BMI Foundation Sponsors Passerine Project Musical Benefit
Student performers courtesy of the Afghan Women's Writing Project.
The BMI Foundation (BMIF) sponsored a performance showcase as the culmination of the 2015 Passerine Project songwriting workshop on November 6, 2015 at the Lynn Redgrave Theater in New York City. The event benefitted the Afghan Women’s Writing Project, a nonprofit literacy program founded by American journalist and novelist Masha Hamilton to empower the voices and stories of women in Afghanistan. The evening included live performances of original songs by Brooklyn elementary and middle school students, as well as poetry readings by Afghan writers Basira and Mahnaz, actors Jeff Fahey, Michelle Hurd, Hannah Marks, Stephen Rider, Kiele Sanchez, and Christina Scherer, and artists Eleanor Dubinsky, Candice Simon, Tennessee Thomas, and Cleo Wade.
“I was delighted to see so many writers, artists, students, parents, teachers, and administrators come together to support a crucial human rights cause through the cross-cultural power of music,” BMIF President Deirdre Chadwick remarked. “Together we stood in solidarity of music and literary arts education, women’s equality and empowerment, and global human progress.”
The Passerine Project is a partnership between Emmy-nominated composer/producer Shevy Smith, recording artist Kendall Custer, and the Afghan Women’s Writing Project, wherein students from the Brooklyn School for Collaborative Studies and The Brooklyn New School adapt poems written by women in Afghanistan into original songs.
In January of 2015 at the BMI Foundation’s American Authors benefit concert, BMI President and CEO and BMIF Honorary Chair Mike O’Neill announced his spontaneous donation of $10,000 for the continuance of the Passerine Project. As a result, the five-week program has expanded from 35 students in its initial year to over 150 participants. The 2015 year-end showcase raised over $20,000 to support programs for the students’ co-writers in Afghanistan.
The BMI Foundation is a nonprofit organization founded in 1985 to encourage the creation, performance, and study of American music. The Foundation’s programs include competitive scholarships for songwriters and composers, operating grants for nonprofit arts presenters, and support for innovative music education initiatives in schools and communities across the country. Tax-deductible donations to the Foundation may be madeon our website. For exclusive news and content, follow @bmifoundation on Twitter attwitter.com/bmifoundation and like “BMI Foundation” on Facebook atfacebook.com/bmifoundation.