In recent years, performances at the Baalbeck International Festival have been canceled at the last minute or relocated to venues closer to Beirut, due to security concerns. With the festival’s return to Baalbek’s glorious Roman ruins this year, the opening night’s multidisciplinary spectacle, titled “Ilik ya Baalbek” (For you, Baalbek), was fittingly a grand tribute to the embattled town and a declaration of Lebanese resilience.
It may also have been the first time a break dancer busted moves along the steps of the ancient Temple of Bacchus to the lush strings of the Lebanese Philharmonic Orchestra.
Bringing together some of Lebanon’s finest talent – including musician Marcel Khalife and actor Rafic Ali Ahmad – “Ilik Ya Baalbek” seamlessly melded nearly two-dozen newly commissioned or reinterpreted works of orchestral music, song, dance and poetry.
Framed against the night sky by the glowing Corinthian columns of the Temple of Bacchus, a stage raised below the temple’s staircase for the Lebanese Philharmonic Orchestra, the setting was readily intimate and atmospheric.
While security remained an obvious concern – evident from the armored vehicle blocking the path by the Temple of Venus, the three rounds of scans for festivalgoers, the cluster of ISF troops by the stage – the nearly full house appeared much more preoccupied with the artistry on stage.
The audience members this journalist encountered – including a retired Aley schoolteacher who recalled attending Fairouz’s 1974 festival performance and a Baalbek native who had flown back from Germany to attend – were expectant.
The program opened when the stately Rafic Ali Ahmad, resplendent in a black abaya, stepped on stage to recite a text by celebrated Baalbeki poet Khalil Moutran.
Interspersed throughout the evening, the actor’s commanding, dramatic recitations – from the works of Gibran Khalil Gibran, Nadia Tueni and Michel Trad – served as a kind of narrative glue for the show.
Opening recitation done, the orchestra, led by maestro Harout Fazlian, embarked on a performance of “Aalaykissalam,” a rambling composition by Lebanese-French organist Naji Hakim. Comprised of a dozen mini-movements of rapidly shifting moods – from scrambling urgency to a lighthearted stroll – the performance was accompanied by an equally eclectic series of artist images (including, oddly enough, Sting) projected upon the ruins behind the stage.
Introduced by a haunting flute and harp flourishes, Lebanese soprano Fadia Tomb el-Hage walked into a spotlight cast on the top of the stairs, draped in a long red gown and matching cape.
Singing a passionate homage to the town by Ghadi Rahbani, her arms outstretched as she intoned “Baalbek ya Baalbek,” the mesmerizing richness of her voice quickly established her as one of the stars of the night.
The performances grew increasingly collaborative and multidisciplinary as the evening wore on.
With the orchestra providing accompaniment, composer Gabriel Yared’s “On Marriage” drew upon the graceful break-dancing moves of Nacim Battou and Hage’s lustrous vocals.
At one point, as Hage lingered over a note, Battou froze in a handstand.
Hage dazzled her audience again in her rendition of another Yared composition, this one set to a Nadia Tueni poem, and complemented by Simon Ghraichy’s crisp rendering of the sparse piano accompaniment.
Her melisma over the final lyric, “Baalbek,” captured the mood of the night: emotional yet haunting in its celebration.
Another highlight of the evening was Paris-based trumpeter Ibrahim Maalouf’s languorous solo in his composition, “Hymne,” showcasing his dazzling restraint. He continued playing, unruffled, as a siren went off in the near distance.
Shifting into a more rhythmic melody, accompanied by the pitter patter of drums, Maalouf’s jazz-inflected notes were soon joined by lush strings as three black-clad dabke dancers bounded across the stairs, two with arms outstretched, the other twirling a sword.
As the strings were joined by the rest of the orchestra, 11 more members of Al-Majd dance troupe joined the trumpeter on stage.
The performance encapsulated the festival program’s brilliant cohesion of incongruities.
Baalbek is unlikely to shake its reputation for instability soon, but the nearly two-hour-long epic program allowed a beleaguered town and country to celebrate itself for one night.
Bravo ya Baalbek.
By Alexis Lai
