![TOPSHOT-SYRIA-RUSSIA-CONFLICT-WAR TOPSHOT-SYRIA-RUSSIA-CONFLICT-WAR](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/palmyra-russian-orchestra-concert-04.jpg?quality=85&w=2400)
A Russian symphony orchestra played a surprise concert in Syria’s ruins of Palmyra, on the site where ISIS killed 25 people in 2015.
Russia’s Mariinsky Theatre performed in a Roman amphitheater to a crowd that included flown-in reporters, Syrian soldiers, Russian officials and UNESCO dignitaries, reports the New York Times. Thursday’s concert comes after Russia’s military helped dictator Bashar al Assad’s forces push ISIS out of the area.
![Mariinsky Orchestra concert in Palmyra Mariinsky Orchestra concert in Palmyra](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/palmyra-russian-orchestra-concert-02.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![Conductor Gergiev leads concert of Mariinsky Theatre in Palmyra In this photo released by Russian Ministry of Defence, conductor Valery Gergiev leads a concert by the Mariinsky Theater Orchestra in the Palmyra amphitheater in Syria, on May 5, 2016.](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/palmyra-russian-orchestra-concert-01.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![The Mariinsky Theater Orchestra holds a concert in Palmyra, Syria The Mariinsky Theater Orchestra holds a concert in Palmyra, Syria](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/palmyra-russian-orchestra-concert-03.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
Led by renowned Russian conductor Valery Gergiev, the symphony orchestra played Bach as well as pieces by two Russian composers. Cellist Sergei P. Roldugin, a close associate of Russia’s President Vladimir Putin whose tax affairs came under scrutiny in the Panama Papers, also performed with the orchestra.
In a video link from his vacation home, Putin thanked the musicians saying that the performance gave “hope for Palmyra’s revival as the heritage of the whole community” reports the Times. “But also as hope that our contemporary civilization will be relieved from this horrible disease, international terrorism.”
[NYT]
More Must-Reads from TIME
- Welcome to the Noah Lyles Olympics
- Melinda French Gates Is Going It Alone
- What to Do if You Can’t Afford Your Medications
- How to Buy Groceries Without Breaking the Bank
- Sienna Miller Is the Reason to Watch Horizon
- Why So Many Bitcoin Mining Companies Are Pivoting to AI
- The 15 Best Movies to Watch on a Plane
- Want Weekly Recs on What to Watch, Read, and More? Sign Up for Worth Your Time
Contact us at letters@time.com