Dartmouth-AUK Music Recital: An International Celebration of Talent

The Music Program at the American University of Kuwait (AUK) and Dartmouth College, one of the premiere Ivy League universities in the USA, presented a collaborative music recital on Sunday May 16 in the AUK Auditorium. Advanced student musicians from both distinguished institutions, accompanied by faculty, performed vocal and instrumental solo and chamber works, demonstrating the great potential for continued cultural collaboration between AUK and Dartmouth. 

Encouraged by the success of the inaugural Dartmouth-AUK recital last fall, this concert featured a variety of stellar vocal and instrumental ensemble pieces. Faisal Al-Bahairi, AUK student and the recent winner of the Gulf International Chopin Competition, opened the concert with his award-winning Chopin Ballade Op. 38 and the challenging Liszt Transcendental Etude #7. Ali Atesh's Italian vocal aria and Sara Soliman's Bach sonata for flute continued to set the tone for a quality evening. One of the instrumental highlights was Salem Al-Mathkour's vibrant violin performance of "Czardas," that received great applause. The second half of the concert featured opera as Nicholas Knezek (bass) and Larry Bowman (tenor) from Dartmouth College joined with AUK students and professionals, Anna Karadimintrova, Elena Tsenkova, Dragan Markovic, and Agnieszka Fajga in a rousing musical celebration of Mozart and Bizet, whose "Carmen" ended the evening with a standing ovation.

For more information on the AUK Music Program, please contact Dr. Lisa Urkevich, lurkevich@auk.edu.kw
 

Dr. Dale Eickelman, Coordinator AUK-Dartmouth Project
 

Dr. Lisa Urkevich, Music Program Director
 

Faisal Al-Bahairi
 

Ali Atesh
 

Salem Al-Mathkour
 

Anna Karadimitrova, Elena Tsenkova, and Nicholas Knezek, a Dartmouth Intern
 

Anna Karadimitrova, Larry Bowman, Ali Atesh, Nicholas Knezek, Sara Soliman, Dragan Markovic, Agnieszka Fajga
 

Back Row, from left: Faisal Al-Bahairi; President Tim Sulivan; Dr. Elena Tsenkova; Anna Karadimitrova; Dean Nizar Hamzeh, Dr. Lisa Urkevich, Music Program Director; Dean Carol Ross; Larry Bowman, Dartmouth intern; Nicholas Knezek, Dartmouth intern
Front Row, from left: Dr. Dale Eickelman, Coordinator AUK-Dartmouth Project; Salem Al-Mathkour; Ali Atesh; Sara Soliman; Agnieszka Fajga; Dragan Markovic; Rehab El-Bahey