Music Diplomacy from Montenegro

FEMME Foundation which aims to strengthen the position of women in Montenegro, has embarked on one of the most innovative projects in the field of culture and heritage in Montenegro: to find forgotten compositions of European artists in the archives of the National Museum of Montenegro.

Peace through Music

In 1999, Jewish conductor Daniel Barenboim and an English scholar from Palestine founded the ‘Divan Orchestra.’ This orchestra includes teenagers from countries in the Middle East such as Israel and Palestine, where the relationship is intense, as well as Syria and Iran.

Taking an intermission

In my second year as a violin student at the Curtis Institute of Music, my right arm started going numb from my elbow to my fingertips on a fairly regular basis. It was sort of like how your limbs feel right before they fall asleep: not full-on pins and needles, but a dull, hot emptiness, like there was no blood to keep that piece of me alive and vibrant.

Finding refuge in music

In the spring of 2017, I was looking through my family’s security box for my social security card. I came across a document from 1988 signed by the United Nations High Commissioner of Refugees; it had my family’s last name on it. Puzzled, I approached my parents. What on earth was my family doing with the UNHCR? “You should probably sit down for this,” said my father.