The Skies are Weeping
Encyclopedia
The Skies are Weeping is a cantata
by composer Philip Munger
. The cantata memorializes Rachel Corrie
, an American member of the International Solidarity Movement
, who was killed in 2003 by a bulldozer operated by the Israel Defense Forces
when she tried to prevent the demolition of a house in the southern Gaza Strip
during the Second Intifada. The second movement also memorializes British
photography
student and ISM activist Tom Hurndall
, who was shot in the head in the Gaza Strip
by an IDF sniper
on April 11, 2003; Hurndall later died without regaining consciousness after nine months in a coma
.
armoured bulldozer operator who ran amok in the 2002 Jenin incursion
; his proud testimony was cited by the newspaper as the "first absolutely sincere Israeli eyewitness testimony on what actually happened in the Jenin Refugee Camp". "After publication - and in spite of it - the unit to which the man belongs received from the army command an official citation for outstanding service.".
On 27 June 2005, Sergeant Taysir al-Heib was convicted of manslaughter, obstruction of justice, giving false testimony and inducing comrades in his unit to bear false witness. On 11 August 2005, he was sentenced by a military court to 11½ years in prison for manslaughter
, of which he will serve 8 years .
Munger wrote to poets requesting permission for their poems to be used as lyrics for his cantata. When the texts had been selected, he wrote to Rachel Corrie's family asking their permission (which was granted) to proceed. Choosing the texts proved difficult, and four texts originally chosen were ultimately excluded from the work. Said Munger:
It is composed of seven movements for a soprano
soloist
, chamber choir
, and percussion ensemble
. Six of the seven movements have accompanying text. Section one, the choral prelude
, is a rare complete setting of the King James version of Psalm 137
. Section two is a Dance for Tom Hurndall. Section three is a poem, Rachel, written for Corrie by San Francisco poet Phil Goldvarg
on March 18, 2003. Section four is another poem, God the Synecdoche in His Holy Land, written in memory of Rachel Corrie by Alaskan poet Linda McCarriston
. Section five is a recitative
, I Had No Mercy For Anybody, excerpted from the Gush Shalom
translation of Moshe ("Kurdi Bear") Nissim's May 31, 2002 interview ("Jenin, A Soldier's Story") conducted in Hebrew by journalist Tsadok Yeheskeli for Israel's best-selling tabloid newspaper, Yediot Aharonot. Section six is another poem, The Skies Are Weeping, written for Corrie by Sri Lankan poet Thushara Wijeratna. Section seven, Rachel's Words, is excerpted from Corrie's last e-mails to her mother as edited by the composer.
, where Munger teaches. Munger and a local rabbi
(who later described the work as "bordering on anti-Semitic", claiming it "romanticized terrorism") co-chaired a public meeting to address objections from members of the Jewish community and others who believed the cantata was one-sided and unfair to Israel failed to resolve the disagreement. Following the forum, Munger announced that the performance had been "withdrawn for the safety of the student performers" at his request, citing the "orchestrated" hatemails and threats he and other performers had received.
After the meeting, Munger stated in his blog that:
According to Munger "People were shouting, leaving, arguing, interrupting" him as he tried to deliver his prepared statement:
Amanda Coyne from Anchorage Press wrote that Munger told her "even before a forum was held to discuss his work ... hate email was showing up on his computer" and Bishko told, he's been receiving threatening emails and "taking heat".
On April 6, 2004 at 3:52:05 AM, a user claiming to be Dr. Jeff Pezzati sent a threating hatemail to Philip Munger:
According to Bryson, the "onslaught of threats by Pezzati and others proved effective" for Munger, and by Tuesday, April 6 "the threats against student performer increasingly specific prompted notification of UAA security and appropriate administrators". Munger became convinced that "professional educators, no matter how firm their belief in freedom of expression could not risk students to the growing level of insecurity many were enduring", so he decided to cancel the performance of The Skies are Weeping at that time "for the safety of the student performers". Bryson wrote that Munger said two days before the public forum that he talked the situation over with Department of Music chairwoman Karen Strid, who felt the cantata's debut performance April 27 should go ahead as planned; she finally concurred, however, after Munger argued it should be cancelled. Munger further argued that anyone who went into the meeting thinking his "concerns for student safety to be exaggerated or unwarranted, and who also left the meeting feeling the same way, should not be making such safety decisions."
Theatre in London, England. It was performed by soprano Deborah Naomi Fink, pianist Dominic Saunders, the Coro Cervantes Choir and the London Percussion Ensemble directed by Peter Crockford. Fink, a member of the United Kingdom organization Jews for Justice for Palestinians
, also organized the concert; it attracted endorsements from such figures as MIT
linguistics
Professor Noam Chomsky
, British film actress Julie Christie
and the Nobel-prizewinning
English playwright Harold Pinter
.
The two-hour concert also featured the United Kingdom premiere of Singer of Wind and Rain, five Palestinian lyrics for mixed choir set by Gregory Youtz (composed in 2000); music and dance performed by Al-Hurriyya Palestinian Dabka Dance Group, whose members came from Palestine
, Iraq
, Lebanon
and the United Kingdom
; and the Tsivi Sharrett Ensemble, which fuses Yemenite
, Israeli
, and Palestinian songs with jazz. A protest outside the premiere sought to highlight the "other Rachels" – Israeli girls and women who had died in suicide bombings during the Second Intifada – while a counter-protest by "pro-Palestine groups…including Jews Against Zionism" supported the concert. Munger asserted that he isn't "bothered by the protest outside the cantata's premiere", for "they have rights to their opinions just as" he does, and he said "if there are any seats left, I'm going to invite anyone outside to come in and listen. I'll pay for their seats."
Patrons of the concert were Yasmin Alibhai-Brown
, Professor Noam Chomsky, Julie Christie
, Sir Richard Eyre, Moris Farhi
MBE
, Uri Fruchtmann, Jane Manning
OBE, Susie Orbach
, Roger Lloyd Pack
, Dr. Ilan Pappe, Anthony Payne
, John Pilger
, Harold Pinter
CH
, Sir Antony Sher, Professor Avi Shlaim, MP
Clare Short
, Baroness
Jenny Tonge
and Susannah York
.
Supporters included the Corrie Family
, Jocelyn Hurndall
, Afif Safieh
(former Palestinian
General Delegate
to the UK), MP
Jeremy Corbyn
, Jeremy Hardy
, Miriam Karlin
, Miriam Margolyes
OBE, Musicians Against Nuclear Arms, Andy de la Tour
, Frances de la Tour
, Lynne Reid Banks
, Jews for Justice for Palestinians
, Jewish Socialists' Group
, Just Peace UK, the International Solidarity Movement
, Palestine Solidarity Campaign
and the Council for Arab-British Understanding
.
Cantata
A cantata is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir....
by composer Philip Munger
Philip Munger
Philip Munger is an American composer, music educator, political blogger, and environmentalist living in Alaska. He is perhaps best known for "The Skies are Weeping", a seven-movement cantata written in tribute to Rachel Corrie, an American member of the International Solidarity Movement killed in...
. The cantata memorializes Rachel Corrie
Rachel Corrie
Rachel Aliene Corrie was an American member of the International Solidarity Movement . She was killed in the Gaza Strip by an Israel Defence Forces bulldozer when she was standing or kneeling in front of a local Palestinian's home, thus acting as a human shield, attempting to prevent the IDF from...
, an American member of the International Solidarity Movement
International Solidarity Movement
The International Solidarity Movement is an organization focused on assisting the Palestinian cause in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict using nonviolent protests. It was founded in 2001 by Ghassan Andoni, a Palestinian activist; Neta Golan, an Israeli activist; Huwaida Arraf, a...
, who was killed in 2003 by a bulldozer operated by the Israel Defense Forces
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
when she tried to prevent the demolition of a house in the southern Gaza Strip
Gaza Strip
thumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...
during the Second Intifada. The second movement also memorializes British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
photography
Photography
Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
student and ISM activist Tom Hurndall
Tom Hurndall
Thomas "Tom" Hurndall was a British photography student, a volunteer for the International Solidarity Movement , and an activist against the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories. On 11 April 2003, he was shot in the head in the Gaza Strip by an Israel Defense Forces sniper, Taysir Hayb...
, who was shot in the head in the Gaza Strip
Gaza Strip
thumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...
by an IDF sniper
Sniper
A sniper is a marksman who shoots targets from concealed positions or distances exceeding the capabilities of regular personnel. Snipers typically have specialized training and distinct high-precision rifles....
on April 11, 2003; Hurndall later died without regaining consciousness after nine months in a coma
Coma
In medicine, a coma is a state of unconsciousness, lasting more than 6 hours in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to painful stimuli, light or sound, lacks a normal sleep-wake cycle and does not initiate voluntary actions. A person in a state of coma is described as...
.
Rachel Corrie and Tom Hurndall
Moshe Nissim was an IDF D9IDF Caterpillar D9
The Israeli Armored CAT D9 — nicknamed Doobi — is a Caterpillar D9 armored bulldozer that was modified by the Israel Defence Forces, Israeli Military Industries and Israel Aerospace Industries to increase the survivability of the armored bulldozer in hostile environments and enable it...
armoured bulldozer operator who ran amok in the 2002 Jenin incursion
Battle of Jenin
The Battle of Jenin took place in the Jenin refugee camp in the West Bank. Israel Defense Forces entered the camp, and other areas under the administration of the Palestinian Authority, during the Second Intifada, as part of Operation Defensive Shield...
; his proud testimony was cited by the newspaper as the "first absolutely sincere Israeli eyewitness testimony on what actually happened in the Jenin Refugee Camp". "After publication - and in spite of it - the unit to which the man belongs received from the army command an official citation for outstanding service.".
- "I had no mercy for anybody. I would erase anyone with the D-9, ... and I have demolished plenty."
- "I wanted to destroy everything. I begged the officers, over the radio, to let me knock it all down; from top to bottom. To level everything. ... When I was told to bring down a house, I took the opportunity to bring down some more houses."
- "For three days, I just destroyed and destroyed. The whole area. ... I wanted to get to the other houses. To get as many as possible."
- "I didn't see, with my own eyes, people dying under the blade of the D-9. ... But if there were any, I wouldn't care at all. ... If you knocked down a house, you buried 40 or 50 people ... If I am sorry for anything, it is for not tearing the whole camp down."
- "I had lots of satisfaction in Jenin, lots of satisfaction."
- "No one expressed any reservations against doing it. ... Who would dare speak? If anyone would as much as open his mouth, I would have buried him under the D-9."
On 27 June 2005, Sergeant Taysir al-Heib was convicted of manslaughter, obstruction of justice, giving false testimony and inducing comrades in his unit to bear false witness. On 11 August 2005, he was sentenced by a military court to 11½ years in prison for manslaughter
Manslaughter
Manslaughter is a legal term for the killing of a human being, in a manner considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is said to have first been made by the Ancient Athenian lawmaker Dracon in the 7th century BC.The law generally differentiates...
, of which he will serve 8 years .
Composition
In February 2003, Munger began to seek out material for a song cycle for a soprano soloist and the University of Alaska Percussion Ensemble. The United States was preparing for the invasion of Iraq and Munger became attracted to the song cycle convention known as "Songs of Love and War," highlighting the human response to war. He began to research (mainly on the Internet) other composers' approach to the subject while searching for poems for the composition, and learned of Rachel Corrie's death the following month. He later recalled:
"And, within days, three memorial websites for Rachel, two of them entirely spontaneous, showed up. Memorials in many forms poured in. What interested me were the poems and songs coming from all around the globe: School kids and octogenarians, Jewel wannabes and established songwriters, student writers and poet laureates, Jews and Muslims from all continents; Christians, Buddhists, sectarians".
Munger wrote to poets requesting permission for their poems to be used as lyrics for his cantata. When the texts had been selected, he wrote to Rachel Corrie's family asking their permission (which was granted) to proceed. Choosing the texts proved difficult, and four texts originally chosen were ultimately excluded from the work. Said Munger:
"My hope was that the progression of the texts would reflect an arc of hope for peace emerging from a climate of hatred and violence, a climate which produces such meaningless cruelty as the destruction of over 1,000 houses in South Rafah in a hunt for smuggling tunnels which has yielded between five and 60 such tunnels, depending on which source one uses".
It is composed of seven movements for a soprano
Soprano
A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
soloist
Solo (music)
In music, a solo is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung by a single performer...
, chamber choir
Chamber choir
A chamber choir or group of chamber singers is the choral equivalent of a chamber ensemble, using voices instead of instruments. This prestigious choir will usually consist of 20-40 elite and dedicated singers. Several chamber choir formats exist, ranging from barbershop groups to exclusively...
, and percussion ensemble
Percussion ensemble
A percussion ensemble is a musical ensemble consisting of only percussion instruments. Although the term can be used to describe any such group, it commonly refers to groups of classically-trained percussionists performing primarily classical music. Percussion ensembles are most commonly found at...
. Six of the seven movements have accompanying text. Section one, the choral prelude
Prelude (music)
A prelude is a short piece of music, the form of which may vary from piece to piece. The prelude can be thought of as a preface. It may stand on its own or introduce another work...
, is a rare complete setting of the King James version of Psalm 137
Psalm 137
Psalm 137 is one of the best known of the Biblical psalms. Its opening lines, "By the rivers of Babylon..." have been set to music on several occasions....
. Section two is a Dance for Tom Hurndall. Section three is a poem, Rachel, written for Corrie by San Francisco poet Phil Goldvarg
Phil Goldvarg
Philip Michael Goldvarg was an American poet, activist and member of the Zapatista Solidarity Coalition.- Personal life :...
on March 18, 2003. Section four is another poem, God the Synecdoche in His Holy Land, written in memory of Rachel Corrie by Alaskan poet Linda McCarriston
Linda McCarriston
Linda McCarriston, and holding dual citizenship of Ireland and the United States, is a poet and Professor in the Department of Creative Writing and Literature at the University of Alaska Anchorage, teaching Creative Writing and Literary Arts since 1994.-Life:McCarriston had completed her Master of...
. Section five is a recitative
Recitative
Recitative , also known by its Italian name "recitativo" , is a style of delivery in which a singer is allowed to adopt the rhythms of ordinary speech...
, I Had No Mercy For Anybody, excerpted from the Gush Shalom
Gush Shalom
Gush Shalom is an Israeli peace activism group founded and led by former Irgun and Knesset Member and journalist, Uri Avnery, in 1993...
translation of Moshe ("Kurdi Bear") Nissim's May 31, 2002 interview ("Jenin, A Soldier's Story") conducted in Hebrew by journalist Tsadok Yeheskeli for Israel's best-selling tabloid newspaper, Yediot Aharonot. Section six is another poem, The Skies Are Weeping, written for Corrie by Sri Lankan poet Thushara Wijeratna. Section seven, Rachel's Words, is excerpted from Corrie's last e-mails to her mother as edited by the composer.
Planned University of Alaska Anchorage premiere
The work's world premiere was scheduled for April 27, 2004 at the University of Alaska AnchorageUniversity of Alaska Anchorage
The University of Alaska Anchorage is the largest school of the University of Alaska System, with about 16,500 students, about 14,000 of whom attend classes at Goose Lake, its main campus in Anchorage....
, where Munger teaches. Munger and a local rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
(who later described the work as "bordering on anti-Semitic", claiming it "romanticized terrorism") co-chaired a public meeting to address objections from members of the Jewish community and others who believed the cantata was one-sided and unfair to Israel failed to resolve the disagreement. Following the forum, Munger announced that the performance had been "withdrawn for the safety of the student performers" at his request, citing the "orchestrated" hatemails and threats he and other performers had received.
After the meeting, Munger stated in his blog that:
"The low point of the evening, the point at which I finally started to quietly weep and whisper to myself "Oh, dear God!" was when a courageous young Palestinian-American man was shouted down, with one of the shouters yelling something along the lines of "Shut up, you're not even human." Several people then applauded. I observed two high Republicans, a state representative and a former state party treasurer, apparently nodding affirmation."
According to Munger "People were shouting, leaving, arguing, interrupting" him as he tried to deliver his prepared statement:
"Over the past five days local artists preparing for the premiere of "The Skies are Weeping" have been subjected to a growing crescendo of internet virus attacks, hate mail and bizarre religious-political polemics. It appears to be orchestrated. Some of the incoming venom is quite threatening. After consulting with staff here at the University of Alaska Anchorage Department of Music, I have decided that I cannot subject sixteen students, whose names, fortunately, have not been released to anyone, to any possibility of physical harm or to the type of character assassination some of us are already undergoing. Performance of "The Skies are Weeping" at this time and place is withdrawn for the safety of the student performers. This decision has been mine alone, with no pressure whatsoever from the school or university."
Hatemails and cancellation
George Bryson, from the Anchorage Daily News, wrote that Munger told him:
"Almost immediately, ... he was inundated with unsolicited e-mail from outside Alaska, a lot of it hateful - "just threatening, harassing, bizarre ... short of the stuff you'd take to the troopers", however after "some of his student musicians received threatening messages too" that become an issue since "it was one thing to invite problems on himself; it was quite another to inflict them on his students."
Amanda Coyne from Anchorage Press wrote that Munger told her "even before a forum was held to discuss his work ... hate email was showing up on his computer" and Bishko told, he's been receiving threatening emails and "taking heat".
On April 6, 2004 at 3:52:05 AM, a user claiming to be Dr. Jeff Pezzati sent a threating hatemail to Philip Munger:
Hello Philip,
My name is Jeff Pezzati, I am a professor of composition at the University of Southern CaliforniaUniversity of Southern CaliforniaThe University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
. My pieces have won ASCAP, BMIBroadcast Music IncorporatedBroadcast Music, Inc. is one of three United States performing rights organizations, along with ASCAP and SESAC. It collects license fees on behalf of songwriters, composers, and music publishers and distributes them as royalties to those members whose works have been performed...
prizes and the Prix de RomePrix de RomeThe Prix de Rome was a scholarship for arts students, principally of painting, sculpture, and architecture. It was created, initially for painters and sculptors, in 1663 in France during the reign of Louis XIV. It was an annual bursary for promising artists having proved their talents by...
. I have been informed of your anti-Semitic cantata that is to be performed. This will not be tolerated by the American composerComposerA composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
community. The suicide victim "Rachel Corrie," who you are apparently trying to honor in this piece, killed herself for the cause of promoting Arab terrorism and murder against JewsJewsThe Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
. I have discussed this with such colleagues as John CoriglianoJohn CoriglianoJohn Corigliano is an American composer of classical music and a teacher of music. He is a distinguished professor of music at Lehman College in the City University of New York.-Biography:...
, John HarrisonJohn HarrisonJohn Harrison was a self-educated English clockmaker. He invented the marine chronometer, a long-sought device in solving the problem of establishing the East-West position or longitude of a ship at sea, thus revolutionising and extending the possibility of safe long distance sea travel in the Age...
, John AdamsJohn AdamsJohn Adams was an American lawyer, statesman, diplomat and political theorist. A leading champion of independence in 1776, he was the second President of the United States...
, etc. 'We have all agreed that your music is to be banBan (law)A ban is, generally, any decree that prohibits something.Bans are formed for the prohibition of activities within a certain political territory. Some see this as a negative act and others see it as maintaining the "status quo"...
ned from performance in the continental United States. Consider yourself blacklistBlacklistA blacklist is a list or register of entities who, for one reason or another, are being denied a particular privilege, service, mobility, access or recognition. As a verb, to blacklist can mean to deny someone work in a particular field, or to ostracize a person from a certain social circle...
ed.
According to Bryson, the "onslaught of threats by Pezzati and others proved effective" for Munger, and by Tuesday, April 6 "the threats against student performer increasingly specific prompted notification of UAA security and appropriate administrators". Munger became convinced that "professional educators, no matter how firm their belief in freedom of expression could not risk students to the growing level of insecurity many were enduring", so he decided to cancel the performance of The Skies are Weeping at that time "for the safety of the student performers". Bryson wrote that Munger said two days before the public forum that he talked the situation over with Department of Music chairwoman Karen Strid, who felt the cantata's debut performance April 27 should go ahead as planned; she finally concurred, however, after Munger argued it should be cancelled. Munger further argued that anyone who went into the meeting thinking his "concerns for student safety to be exaggerated or unwarranted, and who also left the meeting feeling the same way, should not be making such safety decisions."
World premiere in London
The cantata eventually had its world premiere on November 1, 2005 at the Hackney EmpireHackney Empire
The Hackney Empire is a theatre on Mare Street, in the London Borough of Hackney, built in 1901 as a music hall.-History:Hackney Empire is a grade II* listed building...
Theatre in London, England. It was performed by soprano Deborah Naomi Fink, pianist Dominic Saunders, the Coro Cervantes Choir and the London Percussion Ensemble directed by Peter Crockford. Fink, a member of the United Kingdom organization Jews for Justice for Palestinians
Jews for Justice for Palestinians
Jews for Justice for Palestinians is a pressure group based in the United Kingdom that advocates human and civil rights, and economic and political freedom, for the Palestinian people...
, also organized the concert; it attracted endorsements from such figures as MIT
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
linguistics
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
Professor Noam Chomsky
Noam Chomsky
Avram Noam Chomsky is an American linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, and activist. He is an Institute Professor and Professor in the Department of Linguistics & Philosophy at MIT, where he has worked for over 50 years. Chomsky has been described as the "father of modern linguistics" and...
, British film actress Julie Christie
Julie Christie
Julie Frances Christie is a British actress. Born in British India to English parents, at the age of six Christie moved to England, where she attended boarding school....
and the Nobel-prizewinning
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
English playwright Harold Pinter
Harold Pinter
Harold Pinter, CH, CBE was a Nobel Prize–winning English playwright and screenwriter. One of the most influential modern British dramatists, his writing career spanned more than 50 years. His best-known plays include The Birthday Party , The Homecoming , and Betrayal , each of which he adapted to...
.
The two-hour concert also featured the United Kingdom premiere of Singer of Wind and Rain, five Palestinian lyrics for mixed choir set by Gregory Youtz (composed in 2000); music and dance performed by Al-Hurriyya Palestinian Dabka Dance Group, whose members came from Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
, Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
and the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
; and the Tsivi Sharrett Ensemble, which fuses Yemenite
Culture of Yemen
Due to its unique geographic location and ancient history, Yemen has acquired a very distinctive culture, clos to from its neighbors.-Music:The music of Yemen is primarily known abroad for a series of pan-Arab popular stars and the Yemenite Jews who became musical stars in Israel during the 20th...
, Israeli
Culture of Israel
The culture of Israel developed long before the foundation of the State of Israel in 1948 and combines the heritage of secular and religious lives. Much of the diversity in Israel's culture comes from the diversity of its population...
, and Palestinian songs with jazz. A protest outside the premiere sought to highlight the "other Rachels" – Israeli girls and women who had died in suicide bombings during the Second Intifada – while a counter-protest by "pro-Palestine groups…including Jews Against Zionism" supported the concert. Munger asserted that he isn't "bothered by the protest outside the cantata's premiere", for "they have rights to their opinions just as" he does, and he said "if there are any seats left, I'm going to invite anyone outside to come in and listen. I'll pay for their seats."
Patrons of the concert were Yasmin Alibhai-Brown
Yasmin Alibhai-Brown
Yasmin Alibhai-Brown MBE is a Ugandan-born British journalist and author, who describes herself as a "leftie liberal, anti-racist, feminist, Muslim, part-Pakistani...a very responsible person"...
, Professor Noam Chomsky, Julie Christie
Julie Christie
Julie Frances Christie is a British actress. Born in British India to English parents, at the age of six Christie moved to England, where she attended boarding school....
, Sir Richard Eyre, Moris Farhi
Moris Farhi
Moris Farhi MBE is an author who has been vice-president of International PEN since 2001.-Background:Farhi was born in Ankara, Turkey, in 1935. Farhi received B.A. in Humanities from Robert Academy, Istanbul, in 1954. He came to the UK the same year and trained at The Royal Academy of Dramatic...
MBE
MBE
MBE can stand for:* Mail Boxes Etc.* Management by exception* Master of Bioethics* Master of Bioscience Enterprise* Master of Business Engineering* Master of Business Economics* Mean Biased Error...
, Uri Fruchtmann, Jane Manning
Jane Manning
Jane Manning OBE is an English concert and opera soprano, writer on music, and Visiting Professor at the Royal College of Music. She has been described by one critic as "the irrepressible, incomparable, unstoppable Ms...
OBE, Susie Orbach
Susie Orbach
Susie Orbach is a psychotherapist, psychoanalyst, writer, and social critic from London, UK.-Background:Orbach was born in London, in 1946, and was brought up in Chalk Farm, north London, the child of Jewish parents, British MP Maurice Orbach and an American mother...
, Roger Lloyd Pack
Roger Lloyd Pack
Roger Lloyd-Pack is an English actor known for his roles in the TV shows The Vicar of Dibley, Only Fools and Horses and The Old Guys.-Career:...
, Dr. Ilan Pappe, Anthony Payne
Anthony Payne
Anthony Payne is an English composer, most famous for the work published as Edward Elgar: The Sketches for Symphony No. 3 Elaborated by Anthony Payne...
, John Pilger
John Pilger
John Richard Pilger is an Australian journalist and documentary maker, based in London. He has twice won Britain's Journalist of the Year Award, and his documentaries have received academy awards in Britain and the US....
, Harold Pinter
Harold Pinter
Harold Pinter, CH, CBE was a Nobel Prize–winning English playwright and screenwriter. One of the most influential modern British dramatists, his writing career spanned more than 50 years. His best-known plays include The Birthday Party , The Homecoming , and Betrayal , each of which he adapted to...
CH
Order of the Companions of Honour
The Order of the Companions of Honour is an order of the Commonwealth realms. It was founded by King George V in June 1917, as a reward for outstanding achievements in the arts, literature, music, science, politics, industry or religion....
, Sir Antony Sher, Professor Avi Shlaim, MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
Clare Short
Clare Short
Clare Short is a British politician, and a member of the Labour Party. She was the Member of Parliament for Birmingham Ladywood from 1983 to 2010; for most of this period she was a Labour Party MP, but she resigned the party whip in 2006 and served the remainder of her term as an Independent. She...
, Baroness
Baroness
Baroness is the female equivalent of the nobility title Baron.Baroness or The Baroness may also refer to:* Baroness , a metal band from Savannah, Georgia* Baroness , a fictional villain in the G.I...
Jenny Tonge
Jenny Tonge
Jennifer Louise Tonge, Baroness Tonge is a politician in the United Kingdom. She was Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for Richmond Park in London from 1997 to 2005.-Early life:...
and Susannah York
Susannah York
Susannah York was a British film, stage and television actress. She was awarded a BAFTA as Best Supporting Actress for They Shoot Horses, Don't They? and was nominated for an Oscar and Golden Globe for the same film. She won best actress for Images at the 1972 Cannes Film Festival...
.
Supporters included the Corrie Family
Rachel Corrie
Rachel Aliene Corrie was an American member of the International Solidarity Movement . She was killed in the Gaza Strip by an Israel Defence Forces bulldozer when she was standing or kneeling in front of a local Palestinian's home, thus acting as a human shield, attempting to prevent the IDF from...
, Jocelyn Hurndall
Tom Hurndall
Thomas "Tom" Hurndall was a British photography student, a volunteer for the International Solidarity Movement , and an activist against the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories. On 11 April 2003, he was shot in the head in the Gaza Strip by an Israel Defense Forces sniper, Taysir Hayb...
, Afif Safieh
Afif Safieh
Afif Safieh is a Palestinian diplomat. He was most recently the Palestinian ambassador to the Russian Federation.Safieh was born in Jerusalem in 1950 to a Christian family. As a child, he attended school in Jerusalem's College Des Frères. In 1972, he obtained a degree in Political Science and...
(former Palestinian
Palestinian territories
The Palestinian territories comprise the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Since the Palestinian Declaration of Independence in 1988, the region is today recognized by three-quarters of the world's countries as the State of Palestine or simply Palestine, although this status is not recognized by the...
General Delegate
Delegate
A delegate is a person who speaks or acts on behalf of an organization at a meeting or conference between organizations of the same level A delegate is a person who speaks or acts on behalf of an organization (e.g., a government, a charity, an NGO, or a trade union) at a meeting or conference...
to the UK), MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
Jeremy Corbyn
Jeremy Corbyn
Jeremy Bernard Corbyn is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Islington North since 1983.-Early and personal life:...
, Jeremy Hardy
Jeremy Hardy
Jeremy James Hardy is a British alternative comedian who is also known for his socialist politics.-Career:Hardy was born in Farnborough, Hampshire. He attended Farnham College and studied Modern History and Politics at the University of Southampton...
, Miriam Karlin
Miriam Karlin
Miriam Karlin, OBE was a British actress who worked on screen for over 60 years. She was best known for her role as Paddy in The Rag Trade, a 1960s BBC and 1970s LWT sitcom , especially for her catchphrase "Everybody out!"...
, Miriam Margolyes
Miriam Margolyes
Miriam Margolyes, OBE is an English actress and voice artist. Her earliest roles were in theatre and after several supporting roles in film and television she won a BAFTA Award for her role in The Age of Innocence .-Early life:...
OBE, Musicians Against Nuclear Arms, Andy de la Tour
Andy de la Tour
Andy de la Tour is an English actor and screenwriter. He has appeared in such films as Plenty, Notting Hill and the Roman Polanski version of Oliver Twist. He has also written or appeared in such television series as Boon, The Young Ones, Bottom, Peak Practice and Kavanagh QC...
, Frances de la Tour
Frances de la Tour
Frances de la Tour is an English actress perhaps best known for her role as Miss Ruth Jones in the British sitcom Rising Damp, and as Madame Olympe Maxime in the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1.-Early life and family:De la...
, Lynne Reid Banks
Lynne Reid Banks
Lynne Reid Banks is a British author of books for children and adults.She has written forty books, including the best-selling children's novel The Indian in the Cupboard, which has sold over 10 million copies and has been successfully adapted to film. Her first novel, The L-Shaped Room, published...
, Jews for Justice for Palestinians
Jews for Justice for Palestinians
Jews for Justice for Palestinians is a pressure group based in the United Kingdom that advocates human and civil rights, and economic and political freedom, for the Palestinian people...
, Jewish Socialists' Group
Jewish Socialists' Group
The Jewish Socialists' Group is a Jewish socialist collective in Britain, formed in the 1970s.-History:The Jewish Socialists' Group is a Jewish socialist collective in Britain, that was founded in Manchester/Liverpool in 1974-1977 as lobby group campaigning against the fascist National Front and...
, Just Peace UK, the International Solidarity Movement
International Solidarity Movement
The International Solidarity Movement is an organization focused on assisting the Palestinian cause in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict using nonviolent protests. It was founded in 2001 by Ghassan Andoni, a Palestinian activist; Neta Golan, an Israeli activist; Huwaida Arraf, a...
, Palestine Solidarity Campaign
Palestine Solidarity Campaign
The Palestine Solidarity Campaign is a campaign in the United Kingdom promoting solidarity with the Palestinian people. It was founded in 1982 during the build-up to Israel's invasion of Lebanon.The campaign states:...
and the Council for Arab-British Understanding
CAABU
The Council for Arab-British Understanding, also known as the Council for the Advancement of Arab-British Understanding , is a London-based lobbying group dedicated to improving the political, economic and cultural relations between the United Kingdom and the Arab world. Founded in 1967, CAABU is...
.
External links
- Protest Music of Philip Munger The Skies Are Weeping - The November 1, 2005 London Performance Lyrics and Recordings available at Philip Munger's blog
- The Skies are Weeping April 8, 2004 Speech
- GarageBand Knik Philharmonic Orchestra Recordings of Knik Philharmonic Orchestra uploaded by Philip Munger
- The Skies are Weeping Official Blog for London Stage with photographs