The Schiller Boston Community Chorus and friends hosted a music and poetry evening in honor of the 60th anniversary of the assassination of President John F Kennedy on Friday, November 17, 2023 at Christ Church, Quincy Massachusetts.
Artists:
Sam Antonevich, violin
Rose Conservatory students (Greg Fernandes, executive director)
Josh Carlisle, tenor
Nancy Guice, mezzo soprano
Michelle Erin and Jen Pearl, sopranos
Mijin Choi, Malene Robinson, Judy Lai, piano
Schiller Institute Chorus
On December 15th, the Schiller Institute NYC Chorus presented a Christmas Concert celebrating its 10th Anniversary as a NYC community chorus.
The concert took place at Good Shepherd-Faith Church, 152 W 66th St, New York City.
The program featured the Mozart Coronation Mass, K 317, and included excerpts from Handel’s Messiah as well as a selection of Christmas Spirituals and Carols.
The Schiller Institute NYC Chorus began on December 20th, 2014 as a Sing-Along performance of excerpts of Handel’s Messiah. The impromptu concert was organized by Schiller Institute musician Diane Sare in answer to the outrage over the Staten Island Grand Jury decision on the death-by-suffocation of Eric Garner, which had come in the wake of the Ferguson, MO riots after the killing of an unarmed African-American teenager, and which threatened to create dangerous divisions and violence in the City of New York. The concert was dedicated to “The Sanctity of Every Human Life.” Tragically, just as the chorus had opened the program by singing “Dona Nobis Pacem” (Give Us Peace), two police officers were murdered in Brooklyn as they sat in their patrol car.
The Schiller Institute has been performing and organizing for peace and harmony in the nation and the world ever since, wielding the power of classical art to help bring humanity together through a dialogue of cultures.
Invitation for the Schiller Institute Online Conference September 9, 2023
The world is presently undergoing changes, changes which occur only once in a thousand years: The age of colonialism, which began in the 16th Century, and has lasted almost 600 years, is coming to an end. The countries of the Global South, which represent by far the majority of mankind, are shedding the remnants of colonial suppression, as it still exists in the form of international control over their resources, unfair conditions of trade, and financial subjugation and looting by the City of London and Wall Street. The countries of the Global South are asserting their right to process these resources and produce value-added goods as a means of becoming middle income societies in the foreseeable future through high-technology industrialization. Lyndon LaRouche, for decades, specified the needed concepts and policies in physical economy to expedite that transition.
It can be expected that the summit of the BRICS countries, to take place August 22-24, will reflect the tectonic shift going on: Twenty-three countries have applied formally for membership in this organization and more than twenty informally. Rather than regarding this process as a threat to the West, the nations of Europe and even the U.S. should take up the offer of cooperation. If the countries of the Global North go forward with their stated intent to “decouple” or “de-risk” from China, which is the largest trading partner of many countries of the Global South, this will be especially devastating for the economies of Europe, which are already in the process of deindustrialization. Even more fundamentally, if the West sticks to a policy of geopolitical confrontation with Russia and China, and tries to maintain an unipolar world by creating a Global NATO, the present conflicts around Ukraine now and soon Taiwan, could escalate into a third, this time thermonuclear world war.
The fact that the old order has failed to solve the problems of poverty, hunger, and the underdevelopment of billions of people in the developing countries, is demonstrated by the horrendous migrant crisis, where thousands and thousands of desperate people are assembling, at national borders—be it between the U.S. and Mexico, or be it along the Mediterranean, which has already become a mass grave. Instead of resorting to cruel and inhumane methods to keep human beings out, we should join hands with China and other emerging countries to help the countries of the Global South industrialize. There is no need for rivalry; there is so much for everyone to do to meet the existential needs of people now suffering.
Which way we decide to go, will in all likelihood determine if we end up in a world war resulting in the annihilation of the human species, or if we keep our humanity and open a new, more beautiful chapter in the history of mankind.
We need a new international security and development architecture that takes into account the interests of every single country on the planet. The warring parties of the Thirty Years War were able to reach the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, because they realized that there would be no one left to enjoy the victory, if they had continued to fight. We should at least be that intelligent.
We must revive the most beautiful traditions of our cultures, especially in classical art, and celebrate the image of man as the creative species, to develop from there a vision of how to create a durable peace for all of humanity.
Maurizio Abbate – Mr. Abbate is Chairman of ENAC, National Institute for Cultural Activities, Italy
Dear friends and colleagues from around the world,
We are gathered here today to seek, with all our strength, useful ideas and solutions to resolve the terrible armed conflict that has been raging in the old continent for almost a year-and-a-half. A fratricidal war capable of bringing death and destruction among the civilians in the territories directly involved and a very serious economic and financial crisis in the rest of the world, due to a system of speculation implemented with unprecedented wickedness by the food and energy multinationals. Corporations often controlled by the same masters.
We are well aware that giants such as Vanguard and BlackRock share a majority of the shares of agribusiness multinationals through Monsanto, Cargill and Dupont. The same hold today in Ukraine about 19 million hectares of land devoted to intensive agriculture, which corresponds to 60 percent of Ukrainian agricultural land. Similarly, 100 percent of Ukrainian mines are now owned by multinationals. To ask why war broke out in this part of Europe, starting from those simple figures, therefore seems superfluous.
The important thing, therefore, is not to analyze the causes of the conflict, but rather to try to understand how was it possible that the American public, as well as the European public, always attentive to the problem of peace, thanks to their peace movements, are today almost numbed by what is happening.
War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength. These were the slogans engraved on the facade of the Ministry of Truth described in George Orwell’s famous novel. This year, the European Union, in an almost grotesque way, has created a Peace Instrument to allocate nearly €8 billion for the purchase of weapons. Buying weapons to prevent conflict and build peace—this is stated, prominently, on the European council’s website. Almost a parallel to the Orwellian Ministry of Truth.
If an institution such as the European Union can alter the foundations of freedoms, that is, the truth, by characterizing the supply of weapons, tools for killing, as useful tools for building peace, then the cultural and moral degradation of the institutions, as well as that of the media that should be exposing such lies, has become self-evident.
Unfortunately, what I have previously stated about the concentration of food and energy production in the hands of a few powerholders is also true for political institutions, the media, as well as those in charge of education. Culture, which, emulating the teachings of Socrates and Plato, should be concerned with developing thoughts and indicating the models of society to be built in order to achieve nobler goals, such as general welfare and solidarity among peoples, is constantly downgraded to a kind of unimportant fashion. Such principles, at the same time, are subordinated to the interests of a few economic powers who have made contemporary society a huge market of precariousness in which everything can be sold or bought. Even the right to life.
A society in which social cohesion is being progressively demolished and upon which continuous alleged emergencies are being imposed, such as climate, health and finance, capable of altering national choices in agriculture, crafts, industry and society.
Therefore, the time has come to stop this neo-barbaric drift caused by the globalization of economy and culture.
A new social and cultural Renaissance must be initiated. To do so, a new paradigm is urgently needed for our Western communities, which must definitively abandon the principle of business as the centerpiece of society and put man with his material and spiritual complexity back at its center. Politics must redefine a harmonious system in which every man and woman has his or her own role in a synergistic and organic way. A society in which human beings must be judged and valued for who they are, for the values they express and succeed in embodying, rather than for what they possess. Only in this way can individual nations, free, independent, self-determined and with their own specificities, become communities again and contribute to the global growth of all humanity.
The differences and peculiarities of peoples, generated by centuries of history and different cultures, must become the driving force to build a constructive dialogue for peaceful coexistence. A dialogue that leads to an equitable distribution of the resources of the planet on which we all live and which are often the cause of armed clashes and unprecedented violence due to the criminal desire to concentrate them in the hands of a few.
As we develop this thesis and try to involve all those who share its aims, however, strong and persuasive signals must be sent out. It is imperative to make it clear to the world that so many free people, not only have no intention of bowing to the deliberate decisions autocratically made by globalist elites, but are ready for a global change of the paradigm imposed until now by those who believe themselves to be the absolute masters.
Confronted with the holders of the major global media in a now imminent head-on clash, networking is needed. It is necessary to organize as many events as possible and use every single television, computer or radio channel to spread the news. Inviting foreign guests to local events must also become a habit capable of disrupting the mantra that only globalization can guarantee freedom, pluralism and democracy.
ENAC, the National Institute for Cultural Activities in Italy, which I am proud to represent, is organizing a conference in Italy with the aim of re-establishing relations between Syria and Italy. Economic and cultural relations that were interrupted for mere political interests and have not been reopened even in the aftermath of the dramatic earthquake that caused thousands of civilian casualties in Turkey and Syria.
At this conference, in which we would be happy to welcome any of those present today, who would like to participate, we intend to send a clear and unequivocal message: While liberalism talks about peace and democracy causing wars and building walls, we respond with the strength of culture, the only one capable of guaranteeing and respecting individual differences while working on building a bridge made of friendship, solidarity and cooperation among peoples.
“A Dialogue For Peace” Concert – June 26—
EIRNS, June 23—The Schiller Institute NYC Chorus presents to the world, this Sunday, June 26, at 5 p.m., a concert dedicated to, “A Dialogue For Peace.”
Encourage all to attend and spread the word. This classical music concert is also a celebration of all cultures with songs from around the world in keeping with the ideas and solutions presented at the just-concluded June 18-19 Schiller Institute conference, “There Can Be No Peace Without the Bankruptcy Reorganization of the Dying Trans-Atlantic Financial System.” A flyer is linked above. The concert is “live” in NYC, and virtual for those around the world.
The flyer reads:
“Our national strength matters; but the spirit which informs and controls our strength matters just as much. When power narrows the areas of man’s concern, poetry reminds him of the richness and diversity of his existence. When power corrupts, poetry cleanses, for art establishes the basic human truths which must serve as the touchstone of our judgment. I see little of more importance to the future of our country and our civilization than full recognition of the place of the artist.”
John F. Kennedy, October 26, 1963
It contains the address for the live concert in NYC; tickets for virtual viewing start at $5 and are available at: https://www.musae.me/sinycchorus/experiences/1285/dialogue-for
The program features works of Russian, Polish, Spanish, African-American composers as well as selections from J.S. Bach’s sublime Mass in B Minor.
Press Release:
Ambassador Dmitry Chumakov, Deputy Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the United Nations, and Helga Zepp-LaRouche, Founder of the International Schiller Institute, Delivered Statements at the Memorial Wreath Laying Ceremony in Honor of the Alexandrov Ensemble and Other Victims of TU-154 Plane Crash
Ambassador Dmitry Chumakov, Deputy Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the United Nations, and Helga Zepp-LaRouche, founder of the international Schiller Institute gave keynote remarks on December 29, 2021, at a memorial event in honor of the Alexandrov Ensemble members who were killed in a plane crash on Christmas Day, 2016. The members of the renowned Alexandrov Ensemble – previously the Red Army Chorus — were on their way to perform in Syria during the Syrian war. The commemoration took place at the Teardrop Memorial in Bayonne, NJ – a monument donated and built by the Russian people and government in condolence to Americans for the tragedy of 9/11. The monument is named, “To the Struggle Against World Terrorism.” Ambassador Chumakov’s are found here.
Ambassador Chumakov’s remarks, available now on the website of the Permanent Mission of the Russian Federation to the United Nations, noted that the cultural collaboration of the Russian and American people in events such as this yearly commemoration of the loss of the Alexandrov Ensemble, shows “that human relations and friendly ties between Russians and Americans are indissoluble.” He concluded that “Amidst a very complicated international situation, it is the humanitarian ties that strongly bring us together,” and noted particularly to the Schiller Institute and the Fire Department of the City of Bayonne that “Your contribution to the friendship and solidarity of the people of Russia and the United States cannot be overestimated.”
Helga Zepp-LaRouche’s remarks, read by Diane Sare, founder of the Schiller Institute NY Community Chorus, referenced President Putin’s recent interventions, and bluntly described the danger of a “reverse Cuban Missile Crisis to which the President of your country has reacted in an unmistakable fashion: he insists, rightfully, that the promises given to Russia around the time of the German Unification, that NATO would not move eastward, closer to the borders of Russia” … “were [promises which were] broken repeatedly”, and that they be “now belatedly” “restated in a written and legally binding form — at least as it concerns Ukraine and Georgia.” She closed: “The Schiller Institute fully endorses the demand by Russia that these treaties must be signed, and that the world must be pulled back from the brink of the abyss. … Let us revive the spirit of the cultural contribution of the Alexandrov Ensemble to mobilize the strength in ourselves to create a more human civilization!” Mrs. LaRouche’s full remarks are available at this link.
The event was moderated by Capt. Randy Geis of the City of Bayonne Fire Department, and the invocation and benediction prayers were presented by Reverend Dorothy Patterson of Bayonne, NJ. The laying of the wreath at the Teardrop Memorial was led by the Bayonne Fire Department, followed by a public laying of flowers to the Alexandrov and to all victims of world terrorism, added at the base of the Teardrop Memorial. Musical selections included Russian songs sung by soloists Everett Suttle, Michelle Erin, and Lisa Bryce; the Christmas Spiritual “Sister Mary had-a but One Child,” arranged by Roland Hayes; and Grechaninov’s “Praise Ye the Name of the Lord.”
The video of the event is available on the Schiller Institute NYC Chorus website.
Happy 93rd Birthday Fred Wills! —
The collaboration between Fred Wills (former foreign minister of Guyana) to realize a New World Economic System, Helga and Lyndon LaRouche is commemorated in the Schiller Institute’s hosting of the webpage: Shakespeare in Exile, inaugurated on Lyn’s 99th birthday earlier this month. The webpage hosts Wills’ series of lectures on Shakespeare’s drama with LaRouche’s ICLC cadre.
The Wills lectures highlight, “[T]he common error among most of those who consider themselves historians of one variety or another, is that lacking a well-developed sense of the distinctive nature of the human species, they turn from the subject of man as a species, to appeal like a pimp to those passions of sense-certainty which inform and excite the temptations of the credulous. These shortcomers never touch directly that sublime subject which is the history of man.*” — Cloret & Bill Ferguson
Some topics you will encounter include: Schiller; Synarchism II; History; and Love of Mankind. Recommended reading is Lyndon LaRouche’s Nov. 30, 2003 piece, The Role of the Sublime In World Politics Today.
Sep. 15 (EIRNS)–On Sunday, September 12, The Schiller Institute, with the support of the Russian Embassy in the United States and the Consulate General of Russia in New York, organized a Memorial Ceremony to mark the 20th anniversary of the mass terrorist attack on the US. To honor those who perished and in support of their families and survivors, an event was held that day at the monument in Bayonne, N.J. known as the “Tear of Sorrow,” and more formally, by its title: “To the Struggle Against World Terrorism.” This sculpture was designed by Zurab Tsereteli, the president of the Russian Academy of Arts, and erected in Bayonne by a team of Russian artisans in 2005.
The Memorial Ceremony was addressed by Terry Strada, chairwoman of Families and Survivors United in the Struggle Against Terrorism, and by many American and Russian government officials, and Police and Fire first responders. There was widespread press coverage in Russia. Media covering the event included: TASS, RIA/Novosti, Komsomolskaya Pravda, Regnum.ru, Yandex.ru, NTV, Russkiymir.ru, and Expert.ru.
The article in Komsomolskaya Pravda begins:
“To see the Russian and American flags flying together has been an almost impossible task in recent years. Nevertheless, Moscow and Washington have common interests, common values, and common memory. Not only in our countries, but throughout the civilized world, they remember the mournful date – the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks in the United States.”
A rough translation follows of the article by the TASS Washington Bureau correspondent is as follows:
Participants of the 9/11 Event Called on Russia and the United States to Fight Terrorism Together
Schiller Institute President Helga Zepp-LaRouche says: It’s Time to Put an End to the Era of Geopolitics, an Era of Not Achieving Common Goals
BAYONNE / NJ /, September 13. / TASS /. On Sunday, Russian and American participants in the ceremony at the Tear of Sorrow memorial by Zurab Tsereteli honored the memory of those killed in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and stressed the importance of jointly combating common threats. The event, organized by the Russian Embassy in Washington, the Consulate General in New York and with the participation of the Permanent Mission of the Russian Federation to the UN, began with the performance of the anthems of the two countries, the solemn presentation of national flags, then, the audience bowed their heads in prayer for those who did not return that day 20 years ago.
Was There a Conspiracy? U.S. Publishes 9/11 “Secret Files”
Terry Strada, of Families and 9/11 Survivors for Justice Against Terrorism, spoke via audio link about the recently declassified FBI material and about the circumstances of the terrorist attack. She highlighted the need for further action. “New documents have been released, but the country needs to do more,” she said.
According to one of the Memorial organizers, chairman of the “Schiller Institute” Helga Zepp-LaRouche, it is time to put an end to the era of geopolitics, of failing to achieve common goals. “It is time to unite, especially the United States and Russia, given the several periods of history when [this] cooperation was beneficial to all of humanity,” Zepp-LaRouche said, in a message to the Memorial.
Being Together
Russian Consul General in New York Sergei Ovsyannikov drew attention to the fact that over the years since the tragedy, international terrorism has only gained strength. No power is capable of overcoming this evil alone, the diplomat emphasized.
The American guests of the ceremony especially noted the fact of the gift of the monument, created by the President of the Russian Academy of Arts (RAA) Tsereteli.
Kirk Wiebe, a former analyst with the U.S. National Security Agency, switched to Russian in his speech. “We all have gathered here in an atmosphere of brotherhood, friendship and love. We Americans sincerely thank you for such a monument. Know that we are always with you both for the truth, and in the fight against terrorism,” he said.
Common Values
The representative of the Schiller Institute in New York, Richard Black, told reporters that, despite the serious tensions in relations between the two countries, there was “genuine solidarity at this event, where Russians and Americans, both officials and ordinary citizens, stand for the same values – the right to life, to freedom, the right to live happily with one’s family.”
“Many people understand, in the small communities, that our peoples, American and Russian, have the same interests,” he added.
The expert stressed the importance of contacts at the highest level, including the statement adopted at the end of the Russian-American summit in Geneva on June 16, in which the principle was affirmed: “a nuclear war cannot be won and should never be fought.” “This is a significant advance, because some in the Pentagon and in the State Department have stated differently: that a nuclear war can be won and the United States must be determined to win,” said the spokesman for the institute.
In addition, Black considers it necessary to organize a summit of the “five” of the UN Security Council, as initiated by Russian President Vladimir Putin. According to him, the proposal is very relevant. “There are urgent topical issues – the fight against international terrorism, the coronavirus pandemic. I hope that we will be able to convince the U.S. President to agree to the initiative. These are very important matters, now, more than ever,” the expert said.
The Tear of Sorrow monument to the victims of international terrorism was presented by the United States as a gift from Russia. Putin took part in the groundbreaking ceremony in 2005.” The ceremony can be viewed at this link.
April 25 (EIRNS) – The Schiller Institute NYC Chorus & with friends from Ibero-America and Europe broadcast an uplifting concert this afternoon, which was introduced as follows by Jen Pearl:
Good afternoon, and welcome to `Beethoven’s Credo: Believe in the Future, a World Without War.’ My name is Jen Pearl and I am the chair of the board for the Schiller NYC chorus.
On December 17th, 2019, Beethoven’s 249th birthday, our chorus, the SI NYC Chorus participated in an event at Carnegie of the Foundation for the Revival of Classical Culture, opening up what was supposed to be a year-long celebration of the Beethoven 250th year. We performed the choral movement of the Ninth Symphony there, with the preeminent Gerard Schwarz as conductor. We took as our objective to perform Beethoven’s great Missa Solemnis a year later.
Then we all know what happened. While many choruses and arts organizations were forced to pull back during the lockdown, the Schiller Institute NYC Chorus pushed ahead, despite the challenges, because we know how important it is to sing beautiful and profound music in times of crisis—music, which connects us at the higher level of humanity as a single immortal species. We managed to present virtual performances of the Kyrie and Gloria last December.
Today’s concert is truly special because it features another movement the Missa Solemnis.
And while we are excited and joyful about bringing you the Credo movement of the Missa Solemnis and other beautiful selections tonight, we are also performing this concert in the context of a world fraught with crises, including an increasing potential of world war and starvation in Yemen and Syria. The beauty of tonight’s program, which reflects the very best of mankind’s creativity, is also very much in direct contrast or dissonance with the very worst actions being done at the hand of human beings, right now as we speak, toward entire nations and populations of children.
Beethoven once said that, if people understood his music, there would be no war.
On this day, April 25th, 76 years ago there was an event that resonates powerfully still today with that sentiment, that mankind should not settle disputes with violence. This was the day during WW II that American and Soviet troops met from the east and the west at the Elbe River near Torgau Germany, south of Berlin, ensuring an early end of the war, and thus became known as `Spirit of the Elbe.’ We dedicate this concert to that spirit which is much needed today. So we will begin our concert today with this short video introduction.
Near the end of the concert, Jen Pearl made the following closing remarks:
Our final offering this evening is Mozart’s Ave Verum Corpus. Mozart composed this motet in a perfect way to evoke from you the awe you would experience when seeing the body of Christ for the first time. Imagine what your reaction would be then as you listen, think of how Mozart evokes that in you!. Mozart’s opening words are `hail, hail true body. . .’ As with any great classical work, the singer and you, the audience, can relive the experience of that actual moment in history and therefore experience true immortality.
We are now in a moment of history, where we need to evoke that quality of empathy and immortality in ourselves in order to take all of mankind into our hearts and souls. As we referenced at the beginning, we invite you to join the chorus of voices that are calling for an end to these wars, sanctions, and starvation, particularly in Yemen and Syria. You can find Mrs. LaRouche’s urgent call in today’s program and I invite you to join us. Thank you, and now you will hear Mozart’s Ave Verum Corpus.
Note the concert can be viewed at this link.
On the 700th Anniversary of Dante Alighieri’s Death, the Poet To Be Remembered —
Percy Shelley said in discussing Dante: “Poetry strengthens that faculty which is the organ of the moral nature of man, in the same manner as exercise strengthens a limb.” Do today’s leaders live up to this? Do our American citizens know the difference?
Dante has much to teach us today. He not only was a poet—the grandfather of the Italian Renaissance—but he unified the Italian language so that its unification as a sovereign nation would ultimately be successful. At a moment of crisis such as we face today, let’s take a page from Dante’s book. Here is the recent video presentation celebration.