Presentation “Jacob’s dream”

«Jacob’s Dream» is a cello concerto inspired by a famous biblical story. The image of Jacob, who in a dream saw a stairway to heaven and the Lord himself, promising good things to him and his offspring, was initially embodied in the symphonic poem of the same name by composer Baruch Berliner and producer Nachum Slutzker.

Then, on the advice of his friend, the world famous cellist Mischa Maisky, the composer reworked the poem into a cello concerto.

The premiere of the concerto took place in 2018 at the closing of the White Nights of Karelia Music International Festival in Petrozavodsk, where Sergey Antonov performed the solo part (the composition is dedicated to him). Following a request from Sergey, the author added a solo cello cadenza between part II and part III, and called it “The Prayer”.

Baruch Berliner said, “We first met Boris in Tashkent, at the rehearsal of the concert. And literally from the first sound, he impressed us. The sound of his cello penetrated deep into my soul and touched my heart. We have developed very warm relations with Boris, and he became the guide of my concerto to the world, and it was hoped that he would perform it again and again. We have big joint plans for the future. Boris became a member of our International Genesis project. He with great skill, very accurately conveys the nature of the work, and the “The Prayer” in his performance ascends directly to heaven …” We have extensive joint plans for the future. Boris became a member of our Genesis International Project. He conveys the nature of the work very accurately, with great skill, and the “The Prayer” in his performance ascends directly to heaven … ”

The work consists of 3 parts and a cadenza between 2 and 3 parts:

P.1 Isaac’s Blessing
P.2 Jacob’s Dream
The Prayer (Cadenza)
P.3 Gate to Heaven

Currently, the work is performed not only as a cello concerto, but also arranged as a concerto for violin or clarinet and orchestra; and it is also performed by such famous musicians as violinist Jorge Saade-Scaff, cellist Emil Rovner, virtuoso violinist’s Graf Murzha and Haik Kazazyan, clarinetist’s Sergio Musat, Julian Milkis, Nikita Vaganov and others.

Jorge Saade-Scaff

Concert violinist, pedagogue and diplomat. He is considered Ecuador’s most distinguished violinist and one of the best in Latin America.

No other Ecuadorian artist has the number or quality of international tours as he has. He has performed more than 400 concerts and recitals in 45 countries in the Americas, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Oceania, appearing as a soloist with more than 45 orchestras around the world. He is the only Ecuadorian artist to have appeared four times at the famous Carnegie Hall in New York, and has performed in such prestigious venues as the Royal Festival Hall in London.

He has received countless awards, among the most important being the National Order of Merit in the rank of “Commander” and “Grand Officer”, awarded by the President of the Republic of Ecuador, and the title of “Knight of the Order of King Leopold”, awarded by King Philippe of Belgium.

He graduated with honors and receive the “Gold Medal” from the “Antonio Neumane” National Conservatory of Music in Guayaquil, where he studied with Soviet professors Lemmo Erendi and Andrei Podgorni. He received his Bachelor of Music with honors “Cum Laude” from the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami, where he studied with the renowned violinist Thomas Moore. He holds a Master of Music from the “Benjamin T. Rome” School of Music at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., where he studied with Hungarian virtuoso Robert Gerle. He is the only Ecuadorian to have completed specialized studies at the prestigious “Mozarteum Institute” in Salzburg with the great violinist Ruggiero Ricci.

He has served as Cultural and Press Attaché at the Embassy of Ecuador in Washington, D.C., and the Organization of American States (OAS), Cultural Director of Guayaquil for the Ministry of Culture, and President of the Board of Directors of the Guayaquil Symphony Orchestra.

He is currently Executive Director of the Guayaquil Municipal Philharmonic Orchrstra, since 2007 the Honorary Consul of the Kingdom of Belgium in Guayaquil, and Professor of Violin and Viola at the Arts University UArtes.