Between March and July 2026, the Conservatorio di Musica “Arrigo Pedrollo” in Vicenza welcomed Diam Habiballah, a cello student from the Magnificat Institute of Jerusalem, as a visiting student within the mobility activities promoted by the JERUS-IT-ARTS project.
Her mobility in Vicenza offered her the opportunity to experience musical education in a broader and more structured academic setting. For Diam, the cello is more than her main field of study: it is a way to explore different musical languages. Through the instrument, she moves between Western classical repertoire and Arab and Middle Eastern traditions, discovering how different approaches to sound, intonation and expression can enrich her musical identity.
During her stay, she studied cello under the guidance of Prof. Gianantonio Viero and took part in the artistic and educational life of the Conservatory, including orchestral activities, student projects and musical collaborations. One of the most significant moments of her experience took place on 13 May 2026, when she performed with the Conservatory Orchestra on the stage of the Teatro Olimpico in Vicenza, one of the most renowned historic theatres in the world.
Diam’s journey embodies the spirit of JERUS-IT-ARTS: using music as a medium to connect people, places and traditions
For Diam, the programme was not only a period of study abroad, but also a space of encounter, listening and personal transformation. In Vicenza, she found a community eager to share its music, its culture and its sense of belonging, while she, in turn, brought with her the sounds, memories and musical heritage of Jerusalem. Such experiences allow students to discover not only other cultures, but also new dimensions of themselves and of their own cultural background.
Her reflections reveal the deeper value of artistic mobility: the possibility of creating empathy across different cultures without forcing dialogue, but allowing it to emerge naturally through study, rehearsal, performance and friendship. In this sense, Diam’s journey embodies the spirit of JERUS-IT-ARTS: using music as a medium to connect people, places and traditions, and to create something new between Jerusalem and Vicenza.
