Upbeat: The Story of the National Youth Orchestra of Iraq

by Paul MacAlindin

Overview

The story of the National Youth Orchestra of Iraq is here told by its musical director from its inception to its eventual end. The NYOI came through the most difficult and dangerous of times to produce fine music not only in Iraq but also in Britain, Germany and France. A beacon of hope and achievement the young musicians and their tutors made bridges across their own ethnic divisions, made great music in the most trying and tragic of circumstances, and became their country’s best ambassadors in 5000 years.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781912240012
Publisher:	Sandstone Press
Publication date:	03/29/2018
Pages:	368
Product dimensions:	5.10(w) x 7.90(h) x (d)

About the Author

Paul MacAlindin discovered from an early age that he loved being an artist leading artists. As a musician, dancer, and all-round performer, he found his voice through conducting, a passionate journey that has led him to work with orchestras and ensembles all over the world, from the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra to the Armenian Philharmonic to the Dsseldorf Symphoniker.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations ix

Acknowledgements xi

Foreword Sir Peter Maxwell Davies xiii

Introduction xvii

1 Iraqi teen seeks maestro 1

2 The $50,000 tweet 12

3 Kick off in Suleymaniyah 24

4 Soothing tensions 36

5 And the walls came tumbling down 48

6 In darkness let me dwell 59

7 The wounded orchestra 75

8 Turning the key to Germany 87

9 That's what friends are for 100

10 Mission Improbable 113

11 The sword of Damocles 125

12 The Iraqi diplomats 138

13 The British apotheosis 156

14 On the fringes of Edinburgh 169

15 Reconciling Scotland 183

16 Breath and death 197

17 Paradoxes 205

18 In a drought 219

19 The pinnacle of endeavour 230

20 Crossroads at Aix 240

21 Mission to Mars 249

22 The Elgin solution 257

23 Reconciling Iraq 274

24 Zeal 281

25 Who are the Iraqis? 296

Index 312