From May 5-15, 2012, I visited Israel on a Birthright Israel trip. These photos show some of the highlights of my trip.
The old city of Tzfat:
On and around a nearby Kibbutz:
Near the northern border with Lebanon:
Solid, granitic, and sardonic music inspired by the Early Modernists.
A musical journey through the history of the Universe, combining contemporary musical language with the drama of the Romantic period.
Passionate, dark, and tender music inspired by feelings associated with old age and death.
https://issuu.com/pianist4486/docs/ezra-donner-a-requiem-3/1
Complex, passionate, and heartfelt setting of three Psalms.
From August 8-16, 2011, I attended the Klasik Keyifler Composers’ Cauldron in Kapadkoya, Turkey. Composers Kamran Ince, Marc Mellits, and Michael Ellison, were in residence, along with many fabulous musicians from Turkey, Europe, and the United States. My new string quartet, was workshopped and performed by Orhan Ahıskal and Beril Sun, violins; Meriç Esen, viola; and Heidi Hoffman, cello, for a full house in Şakir Paşa Medrese, an Ottoman School. It was an amazing time and I was so grateful to be a part of it!
The famous Hagia Sophia:
After sightseeing we went to Taksim to get some fresh air and dinner:
The awesome night life in Istanbul:
A scenic view of the Anatolian side of the city from across the water:
Formerly Ottoman Palaces, these amazing structures are now upscale hotels:
When it began to get dark we hung out at this nice riverside park. I picked up a few postcards at a nearby gift shop:
We ended the night with tea with more new friends, Nil and Tuba (who took the picture):
From August 5-19, 2011, I spent two amazing weeks sightseeing and studying in Turkey. This series of blog posts will hope to share some highlights of this incredible trip.
I arrived at Istanbul Atatürk Airport around noon on Friday. I had to buy a new cell phone after discovering that mine did not work in Turkey, and then spent almost an hour trying to connect to the wireless network in the airport before reaching my friend, Murat. He gave me instructions for how to get to Taksim on the Havas shuttle, and we met at an outdoor cafe, where he had tea and I had a beer (Efes, one of the national brews).
This is the music store where Murat teaches guitar. We went inside and I met the owner–an extremely nice guy.
Turkish coffee with new friends at an outdoor cafe.
The restaurant where Murat and I ate dinner the first night.
This soup is made with lentils. Very nice.
Meatballs with sliced tomatoes. Delicious!
And of course, tea after dinner.
Ezra Donner 