MILAN – Italian conductor Riccardo Muti plans to visit Syrian musicians living in the huge Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan, on the sidelines of his annual Roads of Friendship concert series, which aims to build bridges with music and help those affected by the war.
Muti will conduct Italian and Jordanian musicians in concerts taking place on July 9th at ancient Roman amphitheaters in Jerash, Jordan and July 11th at the archaeological site of Pompeii as part of the 27th “Roads of Friendship” concert series.
The concerts will pay tribute to the “generosity of the Jordanian people” for welcoming millions of Syrian refugees fleeing civil war in the neighboring country, the Ravenna Festival announced on Thursday.
During her stay in Jordan, Muti plans to visit Zaatari camp, a symbol of Syria’s longstanding refugee situation and home to some 80,000 refugees, almost 11 years after it was established near the Syrian border.
He and a delegation from the Ravenna Festival will meet with musicians from the Syrian diaspora and will bring musical instruments as gifts.
This year’s Roads of Friendship concert series begins July 7th in Ravenna and features the Luigi Cherubini Youth Orchestra founded by Muti, the Cremona Ancient Choir and Jordanian musicians.
The series started in Sarajevo in 1997, just two years after the end of the Bosnian civil war.
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