Concert at the Citadel

The Citadel, Amman, 4 June 2006





The Temple of Hercules, today known as the Great Temple of Amman,

built in the reign of the emperor Marcus Aurelius (161-180 CE)

Last night was spent at the Citadel; Amman's crowning glory of an ancient past that towers over downtown. And as I walked towards the Great Temple of Amman, camera in hand, a blue signpost caught my eye to the left – an Islamic cemetery – I had never noticed it before.

Hundreds of people had gathered at the Citadel for an evening of classical music in the open – a yearly event eagerly anticipated by throngs of Jordanians and foreign guests alike.

Concert in front of 'Al-Qasr' - The Umayyad Palace

Although a celebration of Europe Day, it seemed more like 'International Communal" day to me as we were all lulled into a few hours of peaceful, soul satisfying contemplation by timeless musical masterpieces. It was a joy to see the talented young violinists of the Jordanian National Music Conservatory play alongside the outstanding European Union Chamber Orchestra, as they charmed the night away with a repertoire of Vivaldi, Bach, Shostakovich, Mozart, Britten and the Egyptian virtuoso Oud player of the twentieth century, Mohammad Al Qasabji with his "Thikrayati". Superb!

View over downtown Amman

And Thursday we are off to Jerash, for another night of magical music in the open, this time in opera form - a Jordanian-German joint production. J