Barenboim's youth orchestra urges peace with Madrid concert

Acclaimed conductor Daniel Barenboim and his multifaith youth orchestra called for peace in the Middle East during a massive concert in Madrid Thursday night.

Barenboim's West-Eastern Divan Orchestra played Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 and dedicated the evening to the victims of the current conflict between Israel and the militant group Hezbollah.

Thousands of classical music-lovers gathered in Madrid's Plaza Mayor for the event, dubbed Music Against Violence.

Guests included Madrid Mayor Alberto Ruiz-Gallardon and Mariam Said, the widow of late Palestinian activist, writer and scholar Edward Said.

The West-Eastern Divan Orchestra will continue on its annual tour through Sept. 1, with stops including Istanbul, Brussels, Paris, Berlin and Milan.

Foundation aims to unite Jewish, Arab youth

In the 1990s, Said and Barenboim, born in Buenos Aires to parents of Russian Jewish descent, co-founded a foundation to promote music education for and co-operation between young Jewish and Arab musicians.

In 2002, Barenboim and Said jointly received Spain's Prince of Asturias Concord Award for creating the youth orchestra and musical workshops.

Though Said died in 2003, Barenboim has continued to hold annual workshops for and tour with their orchestra, which is made up of young musicians from countries such as Israel, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan andEgypt.

The group, whose members are typically in their late teens and early 20s, and its 2005 concert in the West Bank city of Ramallah have also been the subject of a documentary film by Paul Smaczny.

In addition to his work with the youth orchestra, the award-winning Barenboim also serves as general music director of Berlin's Staatsoper,holds the title conductor-for-life for Berlin's Staatskapelle orchestra and is a principal guest conductor at Milan's La Scala.

In recent years, Barenboim has also organized concerts to pay tribute to the victims of the Madrid and London bombings.