Green Line
solo cello and recorded audio (featuring the voice of Lena Ouzounian)
duration: 5 minutes
“Green Line” for cello and recorded audio was composed by Lembit Beecher in 2024 for his wife, cellist Karen Ouzounian. This personal and intimate work draws from recorded interviews conducted by Karen and Lembit with Karen’s mother, Lena Ouzounian. Karen’s cello and Lena’s voice are tightly interwoven as Lena shares her memories of a dramatic day in 1980 during the Lebanese civil war, when she had to cross the Green Line—a demarcation line between East Beirut and West Beirut—in order to reach the Canadian embassy. In performance the recorded audio is triggered live by Lembit.