Music of hope

Melodies swept on the wind, carried the smell of unburied corpses

Picture a scene: hundreds of Iraqis of different ages, gender and backgrounds gather in one large room. Smiles and optimism glimmer on their faces. Picture them swaying and singing the lyrics of the profoundly acclaimed Iraqi folkloric song Fog il Nakhal, over the palm trees. Picture the tears of some, as the symphony rises, raising with it the hope of many.

As we chatted to Karim Wasfi, the Iraqi National Symphony Orchestra director and conductor, clarinets and violins could be heard from the room next door, where a group of students rehearsed in the recently founded music academy.

The first in the Arab world, the INSO was incarnated as the independent Baghdad Philharmonic Orchestra in 1948, consisting of a group of local amateurs and professional foreign musicians who were contracted to be faculty members in the school of Music and Ballet in Iraq. In 1959, the orchestra reincarnated as the Iraqi National Orchestra under the Ministry of Guidance. Up until the 1980s it consisted of 40% Iraqi musicians - mostly graduates of the School of Music and Ballet.

One of those 40% was the then underage Karim Wasfi. The youngest in the orchestra, Wasfi received a salary of 220 Iraqi Dinars. A handsome sum for the dedicated half-Egyptian, half-Iraqi musician who spent most of his time after school practicing the cello.

The turn of events in 1990 changed the structure of the INSO forever. The foreign members left during the Kuwait invasion, leaving the orchestra totally dependent on Iraqi staff and changing the whole concept of how the orchestra functioned. Severely affected by the economic sanctions and the hardships it brought, rapid social and economic changes led to the deterioration of the orchestra. With no communication with the outside world, support or spare parts for their instruments, 'the government's prioritization shifted elsewhere,' recalls Wasfi, 'but on a positive note, it helped rechannel the orchestra and taught us how to survive in adverse environments.'

Wasfi left Iraq soon after to finish his higher education in the United States, only to return and rejoin the orchestra. 'I thought, we either exist and perform and inspire and give hope, or not.'

When Iraq accepted the 'Oil for Food' deal some development started to take place. Despite the hardship it was subjected to, the orchestra always managed to survive. Wasfi then started a concept of playing music for peace, a project he was much attached to. 'With the cello and piano, done in a very modest, self-maintained process, we chose to reintroduce the repertoire of classical music to Iraq,' explains Wasfi on what he refers to as his 'humble contribution' back then.

After April 2003 and the collapse of the ruling Ba'ath Party, every sector in Iraq was affected by the destruction, looting and mass death. The orchestra's home was burnt out and they lost sheet music, instruments and even chairs, as well as 27 members who fled the chaos.

Despite everything, the orchestra was the first entity to reunite after April 2003, and by 2004, they managed to secure financial funding from Iraq, facilitated by the Coalition Provisional Authority. And this at a time when Iraq had no official ministries and every CPA office ran an Iraqi ministry.

After a successful performance in the United States - during which Wasfi was the general director - they became a full orchestra and returned to tour Iraq. They faced many bureaucratic obstacles until the country was at the edge of civil war between 2006 and 2007.

'There were days when you wouldn't even leave home. You couldn't function, but we always tried to persevere and keep the momentum,' remembers Wasfi. The monthly performances had stopped and a number of the orchestra members received death threats. 'Everyone was threatened. There was no safe haven.'

Changing locations, rehearsal venues and concerts at the last minute, Wasfi recalls a grotesque memory that he and his orchestra will never forget. 'When we were rehearsing at the Sha'ab Concert House, there was a morgue opposite us with no power. While working on a sad mellow Mozart piece, we could smell the corpses across the street. We were struck by that very awkward yet awakening scene. For times when I was having doubts, it gave me a reason to stay and challenge the situation.'

Wasfi survived 35 explosions, each time within five minutes; when he reached his 11th, he says he was determined to stay, but by the 31st, he thought he was getting nowhere. After three years of violence, one of the orchestra members was killed and Wasfi's car was shot at. He decided to leave, but again he came back with more determination and dedication. His reaction to the escalating violence: 'more car bombs, more concerts.'

As the director and the head of the board committee, Wasfi started a process of community outreach in 2007. Hosting their first performance at the Hunting Social Club in Baghdad, they aimed to reach as many people as possible. With audiences varying between 113 and a staggering 700; the result was success.

With four young women and 49 men who played side by side on Thursday 19th March at the Ministry of Culture Concert Hall, the orchestra is home to Shi'as, Sunnis, Kurds, Armenians, Assyrian Christians and Turkomen. Young recruits such as Rania Nashaat - one of whom replaced the members who had fled the country - are given the opportunity to experience the professional aspects of performance and playing in front of a live audience. The 17-year-old French horn player says that she 'would like to study medicine to prove that I can have both worlds and celebrate them.'

Deprived of unity and serenity for so long, their audience applauded feverently as the concerto ended with a volcano of melodic sounds. This time there was no fear of nearby bombs or suicide attacks. Peace prevailed.

The 53 talented musicians are living proof that Iraq is not only about destruction and killing. Their music speaks of an endlessly achieving civilization yearning for peace.