Phil miller: a scot recounts his remarkable journey with an orchestra born in war and discord (from

Phil Miller: A Scot recounts his remarkable journey with an orchestra born in war and discord (From Herald Scotland)

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Phil Miller: A Scot recounts his remarkable journey with an orchestra born in war and discord

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The late Sir Peter Maxwell Davies summed up the journey taken by Scottish conductor and musician Paul MacAlindin in the last eight years. He said: “The great adventure of the National Youth Orchestra of Iraq (NYoI) deserves not only to be recorded for posterity but also to serve as an example of how the essential can survive catastrophe.” That great adventure, the NYoI, is, at present, paused. But Mr MacAlindin’s own story of how he played a key role in creating an orchestra amid the chaos of post-invasion Iraq is to be published. Upbeat, written by Mr MacAlindin, will be out on August 18 (published by Sandstone) and will be discussed at an event with the author at the forthcoming Edinburgh International Book Festival on August 13.

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http://www.heraldscotland.com/opinion/14666158.Phil_Miller__A_Scot_…_his_remarkable_ journey_with_an_orchestra_born_in_war_and_discord/

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Phil Miller: A Scot recounts his remarkable journey with an orchestra born in war and discord (From Herald Scotland)

I spoke to Mr MacAlindin this week. It is a poignant time for the conductor, living in Glasgow again a!er many years in Germany. The horrific carnage wrought by so-called Islamic State (IS), which was kilometres from Baghdad when the orchestra was wound up, led to the suspension of its activities. He said: “IS in 2014 were literally at Baghdad’s door. If they had found any of the musicians it would have meant certain execution.” He does not know if the orchestra, in the form in which he created it, will play again. Some of its 46 musicians, aged between 14 and 29 and Iraqi, Arab and Kurd, have emigrated to the United States, Canada and elsewhere. The nature of what Iraq itself is, and the future of Kurdish land, is up in the air, in his view. But for five years the Scot helped inspire and hold together the remarkable orchestra until it was cut short by the depredations of IS. The Herald plays a tiny part in the tale. Mr MacAlindan was in an Edinburgh cafe in October 2008 when he first read a story, headlined Search for UK Maestro to help create an orchestra in Iraq (you can still find it on our website). This story was prompted by the remarkable Zuhal Sultan, a young Iraqi pianist who came up with the idea of the orchestra. Mr MacAlindin leapt into action. He got Sir Peter on board (as composer in residence) and auditions were done by Skype and YouTube. It all came together: the orchestra played in the UK, Germany and, in their last gig, in France in 2013.

The book details how Mr MacAlindin got the disparate band to play together. Haydn’s symphony no. 99 was a key work, as was Beethoven. It shows how he pulled together a diverse orchestra, some of whom were “not natural colleagues”.

09/08/16 23:25

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Mr MacAlindin said that two bodies exist, an NGO helped by the British Council in Iraq and a friends organisation in Germany, which could aid the revival of the orchestra at some later date. Even if it doesn’t reform, the orchestra was a victory for art and light in the face of darkness. And in the year of Chilcot, Mr MacAlindin’s Upbeat seems a timely homage to this fragile but beautiful thing created by an inspirational Scot and the bravery and dedication of the musicians.

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http://www.heraldscotland.com/opinion/14666158.Phil_Miller__A_Scot_…_his_remarkable_ journey_with_an_orchestra_born_in_war_and_discord/

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Phil Miller: A Scot recounts his remarkable journey with an orchestra born in war and discord (From Herald Scotland)

09/08/16 23:25

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