Throughout the month of October, the 12th Annual Daniel Pearl World Music Days will take place across the United States and around the world.
During this month-long initiative, musicians and artists from around the globe will use the international language of music in a call for fellowship and unity across cultural divides. Musicians of every genre are invited to participate by making a dedication to “Harmony for Humanity” from the stage or in a printed program, as well as to register their performances and create an Artist Profile page (optional) at www.danielpearlmusicdays.org.
Sponsored by the Daniel Pearl Foundation, this year’s initiative marks the 12th anniversary that World Music Days has inspired and empowered audiences worldwide. Since its inception in 2002, more than 11,000 performances in 129 countries have been dedicated to “Harmony to Humanity” in the memory of Daniel Pearl, the former Wall Street Journal South Asia Bureau Chief, an avid violinist and fiddler, who was kidnapped and murdered by terrorists in Pakistan shortly after 9/11. Many distinguished musicians are members of the Honorary Committee, including Sir Elton John, Barbra Streisand, Yo-Yo Ma, Herbie Hancock and Itzhak Perlman, leading a global symphony of jam sessions, choirs, duets, quartets and school performances.
“As Victor Hugo said, ‘music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent.’ This October, we invite musicians and artists on every continent to join with the spirit of our son in ringing the world for sanity and humanity,” said Judea Pearl, Danny’s father and President of the Daniel Pearl Foundation. “Danny, who would have turned 50 on October 10th, connected people and inspired friendship wherever he traveled,” explained his mother Ruth Pearl, co-founder of the Foundation. “Since 2002, musicians of every genre – from internationally acclaimed performers to amateurs and student groups – have rallied during the month of October to transcend differences and inspire unity by dedicating their performances to his ideals and memory. It is a great opportunity to assert, through music, our conviction that goodness will triumph and humanity will prevail.”
The Daniel Pearl Foundation was created in 2002 to promote the ideals that inspired the life and work of Daniel Pearl. The Foundation works domestically and internationally to inspire unity and friendship through music, to counter cultural and religious intolerance, to foster cross-cultural dialogue and understanding, and to cultivate responsible and balanced journalism. For more information, please visit www.danielpearl.org.
