Concert Afterglow
BRIDGES FROM BAGHDAD TO CHICAGO: A CONCERT TO BENEFIT ISP DE PAUL
Featuring Pianist Karam Salam and Violinist Nura Aly
Karam says: “Music is my tongue to talk, my way to understand life, and my wings to fly over the world.”
Karam, a potential world-class musician, was forced to flee Baghdad for Syria because of the war. There he was accepted in the Iraqi Student Project and is now in his second year of study in South Bend. Nura Aly, an exquisite violinist, is a student at DePaul. On Saturday, November 7, they performed together at St. Nicholas Church in Evanston, playing both classic and contemporary works, including two pieces composed by Karam and premiering at this concert–”Bridges” and “Concordance in Chaos”. This fund-raising event was planned and coordinated as a service project by DePaul students Sophia Bolger, Will Forcade, Katie Infusino, Amber Patton, and Lauren Raphael with mentoring by Margaret Sents and DePaul professor Maureen Dolan.
This concert marked one of the most heartfelt moments in the history of ISP in Chicago. We nearly filled St. Nick’s, which was amazing in itself, we raised $2000for DePaul support–much more than we had expected–and the music was stupendous.
When I heard the first enthusiastic applause after the Bach Concerto, though, I realized it wasn’t only for the young musicians, talented as they are, but for the whole of ISP. First of all, it was for Gabe and Theresa. St.Nick’s is their home parish in Evanston, and the size of the audience was a tribute both to their vision and their work in Syria with these extraordinary young people.
It was for the student volunteers who worked so hard on this fundraiser, for all the volunteers in Chicago and elsewhere, and to everyone who has helped ISP, particularly for U.S. Coordinator Jane Pitz, whose expertise will be sorely missed.
I heard it also as a tribute to the bravery and stamina of all the Iraqi students who are succeeding at U.S. colleges after undergoing the trauma and privations of war and flight from their beloved country. For a Medill graduate student article on the concert and ISP, click the link on the right. Visit this site often for more news of events and news of ISP students in the Chicago area.
Rosalie Riegle for the ISP DePaul Core committee
Thursday, February 4th, 2010, by roriegle, Filed under: Uncategorized| | No Comments
ISP Co-founders on WBEZ Worldview
Gabe Huck and Theresa Kubasak on WBEZ Worldview