The Polyphony Foundation aims to bridge the divide between Arab and Jewish communities in Israel through music and to serve as a worldwide model for cooperation based on cultural exchange, dialogue, and partnership. Through music, students at Polyphony can transcend limiting narratives about "the other" and see the world beyond the boundaries of race, religion, and cultural heritage. Polyphony's exceptional programs have reached over 25,000 children across Israel since 2012, and have developed many young musicians, attracted world-renowned artists, and, most importantly, forged new friendships across cultural lines.
By educating both the performer and the audience in the art of listening and communicating, Polyphony seeks to further the development of a just and dynamic civil society in Israel and to transform the lives of students, families, institutions, and communities by creating opportunities for engagement, dialogue, partnerships, and lasting integration.
The musicians in the Polyphony Quartet represent years of individual study at the Polyphony Conservatory and shared music making in Polyphony’s Youth Orchestra and the Galilee Chamber Orchestra. Under the guidance of Co-Founder and Director, Nabeel Abboud Ashkar, Polyphony’s talented musicians give performances throughout Israel, Europe, and the United States.
The Quartet brings together violinists Yamen Saadi, Anna Siegrich, violist Yuval Yatzkin, and cellist Mahdi Saadi for a performance of western classical music and Jewish and Middle Eastern folk tunes. Following the music, Nabeel Abboud Ashkar will lead the musicians and audience members in a question and answer session.