FEBRUARY 20 • 2020 | 41

Arts&Life

music

Bridging 
the Divide

Michael Barenboim builds on his parents’
 
legacy as musical director of the
West-Eastern Divan Ensemble. 

SUZANNE CHESSLER CONTRIBUTING WRITER

M

usic can go way 
beyond mere cul-
tural enjoyment; it 
can build cross-cultural con-
nections. Violinist Michael 
 
Barenboim’
s parents serve as 
role models for that idea. 
Twenty years ago, his father, 
Israeli conductor and pianist 
Daniel Barenboim, started the 
West-Eastern Divan Orchestra 
with Palestinian academic 
Edward Said. The two friends 
brought together musicians 
from across the Middle East for 
performances and opportuni-
ties to get to know one another 
across political divides.
At nearly the same time, 
his mother, pianist Elena 
Bashkirova, started the annu-
al Jerusalem International 
Chamber Music Festival to 
spotlight performers from 
different countries. She later 
extended that idea with the 

Intonations festival at the 
Jewish Museum Berlin, which 
also brings together musicians 
from various international 
orchestras.
The 35-year-old Michael 
Barenboim supports his par-
ents’
 initiatives through his own 

performances. He is the music 
director of the West-Eastern 
Divan Ensemble, leading the 
chamber group of orchestra 
musicians as they launch their 
first tour as a string octet. 
The ensemble will appear 
Wednesday, Feb. 26, at the 

Rackham Auditorium in Ann 
Arbor as presented by the 
University Musical Society. 
The varied program includes 
works by Brahms, Tartini, 
Mendelssohn and Benjamin 
Attahir, a French Lebanese 
composer. 
“I think [this program] gives 
quite a nice overview because 
it has a nice arc of string piec-
es over many centuries,
” said 
Barenboim, whose selection 
choices, legendary works and 
a newly commissioned piece 
continue family sensibilities of 
combining cultures and looking 
ahead.
“The Attahir piece, ‘
Jawb
(meaning ‘
Crossing’
) for String 
Quartet,
’
 is very different and 
constantly developed. It has 
quite an interesting structure by 
going forward, never back.
”
Barenboim, who teaches 
violin and chamber music at 

TOP: West-Eastern Divan Ensemble Music Director Michael Barenboim. ABOVE: 
Members of the West-Eastern Divan Ensemble, with musical director Michael 
Barenboim, center.

MARCUS HÖHN

details
The West-Eastern Divan Ensemble will perform at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 
26, at the Rackham Auditorium, 915 E. Washington, Ann Arbor. General tick-
ets start at $30 with student discounts available. (734) 764-2538. ums.org.

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