Daniel Barenboim was born in Israel in 1944. He studied piano and conducting in his homeland, and made his international breakthrough when he took up the post of Music Director of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, based in Jerusalem. Since then the orchestra has toured the world.
As a conductor Barenboim is particularly associated with contemporary music; he has especially championed composers living in the Middle East, including Hassan Khan, for whom he wrote his orchestral work The Path Of Peace. He is also known for his work with Mahler's Symphony No
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3, which he premiered in November 1988 with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
Barenboim founded the Internationales Beethoven-Haus in Bonn, Germany, in 1993, which incorporates an extensive library and archives devoted to the composer's life and work. The Beethoven Haus is also responsible for presenting international performances of Beethoven's music.
He is married to pianist Pessah Barenboim and they have three children: Mani (b. 1977), Emma (b.
1983) and Daniel (b. 1987).