Music Freedom Day 2008 Is Celebrated Today
Musicians and broadcasters will participate Monday 3 March 2008 in world-wide will focus on music censorship.
Death threats in Yemen, murder cases in Mexico, new satellite TV restrictions in the Middle East, court cases in Turkey. .
This year, Oslo’s Nobel Peace Center will highlight the Music Freedom Day with a seminar and a concert featuring Kris Kristofferson, Ferhat Tunç (Turkey), Chiwoniso Maraire (Zimbabwe) and Norway's own world famous Sámi singer, Mari Boin.13 countries will broadcast the concert which will also be transmitted globally by the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation via the internet.
In Afghanistan, 1,000 balloons will fly over Mazar-i-Sharif City to convey the message to the world that Afghans also love music. The Afghanistan Culture House Organisation in Balkh Province organizes the event on Music Freedom Day, commemorating that Balkh is the birth place of the famous Sufi poet and thinker Rumi, who introduced music as the 'sound of the creation of universe'. There will be a press conference, a concert and a general gathering to support music and freedom of expression in Afghanistan as well as in the world.
In Congo Brazzaville, the cultural organization Erwill Promo Entertainment marks the Music Freedom Day with a seminar on Saturday 1 March, and a round table on Monday 3 March. The events – "Les mots de la liberté d'expression musicale" – are focusing on freedom of musical expression. Erwill Promo Entertainment has invited a person from the Superior Council of Freedom of Communication, a spokesman from the Censorship board of Congo (BCDA) as well as the artists Hardos Massamba, Lang'l and Cavla. There will be live music as well as debate.
Freemuse is providing several original radio interviews and radio reports which are offered to radio stations in broadcast quality, free of charge. For instance, a 15 minutes radio report including interviews with amongst other reggae star Tiken Jah Fakoly has been produced specifically for African radio stations that wish to inform their listeners about music censorship on the occasion of the global event. The program can be downloaded here.
The new annual Freemuse Award will be announced at the Nobel Peace Center on 3 March during the celebration of Music Freedom Day.
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