Yo-Yo Ma’s Silkroad Ensemble in residence at Rice

Following a performance by Silkroad musicians, a panel moderated by Alison Weaver, the Suzanne Deal Booth Executive Director at the Moody Center for the Arts, discussed the importance of culture in diplomatic discourse.

Musicians from Yo-Yo Ma’s Silkroad Ensemble joined cultural leaders at the Baker Institute for Public Policy Sept. 26 for a special event highlighting the unifying power of culture and the arts in a complex and often fragmented world. The evening marked the first time the Baker Institute has collaborated to host an event with the Moody Center for the Arts and the Boniuk Institute for Religious Tolerance.

Following a performance, a panel moderated by Alison Weaver, the Suzanne Deal Booth Executive Director at the Moody Center for the Arts, discussed the importance of culture in diplomatic discourse. Ellen Susman, the former director of the Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations in the U.S. Department of State’s Art in Embassies program, was joined on the panel by Silkroad musicians Haruka Fujii, a percussionist, and saxophonist Danny Mekonnen.

The discourse at the Baker Institute marked the third Silkroad event at Rice in a week. It followed a classroom interaction in which three Silkroad musicians spoke to students in a seminar called “Life at the End of Life” taught by associate professor of religious studies and art history Marcia Brennan. It also followed a performance at the Moody Sept. 24 that included another panel discussion exploring the role of the arts in leadership. The Silkroad Ensemble will be in residence at Rice for the next three years, returning to campus throughout that time to participate in future classroom discussions, performances and panels. (Photo by Jeff Fitlow)