mutual understanding and have long been committed to intercultural dialogue. With his Silk Road Project, Yo-Yo Ma built a bridge from Asia to the West and continues to transcend boundaries between genres and cultures in his latest projects in order to foster social cohesion. Since 1999 Barenboim has kept the vision of reconciliation alive through the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, made up largely of Israeli, Palestinian, and Arab musicians — a vision that resonates all the more in our conflict-ridden time. Their joint concert in Lucerne naturally also turns toward America: Antonín Dvořák wrote his melody-rich Cello Concerto in the United States, and some listeners even hear an echo of the African American spiritual Go, Tell It on the Mountain in the lyrical second theme of the opening movement. After intermission we return to Europe, the cradle of classical music: Mendelssohn’s Italian Symphony shines with joy, surges with fiery spirit and brio, and spins into a whirlwind tarantella dance in the finale.
