Wednesday, January 5, 2011 by Lynnette
 Be'er Sheva, Israel
October 12, 2010
Have you ever met a stranger and very soon considered that
person as you would an "old friend" - and by that I mean the kind of friend who
knows what you are thinking; who understands how you see the world and somehow
adds a new sparkle and dimension to your perspective; who has your back? I think if we are lucky we come across
one or two of them in a lifetime.
Even more rare though is to find that person on the other side of the
world in a place you never expected to be.
On our third day of touring in Israel, we headed back to the
Negev desert where we had been so inspired by the students at the Bedouin
schools. Their teacher and our host, Laurie
Ornstein had invited us back for a concert at Multaka-Mifgash in Be'er Sheva, a
community center developed by Negev Coexistence Forum for Civil Equality which was formed
to provide a framework for Jewish-Arab collaborative efforts in the struggle
for civil equality and the advancement of mutual tolerance and coexistence. The
Forum is unique in being the only Arab-Jewish organization established in the
Negev that remains focused solely on the specific problems confronting the
Negev.
The Center is located in a bomb shelter in the town of Be'er
Sheva. Only 2 years prior, during the Gaza War,
the shelter served it's intended purpose to protect residents from the bombs of
war. It is still in place as such if needed
again, as you can see in some of our photos from the FODfest concert held
there.
As Laurie pulled open the heavy steel door of
the small concrete structure budding up from the earth and led us down the
steep stairwell, I felt a surreal awareness that I was descending into the roots of
a tree. In a way, I was. Beneath the bustling town above, we
entered a small, windowless, simple pair of rooms that emanated a feeling of
peace, love, and abundance. To be
honest, that was not at all the experience I had expected.
After tea and an interview, the performance space began to fill with
people and soon with music. The
shared experience of music, community and friendship nourished this space beneath the ground
into a joyful sacred community.
There was Todd and Laurie with guitars, Bruce on banjo and fiddle, Sharon playing oud,
and Sunita strumming her glorious harp. In turn, each
artist led a song, the others played and sang along, and the audience smiled, tapped,
hummed, and applauded. I was struck, as I so often am, to realize that FODfest is always a magical, powerful experience... whether it
be in a living room, a grand theatre, or a bomb shelter. I once again envisioned the Center as "the roots of a tree" and that each person at each of its events carries the positive energy created and nourished there back up and into to the world as its limbs and leaves.
Laurie Ornstein invited FODfest because of her faith in the power of people and of music as tools for overcoming difficulties and conflict when policies and politics cannot. From the moment I met her, Laurie's energy and her purpose were contageous. Her work with Bedouin students and communities is making a real difference in their lives today and in the future. She moved from the U.S. to Israel about 40 years ago and has obviously found her calling.
In addition to her work in Bedouin schools and communities, Laurie has organized music tours, including Tommy Sands, in Israel and The West Bank paving the way for cross-cultural sharing of music in places where that is a great challenge in itself. Listening to Laurie's CD, Time Flows Backward, it is clear that her heart, mind, and soul are truly invested in creating a more just and peaceful world. It is such an honor and a blessing to know her. We look forward to Laurie's involvement in organizing our next tour in Israel and The West Bank where we will nurture the seeds sown in October 2010.
Video of Laurie Ornstein at Wadi Salame
PEACE + LOVE ~ L
Saturday, December 4, 2010 by Todd
Arad,
Israel
October
11, 2010
For the
better part of 20 years now, I have been booking concert tours for myself,
other artists, and in recent years FODfest. Producing a FODfest tour is like no other I've been involved
with. For example, our 2009 tour
consisted of nearly 40 events over the course of 32 days here in the U.S. and
Taiwan. Nearly 200 musicians
performed and a road crew of six traveled in two mini-vans some 3,000 miles to
produce the concerts and record & film them. The logistics of planning such a tour are challenging to say
the least. This past January I
began my journey of putting together a FODfest tour throughout Israel and the
West Bank. It put all previous
tour planning in a whole new perspective.
The challenges I had faced up until this point paled in comparison to
what I was about to face in planning the Middle East tour.
Sometimes I
think people's perception of FODfest is top heavyť. What I mean by that is that the scope of what we do and the
rapid rate at which we have grown often lead folks to believe that we are a
bigger, better funded, and larger staffed organization than we really are. But the truth of the matter is that we
are still a very small, grassroots outfit fueled by the tireless efforts of a
handful of organizers and an army of volunteers. As such, when I plan a tour, be it here in the States or
abroad, I am 100% dependent upon partnerships in the places we are touring to,
most of which come about as a result of constant networking.
Enter
Mema. Mema Mor is a warm, gentle
soul who lives in the small town of Arad in the southern part of Israel. Beth Miller, a musician who happened
upon our FODfest booth at the Clearwater Festival in New York this past June,
connected us with Mema. They are
cousins.
FODfest has
always been a non-political organization and we make very concerted efforts to
be so. When I first started
planning this tour our Board of Directors discussed at length the feasibility
of producing a tour that made no political statements or endorsements in an
area as politically charged as the Middle East. I consulted with a long list of folks experienced in
navigating the complexities of that part of the world. The general consensus was that it would
be extremely challenging, if not impossible, to do so. Those who know me know that I can be a
bit hard headed in my determination to reach a goal. I was resistant to the naysayers. Our approach was to identify the mixed communities within
the region and to bring FODfest to those areas exclusively. Like all of our events, that would
require partners. It didn't take
long for me to discover that some consider where you go and with whom you partner
as a political statement unto itself.
I wanted people to judge us for what we were doing rather than where and
with whom we were doing it.
Among the
dozens of people I spoke to here in the States and in Israel, it was Mema's
words that perhaps resonated the loudest.
Mixed communities, while well aligned with the mission of FODfest, did
not necessarily reflect the rich diversity that exists throughout Israel. Mema suggested that to be truly
non-political our tour should represent a measured balance of that diversity
and should include not only mixed Jewish-Arab communities, but communities that
were exclusively Jewish and exclusively Arab as well.
Danny was
one of the most all-inclusive people I have ever known, and from the onset
FODfest has prided itself in following his example of casting as wide a net as
possible. Mema's suggestion fit
nicely within that framework and the scope of our tour shifted dramatically
thanks to his idea. During the
course of our two weeks there, we produced a dozen events in mixed communities,
Jewish communities, and Arab communities, relying on partnerships with
individuals and organizations in each of the places we visited. We did not always agree with the
viewpoints of all of the people & organizations with whom we worked, but we
always found common ground in the music and its power to bring us together. It was the beginning of a dialogue; a
small, but powerful & important seed planted. It was the essence of FODfest.
Thursday, November 4, 2010 by Todd
 Negev Desert, Israel
October 10, 2010
From the onset, I have always done something celebratory
with FODfest on Danny's October 10 birthday. That is, after all, what FODfest started out as - an
informal get together with some friends (and strangers) to share some music and
raise our glasses to Danny in honor of his birthday. I confess that I was a little disappointed this year when no
such celebration was on the books.
We awoke early, left our awesome Jerusalem digs, and headed
south for the Negev Desert for our first round of events in Israel 4 school
programs at Bedouin schools for high schoolers who barely spoke English. Not exactly the kind of birthday celebration
I was accustomed to.
After getting lost more than a few times, we finally arrived
at the Abu Krinat school. Laurie
Ornstein, who set up the school visits and who was an incredible help with our
tour as a whole, welcomed us and took us to the library where the program was
being held.
Historically, Bedouins are a nomadic people, traveling
throughout the desert and other parts of Israel (and other parts of the Middle
East) for anywhere from 6 weeks to 6 months at a time, setting up a temporary
village, herding their livestock & living off the land, and then moving
on. They have existed this way for
hundreds of years, but beginning in the late 19th century many
started transitioning to a more semi-nomadic way of life, some abandoning their
traditional lifestyle completely.
In the past 30 years or so the mobility of many Bedouins in Israel has
been restricted (sometimes by their own choice) and in many cases their
lifestyle has changed. One of
those changes is the establishment of permanent Bedouin villages set up by the
Israeli government and other agencies.
These villages are typically equipped with electricity, running water,
and other amenities that have not historically been part of traditional Bedouin
life. The two schools that we were
visiting were in these types of villages.
Often the school is the only public building in the village.
Bedouins are conservative Muslims, largely Sunni. Children are discouraged to leave the
Bedouin community. This is
particularly true of the girls and I have heard stories of severe punishment
for those who have tried to break free of their family and traditional
lifestyle. Yet, it was the girls
who impressed me the most at our visits.
Dressed in black burkas (in 100 degree weather no less), the only
outward form of individual expression is the scarves they wear on their heads as headdress. It was amazing to see
the different ones pour into the classrooms, each a reflection of that
particular girl. Those adorned in
brightly colored scarves were more extroverted, curious, and even
boisterous. They often sang the
loudest, asked questions, and displayed a deeper interest in learning about
Danny and FODfest. Those wearing simpler,
less colorful scarves were typically quieter and more introverted, often
avoiding direct eye contact with us.
It was amazing to see.
But perhaps the thing about the girls that struck me the
most was their eyes, which illuminated with so much hope. Many, probably most, of these girls
will never leave their village. In
some cases it will be because they don't want to, but in others it will be
because they can't. Yet, there was
such fire, such spirit in their eyes.
It was a beam of determination powerful enough to light the world up.
At our second school, Al-Hwashla, we met an amazing 14 year
old named Mofeeda. Mofeeda found
us in the teacher's room prior to our program starting and introduced herself
to us. She brought her 10 year old
sister A'lia with her to school that day so that she could hear our
presentation. Both schools we
visited that day had prepared for our visit by learning about Daniel Pearl and
about FODfest. Mofeeda told us
that she and her sister wanted to be journalists. We love Daniel Pearl and want to be just like him,ť she
told us time and time again.
Mofeeda had arranged with her teacher to officially welcome
us to the school at the beginning of our first session. I was struck at how confidently and
eloquently she spoke, talking about her village, the Bedouins, Daniel Pearl,
and FODfest. At one point in her
introduction, Mofeeda looked me in the eyes and said, I am sorry about your
friend Danny. That is not who we
are. I am sorryť. Those words will stay with me for the
rest of my life.
A growing part of our work with FODfest these days is to seek out underserved
areas of the world and to go there.
At first blush, the reason for doing this seems obvious. We go there because not many others
will or do, and therefore it provides an opportunity for us to do what we do
for people who may not otherwise have the opportunity to experience it. It is also a platform for us to teach
people, not only about who we are and who Daniel Pearl was, but about a simple
yet powerful idea - music is a form of dialogue. What I didn't realize was how much WE gain by going to those
places. Mofeeda and her sister and
the dozens of other kids we met at the schools taught us as much, if not more,
and left upon us as palpable an impression, if not more, as we hopefully taught
and left upon them. It may not
have been what I envisioned for Danny's birthday, but it was hands down the
best celebration yet.
Photos of these two school visits can be viewed here:
Abu Krinat High School
Al-Hwashla High School
Saturday, October 9, 2010 by Todd
Friends,
We've arrived in Israel! Our El Al flght from NYC to Tel Aviv was uneventful, if not the most tightly packed plane I've ever been on. The guy in front of me was reclined in his seat so far back, I swear he was in my lap. It was a redeye flight so some of us were able to get some sleep....if you can call it that. In addition to Lynnette & I, Sharon Klein, one of our Board members, and multimedia wiz Lee Everett complete our four person crew. We will be working with dozens of others here in the middle east to produce our events. It has been a real team effort from the onset and it will be great to finally meet the many people I have been emailing & skyping with for nearly a year now to set up this tour.
The Jewish day of rest (Shabbat) is Saturday and we arrived late afternoon on Friday to a very quiet Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv. After retrieving all but one piece of luggage (a collapsable cart for lugging Lynnette's camera gear which somehow got lost in the fray) and renting our van, we headed south on the Tel Aviv - Jerusalem Rd. On route we stopped in the small Arab village of Abu Gosh, just outside of Jerusalem, and found a wonderful Lebanese restaurant called Lebanese Food Restaurant (love that). After feasting on the most amazing home made hummus, wine leaves (grape leaves), falafel, labane, kubbeh, and pita bread we topped off our meal with some Turkish coffee before continuing onward. Abu Gosh is a beautiful town, with old Arab architecture and I'm hoping we can get back there before we leave.
We've rented an apartment in Jerusalem, a luxury we are not accustomed to and one that provides us plenty of work space and our own bedrooms (an unheard of luxury in FOD touring). It took us a while to navigate the narrow, tiny streets of Old Katamon, searching in the dark for our apartment, but we finally found it. Our top floor apartment has front & rear balconies overlooking the neighborhood and offers a wonderful cross breeze.
Jet lagged and all, we wasted no time getting to work, tempering it with our FOD tradition of sampling local beer to help ease the pressure of the work load. Our schedule for the 2 weeks that we are here is packed about as tight as the plane that brought us here.
We have some AMAZING things planned! More on that in another post. At 2AM (Israel time) we stumbled into bed.
Happy to be here,
todd
Thursday, September 23, 2010 by Lynnette
Announcing Israel/Palestine Tour, US Tours, FODfest In The Schools Programs, and other recent and upcoming events and information.
Saturday, August 28, 2010 by Lynnette
Friday, June 18, 2010 by Lynnette
THE FAIRFIELD CITIZEN June 4, 2010
The late Wall Street Journal reporter, Daniel Pearl,
was, above all else, a man of peace and a fine musician. He believed in
the power of music to bring people together regardless of their
differences, according to his friend Todd Mack,
a truly extraordinary musician, bandmate of Pearl's and special person
who created FODfest (Friends of Daniel Pearl) in 2005 in his back yard
to spread the message of power through music.
Today, FODfest has visited more than 50 communities around the
globe, brought together some 750 musicians and reached thousands of
people from diverse backgrounds and cultures. Last Sunday, I
experienced my first FODfest and the evening brought me goosebumps,
laughter, tears and inspiration unlike anything I've been part of in a
long time.
I volunteered for FODfest up at Infinity Hall, a wonderful venue in
Norfolk, above Winsted -- that's west of the end of Route 8 north, but
just over an hour from Fairfield. Before the event, I had done some
volunteer publicity for Todd and he expressed the sincerest
appreciation, so I was already feeling great. But the concert capped it
all.
For three hours we watched a group of 19 musicians, including Todd,
and a choir of about seven beautiful voices, rock Infinity Hall with
music that had to have reached Daniel Pearl wherever he is. And the
most amazing thing about this concert was that none of these musicians,
who were volunteers themselves, had ever played or rarely played
together. But no one in the audience cared and the blend was pure
Heaven.
As each performer sang or played his or her instrument, the rest of
the musicians improvised and made each act seamless. They played right
along and the audience joined in the FODfest with clapping and foot
stomping. Every performer was a superstar, bringing his or her own
message of peace and empowerment to the audience.
There were some show stopping moments for me. The first came when
Todd Mack's 12-year old daughter Caroline belted out a song done by Miley Cyrus
-- "When I Look at You," which brought the house down and melted my
wife and me. I've heard plenty of young voices, but nothing came close
to the power behind this young woman's sound. Caroline's performance
was amazing -- almost haunting -- and everyone could see the depth of
feelings through her face as she felt each word. This young lady is
going places.
Balance that young talent with the seasoned gospel diva, Wanda Houston,
who came to Connecticut via San Diego and Manhattan and leads the
Goshen Congregational choir. The woman moves like butter around the
stage, magnetizing everyone as she sings. Among her show-stoppers was
"Oh Happy Days," which had all of us clapping and yelling for more.
The sound was awesome and the impact was dramatic. Trust me. Wanda
Houston's voice reverberated from one end of Infinity Hall to the other
and none of us wanted it to stop. This lady rocks!
One of the other memorable parts of the evening was when innovative pianist and music therapist, Jessica Roemischer,
brought a young woman onstage to improvise. The young woman expected to
sing, but instead Jessica asked her to improvise by playing the white
keys of the keyboard while Jessica played background. Jessica had
assured us no one ever fails and she was so right. The result was some
gorgeous music and the young woman was totally moved by what she had
done.
Shannon McMahon brought us the beautiful musical story of a now
deceased Vietnam veteran's experiences with a war no one wanted. As
part of that generation, I could identify completely and her words
touched everyone in the audience.
The absolute best part of FODfest for me was the closing number --
"Willie and the Hand Jive" from my rock and roll roots. With Wanda as
our leader, we were all doing the hand jive by the end of that number
and after 40-some years, I couldn't believe I had finally gotten it
right. I know it sounds silly, but what a moment for a broken down
codger like me.
The FODfest concert was one of my most memorable experiences, but
I've tried to think beyond the concerts to the real goals of FODfest.
Through sponsorships, the funds that are raised are funneled back into
local communities through FODfest in the schools. I told Todd I'd be
glad to be his ambassador and talk with the musical influences in our
Fairfield schools. We have the talent and one of our students has
played in a FODfest concert.
These programs are designed for junior high and high school
students and, according to Todd, "focus on the community-building-power
of music, taking place in local schools or community centers where
FODfest concerts also take place."
Two other program goals include international tours that incorporate
concerts and touch underserved communities, as well as an Internet
component, which offsets the "exploitative use of multimedia and the
Internet to propagate hate and violence," Todd pointed out.
As Todd explained, the goal of FODfest is not to make Danny Pearl a
martyr. Instead, it is to keep his memory, his musical ability and his
legacy alive by "strengthening, empowering and educating communities
through the universal language of music."
I was surrounded by the true warmth of a musical community during
last Sunday's concert and I was reminded how much music has shaped the
meaningful parts of my life. I have become a FODfest fan and want to do
all I can to get the messages out. I know this organization will
continue to bring something special to each person it touches.
Steven Gaynes can be reached at steven.gaynes@yahoo.com.
Sunday, May 30, 2010 by Lynnette
It has been an incredible weekend so far and one more show tonight at Infinity Hall in Norfolk, CT. We are so grateful to all the musicians, venues, volunteers, and audiences who have make this a remarkable FODfest series. We will be posting photos very soon and some video, too... in the mean time you can watch the concert live online at:
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/fodfest-2010-memorial-day-weekend-concert-series
Join the chat and let us know you are there!
Monday, May 17, 2010 by Lynnette
Please join us and invite your friends for FODfest 2010 as we kick off the first of several concert series throughout the year! The incredible response and requests for concerts is true validation of our belief in the power of music to connect people. Danny's faith in music as a universal language lives on through the growth of a worldwide FODfest community. Please join us if you can and invite your friends:
~ Friday May 28 at Club Helsinki, Hudson, NY
~ Saturday May 29 at The Colonial Theatre, Pittsfield, MA
~ Sunday May 30 at Infinity Hall, Norfolk, CT
We look forward to see you at FODfest 2010!!
Monday, April 12, 2010 by Lynnette
 As we prepare for some significant developments in FODfest
programming in 2010, we can't help but reflect on the evolution that
has taken place in just five years. From a backyard jam honoring
Danny's birthday in 2005 to year round national, regional, and
international tours, school programs, and multimedia productions in
2010. While FODfest is run and organized by a relatively small group of
volunteers, it is the energy and passion of thousands of people whom
have taken part in the experience that has fueled the growth of this tremendous worldwide community. We have heard hundreds of stories about why and how it has
touched people... no two stories are exactly the same. What is the
same for everyone - musicians, audiences, vounteers, and supporters is
that the sense of coming together through music to honor and celebrate
life, to understand that we have more in common than we have
differences, and that humankind can indeed be united in positive
and healing ways. I'd like to open this discussion by inviting you to
share your thoughts on FODfest... any reflections, experiences, or aha
moments you might like to share.
Thank you for being part of this incredible and growing community!
~ L
|
|
