Sunday evening: Documentary The Game

A few more days to go before the 4th edition of Music for Gaza will welcome you with open arms! We're still busy arranging all kinds of "things" so we can offer our audience a day with various interesting options. So far we have the CD-exchange, a dance workshop, music, a panel discussion and more music.

For those who'd like to stay in the cafe and enjoy some quiet time, we can now offer you something very special. It's the documentary of Tinus Kramer about a theatre group from Gaza, Theatre Day Productions.

Highly recommended!

The NEW Gaza Music School!

Some very good news. The Gaza Music School has reopened. Pictures are from www.qattanfoundation.org

Peace Museum: travelling exhibition Forgiveness Project

The Netherlands has a Peace Museum (Vredesmuseum). It's a collection of travelling exhibitions about violence, grief, peace and forgiveness. An exhibition of the Forgiveness Project, in a Dutch translation, is planned during the month of May in Geleen, a southern town in the Netherlands, not far from where we organize our Music for Gaza event in Heerlen. Especially the stories of Ghazi Briegeith and Rami Elhanan, a Palestinian and Israeli, is of interest in the light of our project. As well is the story of Robi Damelin, an Israeli mother who lost her son.

This exhibition is initiated by the Dekenaat Schinnen-Geleen.

28 april t/m 3 mei 2009, Geleen:
Forgive - Reconcile
Location: Augustinus Church
Info: 0031(0)46-474.55.67 (Frans Peters)

5 t/m 10 mei 2009, Oud-Geleen:
Location: Marcus Petrus Church

12 t/m 17 mei 2009, Geleen:
Location: Chr. Kon./Verrijzenis Church

19 t/m 24 mei 2009, Lindenheuvel:
Location: OLV. V. Alt. DB Church

26 t/m 31 mei 2009, Geleen:
Location: St. Odilia

A little something for our visitors

Every visitor gets a free ticket and a chance to win one of the prizes above. We're still in the process of collecting some items, but Maxwell in Brunssum has already agreed to deliver some articles for our Music for Gaza lottery. More news to follow!

Our programme for May 3

4th CD-exchange and benefitconcert Music for Gaza
May 3 2009

Popstage De Nieuwe Nor
Pancratiusstraat 30
6211 KC Heerlen

Entrance is FREE with 10 CD’s, DVD’s of LP’s
2 euro with 5 CD’s en 4 euro without CD’s

+++We start at 12.00 hrs+++

13:30 - 15.00 hrs
•FREE Dance workshop with Mariam Er-Rabhi
•Performance Future Vibes Dance

Panel discussion in the café: 15.00 tot 16.30 hrs
•Moderator: Max Arian
•Panel: Mohammed Benzakour, Aissa Meziani, Merlijn Twaalfhoven and others


Benefietconcert 17:00 – 01.00 hrs
•DJ Noisebag & friends
•The Mondays
•Offroad•Black Mantis•Soundmaze
•Freestroke•X-Libris
•Exit 31•Crimson Aces


Sponsors:
•Heerlen Mondiaal•Vredesburo Heerlen
•Erwin Musper & Yeayeayeah Records, Studio the Bamboo Room•Soundmaze•Simply Dutch Recordings
•wWv Reschlo•SP Heerlen•Dagblad de Limburger.

www.musicforgaza.net

Where are we now?

A lot has happened last week. We'll try to summarize the best we can! First an important message, or rather, request. A while ago, Merlijn Twaalfhoven was interviewed for Mambapoint TV. He's now in the running for a cheque of 500 euro for his projects. This also includes Music for Gaza! Please click HERE and scroll to the bottom of the page and tick the box next to his name so he has a chance to win 500 euro...


Ten sponsors for De Nieuwe Nor!

We're very pleased to announce our search for ten sponsors has come to an end. SP Heerlen (socialist party, alderman and city council members) graciously signed up for the last two sponsor shares while another benefactor, who likes to remain anonymous, had already signed up as sponsor number eight. Heerlen Mondiaal, Vredesburo Heerlen, Simply Dutch Recordings, Erwin Musper, Dagblad de Limburger, Soundmaze, WWV Reschlo, ????? en SP Heerlen, many thanks for your participation and commitment to this cause!

Erwin Musper's column in Music Maker





(click image) Erwin Musper has been living and working in the United States for quite some time now. He writes about the music business and his work in a Dutch magazine for professionals in the music industry, Music Maker. In issue no 3, now available in stores, he writes about the Music for Gaza project.










Sponsors en volunteers needed for catering!

Yes. We're not done yet. We're still eager to find sponsors and volunteers who can help us pamper the Music for Gaza visitors and guests. De Nieuwe Nor allows us to use their kitchen, so we're looking for folks who can prepare luscious hors d'oeuvres, Palestinian specialities and other culinary treats. Interested to share your expertise? Mail us at musicforgaza(AT)gmail.com

Roskilde Festival Denmark donates 1 million kroner for a Hip Hop center in Gaza

There are more countries betting on music rather than politics. Here's a wonderful initiative in Denmark: the Roskilde Festival Charity Society will donate 1 million kroner (about 135.000 euro) to establish a Hip Hop center in Gaza.

"Music, and especially hip-hop, has been an important lifeline for young people in Gaza. The music and lyrics that are expressed through hip-hop, work as a valve that helps the young express their frustrations, hopes and dreams away from the everyday life which is constantly plagued by the oppression and violation of basic human rights,’ said the festival organisers in a statement."

Work in progress: March 22

(Febr 19 2009, Francesco Rigamonti) It's about time to keep you up to date again! As the picture shows, the music school has been completely destroyed. You can download the newsletter of the Qattan Center for the Child, a project of the A.M. Qattan Foundation (the organization behind the Gaza Music School).

Merlijn Twaalfhoven wrote a note about it:

Here's some news about the music school in Gaza. Everybody is working hard to get the school back open and it is to be expected that classes will resume in April. Our Music for Gaza project is no longer focussed on rebuilding the music school or the purchase of new instruments, we work towards a long term cooperation with the GMS when it comes to educating teachers and offering creative musical programs for groups of children in Gaza. More about this later, of course!

May 3 we have an event in Heerlen en May 5 we intend to give a show at the Liberation Festival, together with rappers from Gaza via Skype. We're not sure whether this will work, but we're hoping for it to succeed. We'd also like to be present at the other Liberation Festivals around the country with an info-stand. Do you have time to be a Music for Gaza representative? Just let me know! You can also become a member in Facebook or mail me with other ideas to help the children in Gaza.

Warmest regards,

Merlijn Twaalfhoven

THREE more sponsors to go!

We need THREE more sponsors for the concert hall. After Heerlen Mondiaal, Vredesburo Heerlen, Simply Dutch Recordings, Erwin Musper/Studio the Bamboo Room/Yeayeayeah Records the regional newspaper Dagblad De Limburger, the band Soundmaze en a company named wWv Reschlo (Maastricht) have agreed to become a sponsor. Thank you very much!

The bands who have committed themselves to come and perform are (in random order): Offroad, Black Mantis, Crimson Aces, Soundmaze, Exit 31, Freestroke, the Mondays and X-Libris (pending). DJ Noisebag will be the resident DJ this day.

Volunteers needed!

Besides sponsors for the concert hall, we could also do with some help in the kitchen. Who wants to take care of making snacks? We're also looking for vilunteers who can assist us with little chores and who can co-host this event. Interested? Send us an email with the subject 'volunteer May 3 Heerlen'.

Dialogue/discussion with discussion leader Max Arian

(photo: weblog Anja Meulenbelt) In cooperation with the Center for Diversity we're also organizing a dialogue or discussion with a panel and the audience. The renowned journalist Max Arian (De Groene Amsterdammer) and editor-in-chief De Brug (quarterly magazine for SIVMO, a committee supporting peace organizations in Israel) will host the event and lead the discussion or dialogue. Music for Gaza is focussed on the cultural and humanitarian aspects of the dynamics in Gaza and has no political agenda. But we can't escape reality, and as such recognize the need for people to share their thoughts, or express their concern for the Palestinian people.

That's why we offer an opportunity to exchange thoughts by bringing up a variety in themes. We all know people differ. Someone who is a christian approaches life from different angles than someone who is jewish or muslem, or not religious at all. What if we forget about the differences and try to look at what we all have in common? Everybody wants to be and have a friendly neighbour, everybody wants for their kids to do well in school. We all want to enjoy the company of family and friends, or go to work with pleasure. How can we deal with this the best we can, here in the Netherlands and how can we make a difference for the people in Gaza?

And what about Merlijn's vision, music as a weapon against extremism? How can you deal with this in a most succesful way and how do you yourself experience listening to or making music?

A.M. Qattan Foundation

The A.M. Qattan Foundation is the main force behind the Qattan Center for the Child and the Gaza Music School. In the past week we've been communicating with Omar Al-Qattan, (Board of Trustees) of the A.M. Qattan Foundation and Zaid Khalaf, executive director of the A.M. Foundation. Next time more about this organization and how Music for Gaza can contribute to resurrect music education in Gaza.