An extraordinary opera concert

The 3rd Conrad Festival was inaugurated by the Polish premiere of Yoni Rechter\'s opera Itamar Loves Animals | Itamar Meets a Rabbit. This musical sketch, based on a David Grossman short story, won a competition for musical pieces for children mounted by the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. The opera was premiered at the Auditorium Mann in Tel Aviv in 2009 and was immediately hailed as the most outstanding musical piece for children („Time Out" magazine). Yoni Rechter created a piece that has an equal measure of wisdom and fun, he has created music that is cheerful, pulsating with rhythms, entertaining even. The moment I opened the text and read the first sentence, „Itamar loves animals", the music resounded in my head, said Rechter about the circumstances of creating his work. The character of music stems from the unique rhythm of Grossman\'s story, an unusual dialogue between titular characters: a rhythmic ping-pong between Itamar and Rabbit. The piece should be read as an extraordinary lesson in tolerance, a parable on breaking apparent differences and meeting the Other. Adults will also read it as a touching metaphor for Israeli-Palestinian relations.