UNRWA’s 60th anniversary: Marcel Khalife in Concert for Peace and Humanity -UNRWA press briefing

Marcel Khalife and the El-Mayadine Ensemble, a Concert for Peace and Humanity

On the 30^th of June Lebanese composer Marcel Khalife and the Al-Mayadine ensemble will be taking part in a concert in Vienna as part of UNRWA’s 60^th anniversary events.

Marcel Khalife is a world renowned composer, singer and oud player. His works commonly combine traditional Arabic music with western elements. Some of his best known works are based on the poetry of the great contemporary poet Mahmoud Darwish. Through his works he seeks to renew Arabic song, to break its stereotypes, and to advance the culture of the society that surrounds it. In 1999 he was awarded the Palestine award for music. In turn, he contributed the financial portion of the award to the National Conservatory of Music at Birzeit University. In 2005 he was named a UNESCO Artist for Peace for his artistic achievement and humanitarian contributions.

The Al Mayadeen Ensemble was formed in 1976. The Al-Mayadine Ensemble reflects the character of Marcel Khalifé’s world music, the musicians come from Arabic Countries, Australia, Macedonia, France, the USA and Austria.

The concert will be a unique event with a varied programme, featuring duets between Marcel Khalife, and artists such as the Koehne quartet and Peter Herbert, and a number of new compositions.

The major sponsor of the event is OFID (the OPEC Fund for International Development), which has its headquarters in Vienna. The concert is held under the patronage of H.E. Federal President Dr. Heinz Fischer and H. E. UN-Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who will address the audience of this unique evening through a video message.

Concert Flyer

For more information on the concert please go to
www.marcel-in-vienna.com

For tickets please go to www.oeticket.com