Lebanon's Baalbeck Festival moves world audience with dramatic online performance
Lebanon's beloved Baalbeck Festival has survived various challenging times, and this year was no exception.
The Baalbeck Festival has long celebrated Lebanon’s remarkable cultural depth and diversity as well as the country’s resilience.
Founded in 1956, the festival has gathered Lebanese and international audiences alike to see classical and innovative artists from Lebanon and worldwide. The festival suspended its activities from 1975 to 1996 due to the civil war, and again during the Israeli war on Lebanon in 2006. Each time, the festival has come back stronger than ever.
This year’s event was the perhaps most impressive response yet to challenging times. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic and an economic crisis, on July 5th, the Lebanese Philharmonic Orchestra played a concert in the spectacular Bacchus Temple at Baalbeck called “The Sound of Resilience.” It featured 150 musicians from Antonine University, Notre Dame University and Qolo Atiqo as well as local Lebanese musicians playing music and symphonies from an international classical repertoire including renowned Lebanese composers.
According to Maestro Harout Fazlian, the concert's artistic director and conductor, “Culture is not a luxury but a necessity.”
