The U.S. Premiere Children of the Stone/DAL’OUNA concert and book tour, celebrates Palestinian musician and educator Ramzi Aburedwan and his belief in the power of music and culture to transform lives and resist oppression.

The tour corresponds with the paperback release of Children of the Stone: The Power of Music in a Hard Land  by Sandy Tolan, author of the international bestseller, The Lemon Tree.

Children of the Stone tells the dramatic story of Ramzi Aburedwan’s life growing up in an occupied

Palestinian refugee camp and his transformation from a stone throwing youth of the first intifada, to a talented musician studying at the Edward Said Palestine National Academy of Music and a French Conservatory and his final return to Palestine to realize his life’s dream of founding a music school, Al-Kamandjati, that has centers in Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon. He views Al-Kamandjati and related projects with international musicians as a combination of safe haven, creative resistance, and trauma therapy for the least fortunate Palestinian children, many living in refugee camps.

In a world where so much popular fiction depicts life in a dystopian world, it is refreshing to have this non-fiction account that reflects one individual’s belief in the power of music and culture to transform lives. Congratulations to Sandy Tolan for bringing us the story of Ramzi Hussein Aburedwan, his philosophy and his personal mission to make a difference.  His story is proof of the famous words of Margaret Mead –‘Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.’

—Yo Yo Ma

Featured in concert will be the powerful music of Ramzi Aburedwan and his Arabic-French DAL’OUNA Ensemble: a dynamic fusion of Palestinian Arab folk, classical, jazz and world music. Ensemble members include renowned composer, violist and buzouk player Ramzi Aburedwan and percussionist Tareq Rantisi from Palestine, oud player Ziad Ben Youssef from Tunisia, Edwin Buger from Yugoslavia on accordion. Dal’Ouna will be joined by and the Moroccan vocalist, Nidal Ibourk and violinist Michael Dabroski, performing with his Palestinian violin.  Sandy Tolan will be with the tour through September 25th to read from his book, Children of the Stone: The Power of Music in a Hard Land. 

A note about Michael Dabroski’s violin made by Palestine’s only violin maker, Shehada Shalalda. The two men met in March 2015 when Dabroski visited Shalalda’s workshop in Ramallah and commissioned the violin, which Dabroski describes as “a weapon of peace and tolerance, a means of communicating messages of injustice and resilience.” The east-west collaboration was further developed last summer, when the violin was delivered to Dabroski in Vermont by Ramzi Aburedwan.

Learn more about the musicians and author:

Musicians
Ramzi Aburdwan & DAL’OUNA Ensemble 

Nidal Ibourk, vocalist 

Michael Dabroski, violinist

Author
Sandy Tolan

For more information contact Mary Tomassetti, mary@tolef.org