Musical diplomacy's perfect harmony

The world gets a nuclear accord, and Iran gets an orchestral visit that makes history. Chen Jie reports.

When the first sweet, chirpy notes of the Butterfly Lovers' Violin Concerto flutter over the heads of an audience in Teheran next week they will herald success in a long quest to bring the Chinese Philharmonic Orchestra to Iran.

That feat, achieved through laborious efforts over many months, is all the more remarkable given the deafening indifference the orchestra faced in Iran before its diplomatic overtures finally struck a positive note. Its country's top diplomats were, understandably, preoccupied with a matter of much weightier importance: searching for accord with big world powers over the country's nuclear program.