A message from the Executive Director

Dear Friends,

You are invited to join the Silk Road Project’s 10th-anniversary celebrations taking place from October 2008 through September 2010, with performances and educational activities across three continents. We will be introducing longtime friends and new audiences to our innovative programs and, of course, to new music commissioned just for the Silk Road Ensemble.

In September, musicians and composers from North America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East will gather for a week of workshops at Tanglewood to develop five newly commissioned pieces. This unique collaboration encourages a beautiful and powerful sharing of cultures, one that requires talent and trust in equal proportion. Hearing the new music for the first time is one of the most exciting aspects of our work here at the Silk Road Project.

As with many creative endeavors, there is a fair bit of mystery in the process. Some commissions emerge from conversations with composers whose work reflects the multicultural reality of contemporary life. Others begin when two or three Ensemble members share music from their diverse traditions. During our workshops, composers have the chance to test new approaches with the range of instruments unique to the Silk Road Ensemble.

Since the Silk Road Project’s inception, our commissioning program has given rise to more than 60 new musical works from composers and arrangers from 17 countries, including China, Azerbaijan, Korea, India, Lebanon, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Iran, Uzbekistan, Armenia and the United States. This year we are drawing on the talents of Gabriela Lena Frank, Rabih Abou-Khalil and Giovanni Sollima, as well as Ensemble composers and arrangers Sandeep Das, Siamak Aghaei and Colin Jacobsen.

In the coming months we will offer limited opportunities to donors interested in commissioning music for us. If you are interested in experiencing our new works in process, please feel free to join Yo-Yo and the Silk Road Ensemble at Tanglewood’s Ozawa Hall on September 15, 2008, to watch the open rehearsal of our new pieces.

I have long felt that some emotions simply cannot be communicated. Witnessing the commissioning process firsthand has convinced me that music may be one of the few ways we can truly express the seemingly inexpressible.

Warm regards,
Laura Freid