Newsletter 2013 / P.O.BOX 943, Ramallah Palestine, Tel: (0) facebook: Al Kamandjati,

Transcription

1 Newsletter 2013 / 2014 P.O.BOX 943, Ramallah Palestine, Tel: (0) facebook: Al Kamandjati, info@alkamndjati.org

2 A beautiful Musical Rhythm Dear friends, students, and teachers We are pleased to meet you again in our newsletter for 2013/2014. During the year we welcomed our past and new students, as well as our teaching staff for the academic year. As the family of Al Kamandjâti expands, the activities, concerts, and the achievements grow. A year past so fast, and involved hard work and effort, and was accompanied by pleasure and music. A beautiful rhythm we never wish for it to end. In this newsletter we wish to remember and recall those moments we passed through, which were the accumulative effort of groups and individuals students, teachers, guest musicians, and administrators, as well as, the support of friends, partners, and organizations of this year s activities and events. Al Kamandjâti Music Program in UNRWA Schools This music education project is implemented in the schools of Al Amari, Jalazon, and Qalandia refugee camps. It aims to incorporate music into the educational life of students and to facilitate awareness of educational materials through music, beginning by targeting young children in the primary grades. In order to sustainably implement this program, AK has also trained UNRWA teachers from the schools concerned which will enable them to use the music education tools during the project time. &type=2&theater Ongoing students concerts through the Academic Year- 2013/2014 As is customary within the Al Kamandjâti association, monthly students concerts are held throughout the academic year. Concerts are organized for students in the western, oriental and jazz departments as part of the educational system of the school in order to encourage and support the artistic and moral growth of the students. Over 40 concerts were held this year, presented by Al Kamandjâti students in Ramallah, Jenin, Deir Ghassana, and the camps of Al Amari, Qalandia, Jalazon in Palestine, and the camps of Bourj el Barajneh and Chatila in Lebanon. These concerts are generally attended by students families, friends and teachers; regular audiences witness firsthand the ongoing progress and development of the students

3 The 9th Baroque Music Festival 2013 Al Kamandjâti Association presented the 9 th Barouqe Music Festival from December 12 th to 22 nd 2013, with the participation of musicians from the United States, France and Palestine. Ensembles performed 15 concerts in several Palestinian cities and villages including Ramallah, Nablus, Beit Jala, Deir Ghassana, Al Taybeh, Birzeit, Jerusalem and Gaza, contributing to the dissemination of musical culture in cities and villages of Palestine. The main ensemble performed Vivaldi s well known Four Seasons; they were then joined by the rest of the musicians, and worcester chorus accompanied by the Zaridash and Jerusalem choirs, to perform Handel s Messiah conducted by Maestro Chris Shepard from the USA. This piece, composed in 1741 by George Friedrich Handel on a text written by Charles Jennens, became one of the most internationally known oratorios and was performed for the first time in Palestine during the festival. Just Play Film premiere The first screening for Just Play,which produced by Al Kamandjati and directed by the Italian Dimitri Chimenti, was held at the Mahmoud Darwish Museum on 5th May This film explores the hopes, different points of view and lives of the men, women and children who turn music into a means of resilience and liberation. It seeks to travel through their worlds and to answer some simple but fundamental questions: Who are they? Why is an orchestra challenging an army? What is at stake? This movie is not about occupation, not about the conflict nor even about music: these are all central elements of the story but the film is really about something else. It aims to expose lies and show the truth: when there are no dead in the streets and the weapons don t shoot, it shows what is happening in Palestine when nothing significant seems to be going on. The film won The Child and Family Award in the Aljazeera International Documentary Film Festival 2014 and was selected, among others, by The Phnom Penh International Film Festival, the Toronto Palestine Film Festival, the Festival Cinéma Mediterranéen (Brussels, Belgium), and the Bari International Film Festival (Bari, Italy)

4 The 9th Music Days Festival 2014 For 9 years, Al Kamandjâti Association has organised the Music Days Festival. The aim is to spread music across Palestine, especially in places where it is difficult for people to attend live music events. The festival reaches around 15 different cities, villages and camps across Palestine in places where music and culture are still difficult to find. It also reaches locations which are usually outside the scope of live concerts such as centers for handicapped and disabled persons, homes for retired people and charity associations. The locations reached this year were: Jenin, Yammoun, Tulkarem, Qalqilia, Sabastia, Nablus, Bethlehem, Ne lin, Ramallah, and Jerusalem, the refugee camps of Balata, Al Amari, Jalazon, and Qalandiah. 47 concerts took place this year, with around 4500 people attending the whole festival, people who usually do not have the opportunity to do so. Fifteen different bands took part in the event, performing several styles (classical Arabic music, classical western music, pop, rock, jazz, afro-oriental), and involving and mixing around 100 professional, amateur and music students, many of whom were from AK. The Festival opening was held at the Mahmoud Darwish Museum with the Al Mohayyar ensemble, led by Khaled Saddouq. Al Kamandjâti 9th Summer Camp 2014 After the completion of the 9 t Music Days festival, Al Kamandjâti organized the 9 th annual summer camp at the Star Mountain Rehabilitation-Center, in the period between 22 and 28 June. 100 students and teachers took part. During the camp, the activities were focused on ensemble and group work, and every day ended with a concert provided by students and teachers who performed what has been achieved during the day. Workshops were provided of oriental music, rap music, orchestral conducting, percussion, composition and more. This year students from all levels took part in the camp, not only the more advanced ones. The camp was an opportunity for the students to experience music in a more social way and to improve their abilities thanks to the possibility of working with great professional musicians from across the globe (USA, France, Italy, UK...). StAu3YvQXdUdKEVq8p 4

5 Al Kamandjâti in Lebanon 2014 From Ramallah, Jenin and the refugee camps and villages of the West Bank to the ever remaining Gaza, AK carried the essence of Palestine to the Assembly Hall of the American University of Beirut, accompanied by a choir of AK students from Chatila and Bourj el Barajneh refugee camps. The proceeds of the concert, which was organized in collaboration with Welfare Association, went to aid centers in Gaza and to the music education program of AK in the Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon. There was no sound in the Hall other than the sound of music, telling the sufferings of Palestine through what seemed to be a musical intifada in front of the occupation; an intifada in which AK wanted to reach people through melodies and words. This concert was one of the results of a one week summer camp AK held in M aser el Chouf in the Lebanese mountains, for its students from Chatila and Bourj el Barajneh. The camp was an exceptional experience, as it was provided by teachers and advanced music students from Palestine who came to Lebanon to transmit their musical knowledge to their Palestinian peers in the Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon. It was the first time such an enriching experience was possible. For the record, Al Kamandjâti s music education program in the Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon has been running since It provides a complete music education program over the academic year, delivered by the education team of Al Kamandjâti Association in Lebanon, for about 50 students in the Beit Atfal Al Soumoud center in Bourj el Barajneh and Chatila camps. http//: http//:assafir.com/article1/365457/ http//: http//:assafir.com/article1/364883/ Al Kamandjâti in Germany 2014 For the second year, 10 Al Kamandjâti students were invited to participate in the summer camp of the Bayern Munich Symphony Orchestra, which had the 20th anniversary of its founding this year. The originality of the workshop was that it mixed Beat Box music, with the participation of the great German beat boxer Ruby, together with classical music, for the pleasure of the audience. Students benefited greatly from this experience, which involved playing and performing alongside many professional musicians, as well as discovering and sharing experiences with other cultures. 5

6 Al Kamandjâti students abroad Two AK students returned to their homeland this year after they completed their university studies in France for a period of five years. Amir Malhis (guitarist) and Mohammed Karzon (percussionist) are now back and teach music with Al Kamandjâti Association. Five other AK students still remain abroad to complete their undergraduate music degrees. Al Kamandjâti s active participation in the Palestinian cultural scene Al Kamandjâti is regularly approached to take part in social and cultural events in Palestine and abroad. As an example, this year AK participated in a special evening organized by PalTel, took part in the National Reading Week in cooperation with the Municipality of Jenin, in the 66th anniversary of the Palestinian Nakba and finally in the celebration of Mothers Day in Lebanon with its students there. Piano and String Instrument Workshops The Al Kamandjâti Piano Workshop, which can repair, maintain, polish and tune all kinds of piano, has been very busy this year. It repaired several pianos to be able to provide them, at a very affordable price, to students who could not afford to buy a piano otherwise. This provided the students acquiring a piano in their homes a creative and artistic atmosphere, making it possible for them to practice with the support of their families. This workshop is under the supervision of Sameh Asad, who completed his studies in France at the college ITEMM. Moreover, and in order to be able to continually develop, Sameh travelled to France to gain specialized knowledge in the repair of grand pianos. Since its opening, the String Instrument Workshop, managed by Shehada Shalalda, has received hundreds of instruments owing to his well-recognized expertise and renown. The workshop is one of only a handful of such workshops in Palestine. In addition, Shehada has made several high quality instruments which have been sold to musicians in various countries across the world. Shehada has a diploma in making and repairing string instruments from Newark College in UK and is specialized in instrumental varnishing from study in Italy. He also keeps on improving thanks to exchanges of expertise the last such course was a well respected workshop in Italy. Shehada aims to put Palestine on the world map regarding the expert creation and development of the string instrument (violin, viola, cello and double-bass). 6

7 Oh this world Song Premiere Oh This World is a song produced together by World Vision International and the Al Kamandjâti Association. The song discusses violence inflicted upon Palestinian children inside and outside the schools, focusing especially on the force delivered by the occupation. The video clip was directed by May Odeh, the melody composed and supervised by Iyad Staiti, the lyrics written by Bashar Tmezi, and the song sung by the students of AK in Jenin. The children express in the song how they are deprived of their most basic human and social rights due to the Israeli occupation. This artistic production gathers Palestinian melodies, lyrics and heritage in order to express the innocence of childhood and the simple nature of Palestinian children s lives despite the hardship of the occupation. Thank you The A.M. Qattan Foundation, Mrs Leila Qattan, Drosos Foundation, Khalaf and Ghanem families, the General Consulate of France in Jerusalem, the Prince Claus Fund, the Goethe-Institute in Ramallah, SIDA (as part of the PAN program) the European Commission, the Welfare Association, Muna and Basem Hishmeh Foundation, UNRWA, UNESCO, the Palestinian Ministry of Culture, World Vision Palestine, Culture Resource, Wataniya Mobile, the French Institute in Jerusalem the Danish House in Palestine, Palestine TV, Raya FM, Toulouse Municipality, Lille Municipality, the Conseil General du Maine et Loire, Alwan for the Arts, Bessie Foundation, Swanson Foundation Bisharat family, Riwaq Center for Architectural Conservation, Beit Atfal al Sumud, Mahmoud Darwish Foundation, Al Ma mal Foundation, Darna Restaurant, Jerusalem Hotel, Zeit ou Zaater, Al Yasmeen Hotel, Embassy of Palestine in Beirut, Music Fund, Toulouse Conservatory, Ekitour and all the other partner organizations/institutions/individuals with whom we collaborated during the year; as well as our faculty members, students, parents and all guest musicians from everywhere. 7