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| Bringing Music to Iraq Young Iraqi artists will soon have an opportunity to shine their talents through the fog of war, as American Voices brings an extraordinary, free program of music, dance and theater to Erbil in Northern Iraq, July 14th to 22nd. The Iraq Summer Performing and Visual Arts Academy--the first project of its kind in the history of Iraq--will deliver an American educational experience to over 200 of the country's aspiring performers. In a region challenged by conflict, these nine days of creative expression aim to provide an oasis of calm. American Voices' ambitious program will literally transport a faculty of professional Arts educators from the U.S. and Europe to Erbil for in-depth instruction in Jazz, Classical, Chamber music and more. Dance studies will include Ballet, Jazz and Hip Hop, while Theater sessions will incorporate selections from popular Broadway shows. The Summer Arts Academy will culminate in a landmark series of gala concerts, open to the public. American Voices is a Houston, Texas-based not-for-profit company, created in 1993 by Executive Director John Ferguson. Nearly every international Arts program Ferguson has initiated in the years since has been precedent setting. The original mission of American Voices was to provide quality American cultural programming to the newly open societies of Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. Since then, American Voices' geographic range has grown to encompass eighteen time zones from Peru to the Philippines, with artists performing concerts, workshops and master classes (as well as interactive performance projects) to over 200,000 audience members in 79 countries on five continents. Millions more have been reached through live television and radio broadcasts across the globe. In February of 2007, Ferguson brought American Voices into the heart of Baghdad for a historic concert held at the Al Rasheed Hotel and sponsored by the U.S. Embassy. The unlikely music and dance program was greeted by a standing ovation from the mostly Iraqi audience. Featuring Vocalist and Dancer Michael Parks Masterson and Ferguson on piano, the concert culminated in a joint performance with the Iraqi National Symphony Orchestra performing a jazz and Broadway repertoire for the first time in its history. Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy Karen Hughes made an appearance at the concert as well. In fact, the warm response to the Baghdad event inspired Ferguson's development of the upcoming Summer Arts Academy in Erbil. (Please visit YouTube for a view of the orchestra performing Duke Ellington repertoire as introduced to Iraq by American Voices) The Summer Arts Academy project will be a joint effort of American Voices, the U.S. Embassy, The Ministries of Culture of both Iraq and the Kurdish Autonomous Region, The Baghdad School of Music and Dance, The Iraqi National Symphony Orchestra, The Symphony Orchestras of Erbil and Suleimanya, National Folk Dancers of Iraq and the Institutes Fine Arts in Erbil, Suleimanya, Dohuk and Kirkuk. The Ministry of Culture in Erbil will provide assistance in the form of teaching and gala concert venues, security and local transportation for students and faculty. American Voices is one of America's great cultural institutions although most of our work is seen outside of the United States in concerts presented around the world for more than twelve years. The organization was founded by Executive Director John Ferguson and incorporated as a not-for-profit in The Netherlands in 1993. The original mission of American Voices was to provide quality American cultural programming to the newly open societies of Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. Since then, American Voices' geographic range has grown to encompass eighteen time zones from Peru to the Philippines and as our artists have performed concerts, workshops and master classes as well as interactive performance projects to over 200,000 audience members in 79 countries on five continents and reached millions more through live television and radio broadcasts across the globe. With an emphasis on reaching countries in the former Soviet Union, the Middle East and Central Asia, the organization has been responsible for many firsts in presenting American music globally. Some of these include bringing the first ever Broadway programs to Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Vietnam, Moldova and Kosovo, the first international jazz festivals ever to Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan, the first performances by American Hip Hop artists to Vietnam and Azerbaijan, the first youth jazz education projects to Azerbaijan and Taiwan, and the first American performers ever to cities such as Aktau, Karaganda and Semey in Kazakhstan, Jalalabad, Kyrgyzstan and Dushanbe, Tajikistan. The artists of American Voices have performed with major symphony orchestras in countries around the world including Russia (Nizhny Novgorod and Yekaterinburg), Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Lebanon, Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Albania, Hungary, Latvia, Ukraine, Germany, Malta, El Salvador, Bolivia and Argentina. They have also performed at major world venues such as the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Theatre de la Ville in Paris, National Museum in Tokyo, National Concert Hall in Taipei, The Capelle in St. Petersburg, and Kunst und Ausstellungshalle in Bonn. They have provided artistic advice and concert programs to festivals in Europe, Asia and the Middle East. They have taught masterclasses and presented special projects and seminars at prestigious conservatories and universities around the world including the Hochschule fuer Music in Leipzig, the Moscow Conservatory, and the Music Academies of Kiev. In addition to performances and educational programs, American Voices is also proud to have made 43 donations of American music scores to Conservatories, Municipal and National libraries around the world. American Voices has issued three CDs: American Voices Around the World (2004), Jazz Bridges Burma (2003), and Caspian Jazz and Blues Festival Highlights (2002), with two more disks planned for 2005: Jazz Bridges Afghanistan and Jazz Mugham Azerbaijan. American Voices artists have recorded with major labels such as Deutsche Grammophone (Kurt Ollmann with Leonard Bernstein), Harmonia Mundi (Teresa Seidl with Sir Yehudi Menuhin) and EPM (John Ferguson). They have presented headline artists Toots Thielemans, Maynard Ferguson and Jack de Johnette at festivals in Azerbaijan and Taiwan. Based in Houston, Texas since September 2004, American Voices' projects are funded by a diversity of sources ranging from corporate sponsorship in the countries where they are active to international and American foundations. American Voices is also supported by American Embassies and Consulates worldwide. write your comments about the article :: © 2007 Jazz News :: home page |