Riga, Latvia. June 1990. The Israel Philharmonic is playing in Riga Opera as part of its historical Soviet Union tour. I remember myself sitting in the last balcony listening to the Mahler´s Fifth Symphony being afraid to breath - the sounds of the Adagietto are still with me eleven years later. I remember Zubin Mehta with a huge bouquet of roses in his left arm; the entire orchestra stands up to play Hatikva (Israel´s anthem). I remember an old man with a blue number tattooed on his hand crying. I remember myself crying...I remember not knowing why... Three month later I came to Israel... I know now... Keshet Eilon Violin Mastercourse     I am writing these lines in Israel, in the Kibbutz Eilon situated in the beautiful Northern Galilee where for the last three summers I have been a member of the faculty at the Keshet Eilon Violin Mastercourse. Eleven years ago I was among the group of 12 students at the first Course. We were all new immigrants. ...with Ida Haendel Today, there are over fifty students from all over the world. Among the remarkable faculty that teaches these students are Shlomo Mintz, the founder and patron of the Mastercourse, the one and only Ida Haendel, who has been coming for the last three years as the Distinguished Guest Artist, Shmuel Ashkenazi, Itzhak Rashkovsky, Thomas Brandis and many others. Today, in place of the old reconstructed chicken barn called ``Sandwich Club´´ where we used to have all our concerts and masterclasses stands a beautiful Keshet Hall for 300 seats with wonderful design and rich acoustics. We have gone a long way since 1990... ...with Shlomo Mintz and Angela Keshet Eilon has a very special place in my heart. This is where I said my first words in Hebrew and English, saw and participated in the first masterclasses, and most importantly, this is a place where I have grown as a human being and as a musician. I have been on the ``both sides´´ of Eilon - as a student and as teacher now. And I can say that there is no place like it. What is so special about Keshet Eilon? It may be the most beautiful sky that I have ever seen - at night it seems you can almost touch the stars. The archery class led by the distinguished Larry Wise, 6 times world champion. Amnon Weinstein, a violin maker from Tel Aviv and Daniel Schmidt, a bow maker from Dresden are always there for all of our instrument needs. The tradition of violin ensemble when at the final concert all the students and professors stand together on stage, the sound that gives you goose-bumps - there are many things. For me the most important is the feeling of one big wonderful family. Teachers, students, the archery team, staff, guests, audiences - coming here, we all get this feeling. ...giving a Masterclass At the end of the Course I asked one of my students Wojciech Dziembowsky from Poland how he liked Israel, the Kibbutz, and the Course. His answer was short and simple: ``You know, I feel at home here´´... KESHET is a wonderful Hebrew word with many meanings. For me - it is a bow. It´s also the arch of a bridge and all the colors of the rainbow. But for hundreds of young musicians that have passed through here it´s come to mean something else: a truly unique experience, a learning process on the road to becoming concert violinist. You can visit Keshet Eilon on the web at www.keshetei.org.il Also, do come and visit us next summer as a participant or just as a music lover - here, we all are.