A Collective Song:
Music to Make Hearts Sing
Al Aqaba is a small community bordered by Israeli Army training grounds. Bombing and target practice can be heard from the school and tanks practice nearby. Army bulldozers are demolishing homes near the village again. Living through dangerous circumstances, especially as a child, is very hard and many face anger and grief. For children who may be traumatized by their experiences, music is vital for healing but children and teenagers had little access to music and needed instruments.
Lina Karamali, then a Rebuilding Alliance intern, came up with the idea of creating a music center where children including those from the local elementary school could listen to and learn to play music, Al Aqaba responded wholeheartedly. Mayor Haj Sami, the parents and teachers were eager to have a place where children can listen to and learn how to play music, even though music education is not a norm in places like Al Aqaba, a village in the West Bank's Area C.
Maestro Mohammad Fadel, co-founder of the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music, brought the program to Al Aqaba, driving 1.5 hours once a week to teach there. Hosted by Al Aqaba's Ibn Rush'd Library, initially the third graders at Al Aqaba's elementary school receive instruments and a music teacher visits once a week to give lessons.
“I want to teach music to Palestinian children who face the biggest challenges: the children in the refugee camps, the children in the villages, the children who live in tents who don’t know if their homes or villages will be standing. This is what matters to me, this is why I founded the Conservatory.”
Gifts toward this project were used to purchase instruments, facilitate classroom learning, and to prepare for concerts performed throughout the country. What Maesto Mohammed noticed is that through the outreach programs, there was a noticeable improvement in the psychosocial well being of students, their personalities, attitude, and behavior. Now, with COVID-19, teaching is harder. We’re exploring how to continue the program.
Lina has played the violin for ten years and the flute for seven years.
“When people come together to play music to raise funds for this project and when the music center opens in Al Aqaba, the collective efforts will truly make hearts sing. In Al Aqaba, anyone can go to relax, listen to recordings, learn an instrument, and play in ensembles. Stress, grief, and trauma obstruct our ability to think clearly; by providing music to heal, reduce stress, and open a constructive outlet, we hope to benefit the children of Al Aqaba, rekindle hope and inspire peace.”
On May 3rd, 2015, Lina held a benefit concert at Gunn High School, her school. There were fifteen excellent performers at the concert, ranging from professionals to students. The concert was a success, and embodied what this music center will give the people of Al Aqaba. Lina also spoke at Santa Clara County's Annual Palestinian Day, and thanks to these events, grants, and individual donors, we raised over $26,000 for this project. That was enough to keep the project running for three years.
If your music class or school would like to hold a benefit concert for the Collective Song Music Center, please email us at Contact@RebuildingAlliance.org