Lake Dukon / Kurdistan Region, Iraq / 4 July 2008

Concert halls, art galleries, and movie theaters have been completely destroyed. Walking to school while carrying an instrument and practicing piano at home can get you killed. This is reality for the majority of artists living in Iraq today. Hundreds have been targeted by terrorists and insurgents for torture and murder since the US-led invasion began in 2003. Some reports estimate as many as 80% of singers have fled the country, resettling with over 1.7 million refugees in mostly Syria and Jordan.

In November 2009, Soulbird American Academy of Kurdistan will open its doors for the 2009-2010 season in the relatively safer Kurdistan region of Iraq. We aim to provide a safe place for Iraqi artists to study and develop their work without fear of imminent death or danger. In addition to providing courses in language and the arts, the Academy will serve as a base for some of Soulbird's important human rights and community organizing work, especially working to address the plight of Iraqi artists.

Translation from the Arabic:
Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. For how long
will the pitch remain in our hearts like a
prisoner? He wants to leave, but he is afraid. If circumstances change, we will play our music silently. How much I would love to hear you tonight, creators of music. However, now I will stand backstage and change my instrument—piano to paper; pitch to word. My voice will read it, not my fingers. All of these words are from my home: my home in Mosul…

Ehab M. (pictured left) at Soulbird's New Music Workshop in August 2008

Ehab , a 25-year old talented pianist, is from Mosul—one of the most volatile cities in Iraq that continues to be a solid bastion for Al-Qaeda in Mesopotamia and other terrorist organizations.

Ehab is unable to perform in concerts in Iraq for fear that terrorists will recognize his face in Mosul and kill him. While he was able to participate in the 2008 workshop, Ehab elected to record a statement rather than perform his prepared piece,"Dream Images (Love-Death Music)" from Makrokosmos, by George Crumb.

Please help us continue supporting artists like Ehab by making a tax-deductible donation.

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2010 Mankind Arts Festival
more info coming soon
Art & Human Rights Conference
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Iraq's First Student Film Festival
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New Music Workshop & Concert
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