Music as a Global Resource: - International Council for Caring ...

SECTION:
Music for Peacebuilding
COUNTRIES:
International
PROJECT:
INTERNATIONAL TELEMATIC MUSIC CONCERTS FOR PEACE: RESONATIONS
DESCRIPTION:
ResoNations (meaning “to resonate nations”) is an ongoing series of international telematic music
concerts and other educational events for peace that take place at the United Nations and international
sites. Telematic music is live performance via the internet by musicians in different geographic locations.
The programs consist of new compositions for peace, based on the metaphor of resonance, by
contemporary composers from each participating country for the full telematic ensemble to perform
together. ResoNations goal is to create peace by using music and technology to bring people together
from different countries in a synchronous and neutral space that transcends geographic distance and
boundaries. The concerts have local audiences in each location and world-wide webcast. The network
technology includes high-bandwidth internet, JackTrip telematic audio software, videoconferencing
hardware and software, and webcast.
ResoNations was initially proposed by its coordinators in June 2009 to Arts for Peace, a program of The
World Association of Former United Nations Interns and Fellows, Inc. (WAFUNIF). The goal of Arts for
Peace is to establish bridges between the arts community and the work of the UN, the aims of the UN
Charter and the realization of a Culture of Peace. ResoNations 2009 was presented in their Innovation
Talks Symposium with sponsorship from the Permanent Mission of Romania to the UN. This was the first
known telematic music concert involving a United Nations site. The participating locations were the UN
Headquarters in New York, University of California San Diego, The Banff Centre, Queen‟s University
Belfast, and Dongguk University in Seoul Korea with support from Korea Advanced Institute of Science
and Technology (KAIST).
The proposal for ResoNations took place after the success of Deep Tones for Peace, an international
internet music performance for peace in the Middle East that took place on April 26, 2009. Deep Tones
for Peace is an international organization of bass players and composers dedicated to peace in the Middle
East. The concert was performed live on the internet between internationally recognized bass players
located in both Jerusalem at the Hama‟abada The Jerusalem Performing Arts Lab and in New York at the
Manhattan School of Music and with participation from Cue Art Foundation. Deep Tones for Peace was
coordinated with involvement from twenty organizations including Kadima Collective Recordings,
International Society of Bassists, International Society for Improvised Music, Arts for Peace, Electronic
Music Foundation, Danish Composer's Society's Production, Pool/Koda's Fund for Social and Cultural
Purposes, Office of Cultural Affairs - Consulate General of Israel in New York, and the Jerusalem
Municipality Cultural Department.
The most recent ResoNations concert took place in 2010 with the participating locations the UN
Headquarters in New York with support from New York University, Beijing Conservatory of Music in
China with support from University of Calgary, and the National Center for Korean Traditional
Performing Arts in Seoul with support from KAIST. The crisis between North Korea and South Korea
was active so the purpose of the concert was heightened. There was also a ResoNations 2010 education
session for New York University music students at the UN Headquarters in New York and at the New
York University Abu Dhabi Campus which opened that year. This was the first known telematic music
event with an Arab country. The events were part of the Innovation Talks Symposium again presented by
Arts for Peace of WAFUNIF with sponsorship from the Permanent Mission of the United Arab Emirates
to the UN.
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