'We Need To Be Human': Zuhal Sultan On Starting The Iraqi Youth Orchestra
It's difficult enough to start an orchestra, but Zuhal Sultan founded the National Youth Orchestra of Iraq (NYOI) as a teenager in the middle of a war. She brought together 40 young musicians from different Iraqi cities and sectarian backgrounds in an effort to unify a divided nation. Now, six years later, the Euphrates Institute has named her Visionary of the Year.
"When I started establishing the orchestra, people would tell me, 'Do you think Iraq really needs an orchestra? Do you not think it needs a hospital? Do you not think it needs a school or better infrastructure?' But music is what I'm familiar with," she says. "You know, we all need our basic needs — we need food, we need shelter and we need education — but we also need to be human."
Sultan, who now lives in Glasgow, Scotland, runs the orchestra online, sourcing and auditioning her musicians via Internet connection. The NOYI had planned to start a U.S. tour, but was denied at the last minute. The rise of ISIS has forced the orchestra into hiatus, but she says her musicians are anxious to start playing again — and says they're still hopeful for an opportunity to bring their show on the road.
"Unfortunately, since summer of last year, we haven't been able to have any kind of activity because of ISIS," Zuhal says. "I know that some musicians who live in Mosul, for instance, had to leave their homes and their life and their school to go somewhere else, and now they're destitute."
"A few weeks before the tour was supposed to take place, everything fell apart because of ISIS and the fact that we could no longer get visas," she continues. "It was devastating to the musicians. But I still hope that all of the efforts that were put into this tour should not be wasted, and so we're still hoping to bring the orchestra to the states."
Zuhal Sultan recently spoke with NPR's Ari Shapiro about why Iraq needs music and how a makeshift youth orchestra survives in a nation overrun with conflict. Hear more of their conversation at the audio link.
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Transcript
ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:
Starting an orchestra is difficult. Starting an orchestra as a teenager is impressive. Zuhal Sultan started an orchestra at age 17 in the middle of a war.
(SOUNDBITE OF NATIONAL YOUTH ORCHESTRA OF IRAQ SONG)
SHAPIRO: She is the founder of the National Youth Orchestra of Iraq. She brought together 40 young musicians from different Iraqi cities and sectarian backgrounds. And now, six years later, the Euphrates Institute has named Zuhal Sultan Visionary of the Year. She's on a speaking tour of the United States and joins us here in our studios. Welcome.
ZUHAL SULTAN: Thank you very much, Ari, for having me.
SHAPIRO: Well, some people build schools. Some establish hospitals. Why did you want to create an orchestra?
SULTAN: Yeah. It's really interesting. I think when I started establishing the orchestra, people would tell me, do you think Iraq really needs an orchestra? Do you not think it needs a hospital? Do you not think it needs a school or a better infrastructure? But music is what I am familiar with. I started playing piano when I was 6 years old, and it has helped me through very rough times during the war and during - losing my parents. And I know the effects that it has on my friends who are also musicians. You know, we all need our basic needs. We need food. We need shelter, and we need education. But we also - we need to be human.
SHAPIRO: On a personal level, when you are in the middle of these difficult situations, whether it is war or losing your parents - they died, I understand, of natural causes when you were a teenager.
SULTAN: That's right.
SHAPIRO: What does music do for you in those moments?
SULTAN: It's a sanctuary. It's a place that you can go to that is not where you are. It's like a cave, perhaps, or it's like a bubble. It's somewhere else. And you mentioned something - why did I start the orchestra - as well. There are so many reasons other than music being the common goal. The fact that the country has been divided for years and years by wars, by civil conflict and even by cultures and languages - the Arabs speak Arabic, the Kurdish speak Kurdish - there are so many differences between Iraqis. But there are also things in common, and I wanted to bring that out to the world.
SHAPIRO: You've lived in Glasgow since 2009.
SULTAN: Yes.
SHAPIRO: How do you run an Iraqi orchestra from Scotland?
SULTAN: Well, I run it the way I started it. I ran it online when I started it in Baghdad, and that's how it's been since then. My only resource is a 17-year-old female teenager, and the middle of Baghdad has been a very weak Internet connection.
SHAPIRO: Wow.
SULTAN: And the improvement has been that I'm in Glasgow, and I have a better Internet connection.
SHAPIRO: (Laughter).
SULTAN: That's how we've sourced our musicians. That's how we audition our musicians.
SHAPIRO: Via Skype, YouTube, things like that?
SULTAN: Yes, our communication is online.
SHAPIRO: The orchestra has between 40 and 50 musicians from different parts of this country that - you know, some parts of Iraq are now controlled by ISIS. How do these people in various parts of the country come together to play in an orchestra?
SULTAN: Well, unfortunately, since summer of last year, we have not been able to have any kind of activity because of ISIS. And I know that some musicians who live in Mosul, for instance, they have had to leave their homes. They have to leave their life and their school to go somewhere else, and now they are destitute. So it has affected my musicians greatly. I get in contact with one of them, and I said, oh, how do you feel? He says, well, I'm still practicing because I'm waiting for when is the next time the orchestra is happening again.
SHAPIRO: This is a musician in Mosul?
SULTAN: Yeah.
SHAPIRO: What does he play?
SULTAN: He plays the violin.
SHAPIRO: Let's listen to something the orchestra has played. Is there a piece you would like us to hear?
SULTAN: I would love it if you can play "Blood Dance."
(SOUNDBITE OF NATIONAL YOUTH ORCHESTRA OF IRAQ SONG, "BLOOD DANCE")
SULTAN: "Blood Dance" is actually composed by a Scottish composer for a oud, which is a very renowned Middle Eastern instrument. And it was one of our commissions for a special piece that's written for the orchestra that tell a story about the culture, tell a story about the country. But for that particular year, we've chosen a Scottish composer because we had a tour to Scotland.
(SOUNDBITE OF NATIONAL YOUTH ORCHESTRA OF IRAQ SONG, "BLOOD DANCE")
SHAPIRO: You're listening to this so intensely. What's going through your head?
SULTAN: I'm just remembering the time that we performed this and how it felt from the first rehearsal to the last concert.
(SOUNDBITE OF NATIONAL YOUTH ORCHESTRA OF IRAQ SONG, "BLOOD DANCE")
SHAPIRO: I understand a lot of the musicians in the orchestra don't take lessons, don't have teachers, are self-taught.
SULTAN: Yes, especially after 2003 where most music tutors have left the country. Even my school - I went to the Music and Ballet School in Baghdad. It was established in the '60s and was one of the first music schools in the Middle East. Our pianos were destroyed. Every single instrument in that particular building was stolen or destroyed, and our music has also been burnt. And so most of our tutors have felt in danger, and they either left the country or stopped teaching. If they had an opportunity to flee, then they did
SHAPIRO: Have you ever felt that this project puts you in danger?
SULTAN: I think just the fact that I'm a musician and I'm a female and very outspoken at the time, that's made me feel like I could be in danger. But I had a passion for it, and I believed in it. And I think that's what makes a project successful even if you are suffering, even if you're in a country where you are defying circumstances.
SHAPIRO: I understand the orchestra was supposed to tour the U.S. this summer.
SULTAN: Yes.
SHAPIRO: But musicians were not granted visas, and so the tour had to be canceled. Is that right?
SULTAN: Yes. A few weeks before the tour was supposed to take place, everything fell apart because of ISIS and the fact that we could no longer get visas. It was devastating to the musicians. But I still hope that all of the efforts that put into this job should not be wasted, and so we're hoping to bring the orchestra still to the states.
(SOUNDBITE OF NATIONAL YOUTH ORCHESTRA OF IRAQ SONG)
SHAPIRO: Well, Zuhal Sultan, it is an absolute privilege to talk with you. Thank you.
SULTAN: Thank you very much.
SHAPIRO: Zuhal Sultan is the founder of the National Youth Orchestra of Iraq. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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