"An Evening of Jewish Music" dedicated to World Peace in memory of Daniel Pearl

The Chief Guest, Urdu Journalist Husain Amin and General Secretary of Sarvajanik Shikshonnayan Sansthan, Dr. Sushil Chandra Trivedi paying their homage to Daniel Pearl by lighting candles

The chief guest, Urdu journalist Husain Amin and General Secretary of Sarvajanik Shikshonnayan Sansthan, Dr. Susheel Chandra Trivedi garlanding a photograph of Daniel Pearl

Chief Guest, Husain Amin, Urdu journalist

Social Activist, Mr. K. C. Tripathi

Dr. Sushil Chandra Trivedi, General Secretary, Sarvajanik Shikshonnayan Sansthan

Social Activist. Mr. Shukla

Social Activist. Mr. Khazzan Singh

From the left: Social Activist. Mr. Gaurav Pandey, Mr. Husain Amin and Mr. Sushil Chandra Trivedi

From the left: Dr. Navras Jaat Aafreedi, Mr. Husain Amin and Dr. Sushil Chandra Trivedi

Open Space - Lucknow
in association with
Sarvajanik Shikshonnayan Sansthan (SSS)
organised
"An Evening of Jewish Music"
dedicated to world peace
in memory of Daniel Pearl
on his 45th birth anniversary
as part of the
8th Annual Daniel Pearl World Music Days,
a global network of events to promote peace and understanding through the language of music

This music evening was one of the four music concerts organised in India as part of the movement called Daniel Pearl World Music Days, during which 1,180 music events will take place in 63 countries in October 2009. The other three events that took place in India under this movement were held in Goa and Kerala.

The South Asia Bureau Chief of the Wall Street Journal, Daniel Pearl, who got abducted and killed by terrorists in Pakistan, was a talented musician who joined musical groups in every community he visited, leaving behind a long trail of musician friends that spans the entire globe. He firmly believed in the power of music to unite people.

The chief guest of the evening was the Urdu journalist, Husain Amin, who paid an emotional tribute to Daniel Pearl and spoke against the growing number of attacks on journalists the world over, one of which took Daniel Pearl's life.

Professor Judea Pearl and Ruth Pearl, parents of Daniel Pearl

Statement from Daniel Pearl's parents, Prof. Judea Pearl and Ruth Pearl:

Thank you for being part of the 8th Annual Daniel Pearl World Music Days and for dedicating your concert in honor of our son, Daniel Pearl. We would have loved to be with you in person tonight, but circumstances dictate that we send you this blessing from a distance, although we are with you in spirit.

Our deepest appreciation goes to the organizers and the musicians who helped put this evening together.

Pablo Casals once said:
"Music must serve a purpose; it must be part of something larger than itself, a part of humanity."

The music that will soon emerge from your stage will serve a purpose - for it will blend with the sounds of hundreds, perhaps thousands of other concerts, from Singapore to New York, Lahore to Los Angeles, which will be ringing the earth this month for sanity and humanity.

By dedicating your concert to Danny, you elevate your music from the acoustics of one concert hall onto to the balcony of the 21st century and transform it into a potent statement of purpose, unity and empowerment.

Your music will resonate today in sharp defiance of the forces of hatred that took our son's life, and will reinforce our unshaken conviction that, at the end of the day, music will triumph and humanity will prevail.

United, we will make a difference.

Ruth and Judea Pearl
Los Angeles, California

2009 Nobel Peace Prize Winner, Barak Hussein Obama, President of the United States of America

Obama's Presidential Statement:

I send my warmest greetings to all who are gathered for the 8th Annual Daniel Pearl World Music Days.

Music has been called a universal language that transcends cultures and borders. Its power to move us, touch our hearts, and speak to our souls enriches our lives. Through artistic creativity and expression, musicians build bridges between individuals and communities thousands of miles apart.

This month-long event to celebrate music and honour the legacy of Daniel Pearl is a fitting tribute to a man who promoted respect and dialogue throughout the world. On this occasion, we recommit ourselves to tolerance, compassion, and "Harmony for Humanity".

I wish you all the best for an enjoyable event.

Barak Obama
The White House
Washington
September 30, 2009

Cantor Alberto Mizrahi

Cantor Kathy Robbins

Songs composed and sung by the great cantors,
Alberto Mizrahi and Kathy Robbins
were played from their respective albums,
My World
and
Shavat Vayinafash: An Island in Time
on
Saturday, 10th October, 2009
at
Nilyam, Gomti Nagar, Lucknow

Message from Cantor Kathy Robbins:

I am deeply honored and humbled to have been invited to share the stage in Lucknow with my esteemed colleague, Cantor Alberto Mizrahi in 'An Evening of Jewish Music' as part of the 8th Annual Daniel Pearl World Music Days.

Reb Nachman of Bretslav taught, "Kol ha-olam kulo, gesher tzar m-od. V'ha-ikar lo l'facheid klal. - The world is a very narrow bridge and the most important part is not to be afraid."

Danny fearlessly, built bridges with his music wherever he went in the world. His legacy , 'Harmony for Humanity' will continue to inspire us all to do the same in our on-going quest for world peace.

L'shalom,

Cantor Kathy Robbins
Encinitas, California

Greek-born tenor, Alberto Mizrahi, one of the world's leading interpreters of Jewish music, is Hazzan of the historic Anshe Emet Synagogue, Chicago. He has thrilled audiences worldwide in recitals, symphony concerts, and opera. Affectionately known as "the Jewish Pavarotti," Mizrahi's repertoire, spanning nine languages, makes his performances unique in the field.

He is featured on PBS television in Cantors: A Faith in Song and in the PBS Hanukkah Special. He has performed and recorded with the legendary jazz pianist, Dave Brubeck and his quartet ("Gates of Justice") for the Milken Archive on the Naxos label, and with the great Theodore Bikel ("Our Song"). He has also performed with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Atlanta Symphony, Houston Symphony, Pacific Symphony Orchestra, Haifa Symphony, Jerusalem Symphony, NDR Symphony, Lithuanian National Symphony, Radio Television Orchestra of Spain and the Sinfonia Krakowia.

Having just performed at the White House Hanukkah celebration and with Genesis at the Crossroads in Casablanca, he also recently appeared with Cantors: A Faith in Song in Sao Paolo and Rio De Janeiro, in Carnegie Hall for the Zamir Chorale celebration of Israel at 60, and Kavanah: Tradition and Transformation, a modern music tour thoroughout the Netherlands. The 2008-2009 season finds him recording and premiering the highly reviewed Yizkor: Music of Remembrance with the Afro-Semitic Experience. dueting with Theodore Bikel in the Krakow Jewish Culture Festival, Craig Taubman in the Hallelu Festival, and singing concerts in Athens, Mexico City, and throughout the US. Hazzan Mizrahi returns to chant at Days of Remembrance, the national commemoration of the Holocaust, in April 2009 (Capitol Rotunda), tour with the Safron Caravan Ensemble in Egypt, Jordon, Israel and Australia, and with the Cantors Assembly in Warsaw, Krakow and Jerusalem. Mizrahi's extensive discography numbers over twenty-five CDs.

Cantor Kathy Robbins' creative contributions include a unique Freilich Friday Shabbat Evening Service with her seven-piece band, a Mind-Boby-Spirit, Adult Education Wellness Wheel and her CD Shavat Vayinafash - An Island in Time: Contemporary Music for the Eve of Shabbat".

Cantor Robbins has served as Cantor and Music Director of Temple Solel, Cardiff by the Sea, California, since 1984. She is a regular member of the American Conference of Cantors.

An Evening dedicated to Jewish-Muslim Relations in memory of Daniel Pearl

"An Evening dedicated to Jewish-Muslim Relations in Memory of Daniel Pearl" was organised by Open Space - Lucknow on Saturday, 27th June, 2009, (the event also commemorated the publication  of the Yiddish newspaper Die Yidishe Velt, which began publication in New York on 27th June, 1902) at the Academy of Mass Communication, Lucknow, among Muslim youth. On the occassion Brad Pitt produced film A Mighty Heart (2007), based on Pearl's widow Mariane's memoir, A Mighty Heart - The Brave Life and Death of My Husband Danny Pearl, was screened, and a bilingual publication (English and Urdu) of the Centre for Interfaith Studies, Faislabad, Pakistan, was distributed among the audience, who took part in a lively discussion after the screening. American Jewish journalist Daniel Pearl, who served as the South Asia Bureau Chief of the Wall Street Journal, was kidnapped and beheaded in Karachi in 2002. The killing of Pearl led his parents, Professor Judea Pearl and Ruth Pearl, to establish an organisation in his memory, the Daniel Pearl Foundation, dedicated to world peace and to the beterment of Jewish-Muslim relations. Below is the message from Daniel's parents, received on the ocassion of this event:

Mrs. Ruth Pearl and Professor Judea Pearl, parents of Daniel Pearl (courtesy: Daily Life)

On behalf of the family of Daniel Pearl we would like to express our gratitude to Navras Jaat Aafreedi and the organizer of this event, for honouring our son Daniel by dedicating this evening in his memory.

It has been heart-warming for us to see people from all walks of life reaffirming their commitments to the ideals for which Danny stood: truth, fairness and respect for all people.

But it is especially significant for us, and for Danny's son, Adam, to see Danny's legacy supported by people from the Muslim religion, the religion of the country where Danny's journey came to a sudden halt.

We live in an era where hate propagates with Internet speeds, and one can easily get the impression that humanity is losing ground to a rising tide of savagery. Adam's generation must understand that this is a misleading metaphor; that underneath the surface we have an ocean of decency and goodwill, and that hatred and ignorance are merely islands that can be conquered.

We witnessed this undercurrent of decency when so many Muslims offered us help and sympathy when Danny's death was made public.

We witnessed this undercurrent of decency throughout our journey with Professor Akbar Ahmad along the Daniel Pearl Muslim-Jewish dialogue trail.

We witnessed this undercurrent of decency when we celebrated Danny's would-be 45th birthday, on October 10, 2008. 1,100 concerts in 60 countries participated in this global event, including dozens of groups from Muslim countries, all united by the ideals for which Danny's stood, and all taking a stand for tolerance and humanity.

And we are witnessing this undercurrent here, tonight, through your inititative to establish this evening of Jewish-Muslim relations in Memory of Daniel Pearl.

We know that the people who attend this evening will continue Danny's quest for truth and understanding, and will venture to eradicate the ignorance and hatred that took Danny's life.

Thank you all for helping us uncover and activate this ocean of decency for Adam's generation.

Salam Aleikum!

Shalom Aleichem!

- Judea and Ruth Pearl

Los Angeles, California

Reports on the event can be read on the following websites:

The Times of India

Daniel Pearl Foundation