What is the sound of pure joy? Winner of the 2018 Shimon Peres Prize, the Caravan Orchestra is a beacon of hope and ecstatic celebration for the world. 30-45 young musicians from Europe and Israel dig deeply into their own cultural roots to reveal astonishingly fertile common ground shared by European, Yiddish, Arabic and other Middle Eastern musical traditions. Weaving together composition and improvisation under the brilliant leadership of Ilya Shneyveys (Riga/Berlin/New York), Jeryes Murkus Ballan (Nazareth/Haifa), Sarah Myerson (New York) and Luna Abu Nassar (Tel Aviv), the Caravan Orchestra & Choir weds lush orchestral and choral sounds with irresistible dance grooves and jaw-dropping improvised solos. With 16 musicians, the smaller Caravan Chamber Orchestra is just as exciting as its “big brother” but more affordable for many venues.
An inspiring example to all of us that young people making intercultural music together can transcend even the most polarized political conflicts. 

The Caravan Orchestra & Chamber Orchestra is an international youth project developed by the Other Music Academy/Yiddish Summer Weimar in partnership with the Department of Music of the University of Haifa (Israel) and the University of Music FRANZ LISZT Weimar (Germany).