PROFILES IN ARTS ACTIVISM ~
William Harvey
Violinist and Arts Activist William Harvey. Photo: Peter Schaaf
A Shatteringly Intense Experience
“Before Cultures in Harmony, no one would have ever accused me of being flexible,” laughs Sing for Hope donor artist William Harvey, who is the founder and executive director of Cultures in Harmony. The young musician’s uncompromising focus on his art has resulted in some extraordinary musical achievements; already he has served as concertmaster of both the Spokane Orchestra and the Juilliard Orchestra, won major competitions and, December 2007, made his Carnegie Hall debut.
However, the performance that changed his life was not carefully rehearsed. On September 16, 2001, in the aftermath of 9-11, he and several other Juilliard students volunteered to play chamber music at the Armory, where families awaited news of their loved ones. After an afternoon of playing chamber music with his colleagues, William was asked if he would mind staying to play for some soldiers who were returning from digging through the rubble. He agreed, and went on to play anything and everything he knew from memory — repertoire that ranged from Tchaikovsky to “Turkey in the Straw.”
“Never have I played for a more grateful audience,” he wrote later. “Somehow it didn’t matter that, by the end, my intonation was shot and I had no bow control. I would have lost any competition I was playing in, but it didn’t matter. The men would come up the stairs in full gear, remove their helmets, look at me, and smile.”
That impromptu performance at the Armory demonstrated music’s transformative power. “Those guys had seen hell, and at that one moment music washed everything away,” says William. “I felt it was no longer acceptable for me to remain in the ivory tower of classical music. I believe music is most emphatically not something that exists at the periphery of life. It deserves a central role, which it so seldom has.”
William’s experience led him to found Cultures in Harmony (CiH), a nonprofit organization dedicated to forging connections across cultural and national barriers through the medium of music. CiH has already brought projects to Egypt, Cameroon, Philippines, Tunisia, Mexico and Pakistan. While each project is unique, six key components are always present: William and his colleagues perform with local musicians, work with children, partner with humanitarian organizations, affirm cultural diversity, engage in dialogue, and promote democratic values.
As William selects musicians to participate in projects, he says, “I let them know that this is a shatteringly intense experience. There is no routine. For the project in Cameroon, we went knowing the name of only one person, with no firm itinerary, no venue, nothing.” In addition to the logistical challenges of making music under wildly varying circumstances—sometimes without running water or electricity—the musicians must remember that their primary goal is diplomacy: “Every minute, we are working. When we are on the street, when we are interacting with someone’s servant, we are representing the U.S.” William cherishes the words of Dr. Solomon Guramatunhu, ophthalmologist and Chairman of Eyes for Africa, Zimbabwe, who told him: “You form the ‘beautiful face of America’ which the world is yearning for.”
In March, William begins a new adventure: he has recently been named the Violin and Viola Teacher for the Ministry of Education in Kabul, Afghanistan, a post he will hold concurrently with his position with CiH. While the combination will be challenging, he says, “It is a job that is congruent with our mission, and I felt I needed to pursue it.”
On December 14th, William will take part in Sing for Hope’s multicultural Holiday Sing for Community Heroes in Lower Manhattan, joining fellow Sing for Hope donor artists to share musical highlights from around the world with our neighbors at two NYC firehouses and The Bowery Mission.
Here is William playing the 9th Caprice at a concert for children in Washington Heights:
Photo: Peter Schaaf
Thank you, William, for using your talents to promote cross-cultural collaboration in such innovative ways!
This article is the second in a series written for Sing for Hope by donor artist Kelley Rourke (Dramaturg, Glimmerglass Opera; Editor, OPERA America Magazine).
To read more PROFILES IN ARTS ACTIVISM, click here.
