Cornell Middle Eastern and Mediterranean Music Ensemble
The Cornell Middle Eastern and Mediterranean Music Ensemble (formerly the Cornell Middle Eastern Music Ensemble) is affiliated with the Mediterranean Initiative. A one-credit course offered each semester by the Music Department (MUSIC 431–432[3614], also NES 447–448[4947–4948]), the ensemble is presently led by Atakan Sari with faculty advisors Gail Holst-Warhaft and Martin Hatch. The purpose of the ensemble is not only to teach and perform vocal and instrumental music from countries such as Turkey, Iran, Egypt, Greece and Lebanon, but to stress the interrelation of music with the broader cultural, political, religious and social life of the region. The ensemble gives two concerts per year on the campus and performs regularly on other occasions off and on campus. Musicians from New York, Boston and other centers are regularly invited to give master classes on a particular instrument or musical style, and members of the ensemble visit schools and classes to demonstrate the music or accompany dance performances. Music has always been a means of bridging cultural differences and the ensemble stresses the common elements that unite the music of the Middle East and Mediterranean.