Credits:

Tatiana Primark-Khpury

Description:

Lebanon has long been a meeting place of East and West, where Western culture arrived from the sea and Eastern culture from the mountainous regions. The music nurtured here is truly unique, preserving the traditions of Middle Eastern culture while also incorporating influences from Western music stemming from the countrys ties to France, which occupied Lebanon in the early 20th century. Sukkars Variations, composed in 1947, features a classical style reminiscent of Beethovens works and can be considered a landmark piece marking the beginning of Western music in Lebanon. Bazs Esquisses, written shortly thereafter, has a more folk-song-like quality and is a collection of pieces featuring intriguing, distinctive melodies. This series of works, which grows increasingly unique as the years progress, is performed by Primak-Foley, a female pianist originally from Ukraine who, as of 2018, res