Believing in hope as a means of salvation from the machine of destruction that is destroying the region, and in music as a message of peace in times of adversity, a press conference was held on Saturday at the “Beirut Yacht Club” to mark the launch of the sixteenth edition of the “Beirut Chants” series from November 30 to December 23. In the presence of an elite group of ambassadors, activists, and a high-level media and political crowd.
The conference opened with a speech by the festival’s founder, Micheline Abi Samra, commenting on the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip, sympathizing with the Palestinian people in their plight, saying: “Our hearts are filled with sadness and fear, and our eyes are watching, every day, what our humanity and the values we grew up with and learned to sanctify no longer recognize.” It was not easy to organize and launch the sixteenth edition of “Beirut Sings,” in light of the brutality, killing, destruction, and violence we are witnessing that is shaking all the pure people of the world. “But… what if Beirut does not sing?” Are our people in the beloved south exposed to the horrors of war? What if music silenced the language of humanity? How can the birth of Jesus be without us sharing love, hope, and hope?
She continues: “Today, music remains our refuge more than ever before, and prayer remains a reminder of our humanity, of our values, of our feeling with the other, of our feeling of his weakness and healing of his wounds,” concluding her speech by saying: “Here are the roses, O Mary… Here are the roses, O Gaza… To you. Roses, Beirut.
In turn, the artistic director of the festival, Father Tawfiq Maatouq, said: “A few days away from the festival dearest to our hearts, which we used to be an occasion for joy and the resurrection of the Lebanese phoenix from time immemorial, the festival of love, harmony, and victory for the will to life and light, we stand with our arms folded in the face of the horrors humanity is witnessing, repeating our prayers for it to spread.” Peace triumphs over the will to kill, and for Beirut, the beacon of rights and the capital of the arts, to shine again like a bright and pure sun as it always is.” He added: “I welcome you all to the new season of our music festival, hoping that its program, which is rich in content and diverse in cultures, will answer your expectations from “Beirut Taranam.”
Concert programme
The capital’s ancient churches and market squares host the classic music and religious hymns of “Beirut Sings.” The program opens with “Glory Mass” by Giacomo Puccini, and includes a performance of Beethoven’s symphonic piece “Fantasia Chorus,” concluding with a Christmas evening with composer Osama Rahbani and singer Heba Tawji. Among the prominent musicians hosted by this event are the young Spanish clarinetist Pablo Bragan, the Czech cellist Michal Kanka, the Swiss violinist Ylva Egos (16 years old), and a number of local artists, most notably Abeer Nehme, Carole Samaha and Guy Manoukian, in addition to young opera singers, well-known musicians and choirs. University, school and children’s choirs.
