In Monday’s (2/13) Fayetteville Observer (North Carolina), Brian Dukes writes, “For Maestro Fouad Fakhouri, music is a bridge between cultures. And in the case of an upcoming concert, this bridge measures just over 6,100 miles. Several members of the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra will travel to Amman, Jordan, on Thursday. There, they will conduct children’s musical classes at the Amman National Music Conservatory, as well as perform with the Amman Symphony Orchestra at the Al-Hussein Cultural Center. Fakhouri’s father is the director of the Amman National Music Conservatory. … The trip is funded through a grant program with the U.S. State Department. Christine Kastner, president and CEO of the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra, said the grant is paying for the expenses of nine orchestra musicians and Fakhouri, but an additional 11 musicians are paying their own way to take part in the unique experience. ‘We’ll be able to build common ground between us and these children through classical music, and that’s one of the missions of our symphony—educational outreach,’ said Kastner. … Amman audiences will certainly recognize the selections performed by the mix of the two symphonies, Fakhouri said, noting that one concert, to be held Feb. 22, will feature Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 1, Stravinsky’s ‘Firebird’ Suite and Verdi’s overture from the ‘Force of Destiny’ opera.”
Posted February 14, 2012
