Our Music Is a Statement for Peace
January 27, 2015
by Bruce Ridge, Chairman of ICSOM and Member of Local 500 (Raleigh, NC)
On January 7, the world was once again shocked by a despicable act of terrorism, this time on the streets of Paris. And also again, the world turned to music to respond to and attempt to recover from the scenes of hatred, even though it is impossible to make sense of such heinous acts.
In London, 150 musicians gathered to perform Samuel Barber’s “Adagio for Strings” in memory of the victims of the attacks in Paris. In New York, the music director of the New York Philharmonic, Alan Gilbert, dedicated a concert to the victims of the attack and to the “fundamental principle of freedom of speech.” “For this first concert of 2015, we were hoping to present a program of joyous music that would be possible to enjoy without thinking about the difficulties and troubles in the world,” he said. “Unfortunately, that is just not possible.” Read more here http://internationalmusician.org/our-music-is-a-statement-for-peace/