Ramzi Rihan, a professor of physics at Birzeit University, passed away at his home in Ramallah in April. A great mind with vast knowledge in many fields, Rihan during his lifetime held various positions at Birzeit University, including dean of the Faculty of Science, vice president for community affairs, vice president for planning and development, and advisor to the university’s president. He was also a long-standing member of the Palestinian Council for Higher Education and member of the ESNCM Supervisory Board . Rihan was one of the early supporters of Birzeit University’s transformation from a college to a university in the 1970s when it became the first Palestinian university to be established in Palestine.
Showing an interest in music from a young age, Rihan was mainly a composer. His musical talent and early output was honored and appreciated when in the 1960s, he was admitted to study composition at the prestigious Los Angeles Conservatory of Music based on his composition titled “Contrasts.” Due to financial reasons, however, he opted for a career in physics. Later on, he returned to his hometown Nablus to care for his ailing mother while taking up teaching at Birzeit University. The ESNCM has published a collection of his piano compositions titled “Twelve Piano Pieces.” They show a modernist style with Arabic flavor and require players of advanced musical skills.