Watch: Intercultural and Creative Music Fellowship 2021

Date: Performance and documentary now streaming

Witness artistic leaders of the future engage Museum masterpieces from the past with a new musical work and documentary presented in partnership with Humber College’s Centre for Creative Business Innovation.

This summer, students from Humber’s renowned music program composed and recorded an original four-movement work inspired by their own life experiences and artworks in the Museum’s Collection. This talented group of young musicians has orchestrated a suite of new music evoking themes of unity, nature, the need for diversity in collaboration, and the cultural threads that bind us all together. Click the video below to experience the soaring composition for yourself.

As a prelude to the performance, a short documentary by Humber filmmakers Anastasiya Lutsyshyn, Ismail Ali, and Stuart O'Brien sheds light on the musicians’ journey from inspiration to creation. Click the video below to see the story unfold. 

About the Intercultural and Creative Music Fellowship

This past summer, Fellows worked for 11 weeks to conceive, plan, and execute a multidisciplinary original music project, under the direction of a Creative Producer (Kiya Tabassian) and Project Lead (Agneya Chikte). The final works involve a four-movement original music suite, inspired by their own life experiences and artworks in the Museum’s Collection, and a film documenting the entire fellowship. The Fellows, all second, third, and fourth-year music and film students at Humber College collaborated virtually, collectively composed all of the music, recorded themselves independently, and produced and directed the film and the music video. They were all finally able to meet for the first time in person, in week 10 of the fellowship, thanks to improved COVID restrictions.

Over the 11 weeks, guest speakers and mentors included Jennifer Gordon (Director, CCBI & Humber Galleries), Amirali Alibhai (Head of Performing Arts, Aga Khan Museum), Bita Pourvash (Assistant Curator, Aga Khan Museum), Justin Gray (Composer, Producer, Humber Music Faculty), Sage Petahtegoose (Filmmaker), Imran Babur (Filmmaker & Multidisciplinary Artist), Kondwani Mwase (Public-Speaking Mentor) and Dr. Tuhin Giri (Research-Creation Mentor). Fellows gained new insights and perspectives into music composition and filmmaking, Islamic art and literature, the cultural threads that bind us together, and new understandings of research, creativity, and professional process, allowing them to view themselves as researchers as well as professional artists.

The Fellowship culminated in a final concert and screening at the Aga Khan Museum’s auditorium on September 16, and more performance dates are currently in the works!

Fellows

Alejandra Nuñez – Voice

Behzad Danesh – Electric & Microtonal Guitar

Dwit Hathi – Electric, Fretless, and Nylon String Guitar

Gabriela Laconsay - Upright and Elecrtic Bass

Juan Ariza – Tiple and Electric Guitar

Peter Holbrook – Piano, Keys, and Accordion

Angela Pincente — Trombone

Roshane Wright — Djembe, Percussion

Anastasiya Lutsyshyn — Director

Ismail Ali — Producer

Stuart O'Brien — Director of Photography

Acknowledgements

Music mixed by Matthew Manifould. 

Guillermo Acosta (Senior Dean, Humber College-Faculty of Media & Creative Arts) 

Dr. Ulrike Al-Khamis (Director and CEO, Aga Khan Museum) 

The Humber College-Aga Khan Museum Intercultural and Creative Fellowship Concert is supported by Bashir and Farida Dhanani & Family.