concert Daniel Barenboim conducts Beethoven's Ninth Symphony at the BBC Proms West-Eastern Divan Orchestra

Bringing together Israeli, Palestinian, Middle Eastern, and Spanish musicians in the name of peace and cross-cultural understanding, the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra perfectly embodies one of the most resonant verses of Friedrich von Schiller’s immortal poem Ode to Joy, set to music by Beethoven in 1824: "Alle Menschen werden Brüder ... Seid umschlungen, Millionen!" ("All men become brothers... Be embraced, millions!"). As part of the 2012 BBC Proms, the legendary maestro and his West-Eastern Divan Orchestra brought a historic Beethoven symphonic cycle (the first of its kind since 1942) to a close in London’s magnificent Royal Albert Hall joined by four soloists of the highest caliber: Anna Samuil, Waltraud Meier, Michael König, and René Pape.