NEW YORK: In his eight years leading the New York Philharmonic, Alan Gilbert has witnessed the power of music to connect cultures — and watched as political strife consumes much of the world.
Closing his tenure in one of classical music’s most prestigious positions, Gilbert is planning a next chapter by creating a sort of UN of orchestras.
Dubbed Musicians for Unity, Gilbert envisions a group of artists from around the world who can come together at short notice.
The musicians will “play concerts that express hope for peace and cooperation and shared humanity,” he told AFP.
Gilbert has taken inspiration from Karim Wasfi, conductor of the Iraqi National Symphony Orchestra, who was among the guests for his Philharmonic finale.
Wasfi has turned up with his cello to play in the aftermath of bombings in Baghdad, assuaging pain through the soothing power of music.
Gilbert experimented with the idea last week as he led his last series at the Philharmonic’s home in Lincoln Center.
At his invitation, the orchestra was joined by musicians from 24 countries that often have sour political relations with the US or one another including China, Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Russia and Venezuela.
If the project sounds utopian, Gilbert is clear-eyed about the limits.
He recalled that the New York Philharmonic in 2008 played a landmark concert in North Korea that brought some audience members to tears. Yet Gilbert acknowledged that tensions surrounding the nuclear-armed communist state have grown since.
Still, Gilbert believes that music can only be a positive force in a world where conventional diplomacy can come up short.
“I do think that in this day, the talking is not exactly working,” Gilbert said.
Gilbert on Tuesday began to guide the Philharmonic in a series of free concerts across all five New York boroughs, presenting well-known works including Dvorak’s “New World Symphony.”
Yet for his final series at Lincoln Center, Gilbert made eclectic selections including a piece by Kinan Azmeh, the Syrian-born clarinetist who marries Arabic and Western classical music.
Top conductor takes inspiration from Iraqi maestro to create UN of orchestras
Top conductor takes inspiration from Iraqi maestro to create UN of orchestras
Christmas Eve winner in Arkansas lands a $1.817 billion Powerball lottery jackpot
- The winning numbers were 04, 25, 31, 52 and 59, with the Powerball number being 19
- The last time someone won a Powerball jackpot on Christmas Eve was in 2011, Powerball said
ARKANSAS, USA: A Powerball ticket purchased at a gas station outside Little Rock, Arkansas, won a $1.817 billion jackpot in Wednesday’s Christmas Eve drawing, ending the lottery game’s three-month stretch without a top-prize winner.
The winning numbers were 04, 25, 31, 52 and 59, with the Powerball number being 19. The winning ticket was sold at a Murphy USA in Cabot, lottery officials in Arkansas said Thursday. No one answered the phone Thursday at the location, which was closed for Christmas. The community of roughly 27,000 people is 26 miles (42 kilometers) northeast of Little Rock.
Final ticket sales pushed the jackpot higher than previous expected, making it the second-largest in US history and the largest Powerball prize of 2025, according to www.powerball.com. The jackpot had a lump sum cash payment option of $834.9 million.
“Congratulations to the newest Powerball jackpot winner! This is truly an extraordinary, life-changing prize,” Matt Strawn, Powerball Product Group Chair and Iowa Lottery CEO, was quoted as saying by the website. “We also want to thank all the players who joined in this jackpot streak — every ticket purchased helps support public programs and services across the country.”
The prize followed 46 consecutive drawings in which no one matched all six numbers.
The last drawing with a jackpot winner was Sept. 6, when players in Missouri and Texas won $1.787 billion.
Organizers said it is the second time the Powerball jackpot has been won by a ticket sold in Arkansas. It first happened in 2010.
The last time someone won a Powerball jackpot on Christmas Eve was in 2011, Powerball said. The company added that the sweepstakes also has been won on Christmas Day four times, most recently in 2013.
Powerball’s odds of 1 in 292.2 million are designed to generate big jackpots, with prizes growing as they roll over when no one wins. Lottery officials note that the odds are far better for the game’s many smaller prizes.
“With the prize so high, I just bought one kind of impulsively. Why not?” Indianapolis glass artist Chris Winters said Wednesday.
Tickets cost $2, and the game is offered in 45 states plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.
