For more than a quarter of a century, the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra has been a significant presence on the international music scene. In 1999, Daniel Barenboim and Palestinian literary scholar Edward W. Said created an orchestra for young musicians to promote dialogue between the different cultures of the Middle East through music-making and co-existence. They named the orchestra and workshop after Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s collection of poetry West-Eastern Divan, a central work for the development of the concept of world culture. The majority of the orchestra’s members are from Israel, Palestine, Iran, Syria, Türkiye, and other countries of the region. They meet each summer for a workshop, where rehearsals are complemented by lectures and discussions, followed by an international concert tour. The orchestra has performed at the world’s most prestigious festivals and concert halls such as the Salzburg and Lucerne festivals, the BBC Proms, the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival, Carnegie Hall, Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie, and Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires. Beyond this, it remains one of the orchestra’s most important goals to perform in the members’ home countries. Appearances in Rabat, Doha, and Abu Dhabi and the landmark concert in Ramallah in 2005 have been important steps toward fulfilling this aspiration. The only political aspect that prevails in the work of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra is the conviction that there is no military solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict and that the destinies of Israelis and Palestinians are inextricably linked. Based on the notion of equality, co-operation, and justice for all, the orchestra represents an alternative model to the situation in the Middle East, proving time and again that music can built bridges and break down barriers previously considered insurmountable. In honor of this mission, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon named the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra a UN Global Advocate for Cultural Understanding in 2016.