November 13, 2001: Merajuddin, a 30 year-old taxi

driver, set the volume on his car stereo to its highest,

playing his favorite Afghan songs with the windows

rolled down. He had kept the stereo hidden at home

for five years, listening only at night and with the vol-ume

low. Noor Mohammed, a small stout man, waved

his hands in the air, dancing to the tune blasting from

a small tape player held to his ear and shouting, "We

are free."

Only hours before, the Taliban had fled south toward

Kandahar and the Northern Alliance had rolled into

the Afghan capital of Kabul.

The Taliban's prohibition on instrumental music has

seemed reprehensible to those in the West who see

music as the purest art form, in the

words of composer Leos Janacek, "the

attempt to express the inexpressible."

the ban "one of the most grotesque

experiments in human history."

For the history of the ban on music --

and, indeed, an outright ban on all

visual representation of living crea-tures"

which meant the end of TV,

video and cinema as well as much

painting and photography -- in

cultural ethnomusicologist John Baily is must read-ing.

Baily sees music as a key part of the cultural

identity of Afghanistan and one of the few unifiers in

such a tribalistic society. When instrumental music

was banned, people lost part of their identity and were

constantly being reminded that they were leading an

abnormal life. The resumption of the playing of music

has now signaled that normality is returning.

Suppression of music did not start with the Taliban,

in fact a puritanical strain of Islam has existed since

the religion's birth. In some ways the assault on

music started in refugee camps in the 1980s. Music

was deemed inappropriate because there were many

people who had lost family members in the war

against the Soviet Union. In Afghanistan, music has

always been considered completely inappropriate in

connection with death.

The Taliban hardened the censorship by claiming in

1998 that the prophet said those who listened to

music in this world would, on the day of judgment,

have molten lead poured into their ears. This was not

an authentic tradition nor was it supported by any-thing

to have referred to the music of stringed instruments

as "arousing." Even in Britain today, Muslims remain

suspicious of music and of its associations with plea-sure,

drink and sex. Baily believes the Taliban are

simply puritanical and against any form of enjoyment

or entertainment outside the sphere of religion.

Afghans are fiercely independent people and did not

take kindly to the imposition of authority by force.

Many managed to defy the ban on music -- despite

danger of assault, imprisonment, exile

or even death. Musicians hid or buried

their instruments; live performances

were held discretely, especially in rural

areas where the Taliban had little pres-ence.

Music simply disappeared from

sight, ready to reappear when the time

was right.

The study of music-making around the

world shows that all human societies

have music of one kind or another. Like

language, music is a human universal.

Musicality and music-making appear to be fundamen-tal

aspects of what it means to be human. Baily

believes a human society deprived of music is likely to

become to some extent dehumanized, lacking the per-sonal

emotional expression that comes from compos-ing,

performing and listening to music, and missing

the joining of people in a common experience which

makes them feel closer.

While in the U.S. official governmental censorship of

free speech -- of which musical expression is a compo-nent

-- is limited, we have to look only at the list of

150 songs which Clear Channel Communications cir-culated

in the U.S. within days of the September 11

terrorist attacks, suggesting broadcasters "use good

judgment in playing" them. Even in the U.S. there is

an ongoing, dynamic struggle between conservatives

and those who cling fiercely to our first amendment

rights, freedoms we are fighting to preserve.

From November 18, 2001 through January 13, 2002,

"Art Ability," a national juried exhibit by 80 artists

with disabilities from around the world, working in

all media, is taking place at both its traditional site at

the Bryn Mawr Rehabilitation Hospital in Malvern,

Pennsylvania and also at the Pennsylvania Academy

of Fine Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The exhibit began with a preview party at the reha-bilitation

center in Malvern on November 18 and

expanded to the Academy with 40 additional works

from the same slate of artists on December 21.

The exhibit is considered a pace-setter among the

region's many annual art exhibits with health-related

themes. Professional and amateur artists' works are

commingled. Not only are participants talented, they

have overcome disabilities to continue -- or to begin

-- making art.

Contact Lois Levy, Bryn Mawr Rehabilitation Hospi-tal

(Jefferson Health System), P. O. Box 3007, 414

Paoli Pike, Malvern, PA 19355 USA.

Telephone: (610) 251-5607. Fax: (610) 889-0943.

E-Mail: <rehabinfo@mlhs.org>

Website: <http://www.mainlinehealth.org/bmr>

Contact Hilary Pitts, Pennsylvania Academy of Fine

Arts' Gallery 1301, 1301 Cherry Street, Philadelphia,

PA 19102 USA.

Telephone: (215) 972-7642. Fax: (215) 569-0153.

E-Mail: <hilary@pafa.org>

Website: <http://www.pafa.org>

From January 12 through January 13, 2002, writer

and teacher Shelley Berc and visual artist and teach-er

Alejandro Fogel will present the first of their Cre-ativity

Workshops for 2002 in New York, New York.

Other two-day workshops will take place throughout

the year in New York in March, April and May. A

ten-day workshop will take place in Florence, Italy

from June to July and nine-day workshops will take

place in Greece, Spain and France in July and

August.

Sessions entitled "Creativity Workshop: Writing,

Drawing, Storytelling and Personal Memoir" are

intended to help participants find and develop their

particular ways of expression and break through

fears associated with creation by using writing, draw-ing,

collage, map-making, story-telling and guided

visualization.

Contact Karen Bell, Administrative Associate, Cre-ativity

Workshop Studio, 444 East 82nd Street #16H,

New York, NY 10028 USA.

Telephone: (212) 249-1602. Fax: (209) 882-6360.

E-Mail: <kbell@creativityworkshop.com>

Website: <http://www.creativityworkshop.com>

From January 18 through January 20, 2002 Musi-cians'

Wellness, Inc. will present Levels I and II of its

Certificate Training Program in Performance Well-ness

in New York, New York. Levels I and II will be

repeated in May in Los Angeles, California and in

June in New York. Level III will be presented in

April and July in upstate New York. Continuing edu-cation

credits are available.

The Certificate Training Program in Performance

Wellness is a clinically-proven method of preventing

and treating such musicians' disorders as overuse

injuries and stage fright. The program is also

designed to awaken the healing essence of music in

musicians and their students. Graduates are quali-fied

to work with musicians, orchestras and other per-forming

groups.

Levels I and II of the program are presented in the

same three-day workshop. Level III is presented in a

second workshop of five days' duration.

Contact Louise Montello, NCPsyA, CMT, 4 Washing-ton

Square Village #13J, New York, NY 10012 USA.

Telephone: (212) 473-8753. Fax: (212) 473-8753.

E-Mail: <lm7@nyu.edu>

From January 21 through January 25, 2002 the

Department of Anatomy, University of New South

Wales (UNSW), Sydney, Australia will hold a work-shop

on drawing from human anatomical specimens.

Entitled "Step into Leonardo's Shoes," the event will

be led by artist Susan Dorothea White and anatomist

Brian Freeman, MD and will take place at the Univer-sity

of New South Wales.

Contact Lorraine Brooks, Department of Anatomy,

UNSW, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia 2052.

Telephone: + 61 2 9385 2464. Fax + 61 2 9313 6252.

E-Mail: <lorraine.brooks@unsw.edu.au>

Website: <http://www.leonardosshoes.com>

From February 7 through February 10, 2002 the

American Institute of Medical Education (AIME) will

offer "Creativity and Madness: Psychological Studies

of Art and Artists" in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

The conference will illustrate that pain and turmoil do

not always result in disability and disease but can

lead to that triumph of the human spirit we call cre-ativity.

Participants will gain a greater understand-ing

of creative as well as maladaptive responses to life

stresses and will be able to provide their patients with

an increased quality of care. Continuing education

credits are available in a number of fields and many

expenses connected to the conference are tax-deductible.

Presentations will include "Life into Art -- Art into

Life: Transformative Effects of the Female Symbol on

a Contemporary Woman Artist," "The Role of Spiritu-ality

in Healing -- Lessons from Native America,"

"Healing the Self through Self Portraits" and "Pas-sages:

Assisting Young People in Awakening to Wis-dom."

Contact Barry Panter, AIME, 14205 Valley Vista

Boulevard, Sherman Oaks, CA 91423 USA.

Telephone: (800) 348-8441. Fax: (818) 789-9857.

E-Mail: <barryp15@aol.com>

Website: <http://www.aimed.com>

From March 15 through March 16, 2002 the Interna-tional

Society for the Psychopathology of Expression

and Art Therapy (SIPE) and the Geriatric Depart-ment

(Centre Jean Vignalou) of Pau Central Hospital

will present "Aged People in Art Therapy: From

Expression to Social Link" in Pau, France.

This conference is intended to reflect, confront and

exchange views on art therapy activities for the aged

in multidisciplinary settings. Individuals from activi-ty

leaders to artists to medical practitioners, teachers

and psychologists will benefit from attendance.

Contact Dr. Guy Roux, SIPE, 27 Rue du Marechal Jof-fre,

64000 Pau, France.

Telephone: 05 59 27 69 74. Fax: 05 59 27 69 74.

E-Mail: <sipearther@aol.com>

Website: <http://mageos.ifrance.com/art-therapy/art-therapy/

sipe.htm>

From April 18 through April 20, 2002 the Society for

the Arts in Healthcare will hold its annual conference

in Gainesville, Florida. Shands Arts in Medicine, VSA

Arts Florida and the CAHRE Center at the University

of Florida will be co-sponsors. Entitled "Prescriptive

Arts in Medicine: The Practice of Arts in Healthcare,"

the event will feature as keynote speakers Patch

Adams, MD; Rumi translator Coleman Barks and hos-pital

administrator Blair Sadler.

Contact Lauryn Arce, Program Coordinator, Shands

Arts in Medicine, P. O. Box 100317, Gainesville, FL

32610-0317 USA.

Telephone: (352) 265-0151. Fax: (352) 265-8912.

E-Mail: <arcelb@shands.ufl.edu>

Website: <http://www.thesah.org>

From April 18 through April 21, 2002 the National

Association of Poetry Therapy (NAPT) will hold its

22nd Annual Conference in Denver, Colorado. Enti-tled

"Emerging Landscapes: Poetic Visions and Vis-tas,"

the event will cover aspects of the use of poetry,

literature, journaling, creative writing and related

fields.

Contact NAPT, 733 15th Street NW # 330, Washing-ton,

DC 20005 USA.

Telephone: (202) 966-2536. Fax: (202) 638-7895.

E-Mail: <napt@dmg-dc.com>

Website: <http://www.poetrytherapy.org>

From April 23 through April 28, 2002 the Internation-al

Psycho-Oncology Society (IPOS) will present the

Second International Creative Retreat for Post-Treat-ment

Cancer Patients in Assisi, Italy. The event,

entitled "A Creative Retreat! A journey towards inner

peace and strength through the use of silence, guided

meditation, art therapy and creative writing," will be

led by Paola Luzzatto, PhD, ATR-BC, Assistant

Attending Art Therapist at Memorial Sloan-Kettering

Cancer Center in New York, New York and a team of

experienced professionals from around the world.

Instructors will include Bonnie Gabriel, MPS; Dr.

Lucia Minerbi; David Payne, PhD and Dr. Gabriella

Ventrella.

The philosophy of the retreat is based on the use of

creativity and silence which enhance each other to

facilitate inner development and healing from trauma.

Contact Elizabeth Peabody, International Psycho-Oncology

Society, 1275 York Avenue, Box 421, New

York, NY 10021 USA.

Telephone: (212) 639-3917. Fax: (212) 717-3763.

E-Mail: <peabodye@mskcc.org>

Website: <www.ipos-aspboa.org>

Because the U.S. Travel Advisory, the CIA and the

FBI advised against it, the conference originally

scheduled to be held from June 19 through June 21,

2002 under the auspices of the International Net-working

Group of Art Therapists (ING/AT) and the

ArtReach Foundation has been cancelled. The event

was entitled "Arts Therapies Enhance Human

Resiliency" and had been scheduled to take place in

Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovena.

Instead, ING/AT and ArtReach will implement an art

therapy summer camp in New York for children who

lost family members in the World Trade Center.

Contact Bobbi Stoll, 8020 Briar Summit Drive, Los

Angeles, CA 90046 USA. Telephone: (323) 650-5934.

E-Mail: <art_tx@earthlink.net>

From June 20 through June 23, 2002 the Performing

Arts Medicine Association (PAMA), in conjunction

with the Aspen Music Festival, will sponsor "Medical

Problems of Musicians and Dancers" in Aspen, Col-orado.

Presentations will focus on a broad range of

subjects related to the health problems of performing

artists and will include original research, clinical

reviews, case studies and interactive workshops.

Contact Mary Fletcher, Executive Director, PAMA,

Box 61228, Denver, CO 80206 USA.

Telephone: (303) 751-2770. Fax: (303) 751-2770.

E-Mail: <artsmed@aol.com>

From August 18 through August 22, 2002 the Educa-tional

Theatre Association will present the 2002

International Senior Theatre Festival and Conference

in Columbus, Ohio. Planned events include theater

performances from many leading senior theater com-panies,

performance and educational workshops pre-sented

by experts in the field of aging and theater and

other trips and events spotlighting the host city,

Columbus, Ohio.

Contact Educational Theatre Association, Senior The-atre

Festival, 2343 Auburn Avenue, Cincinnati, OH

45219-2815 USA. E-Mail: <seniorfestival@edta.org>

Website: <http://www.seniortheatrefestival.org>

From October 25 through October 27, 2002, the Inter-national

Association for Dance Medicine and Science

(IADMS) will sponsor its 12th Annual Meeting in

New York, New York. A major focus of the conference

will be hip problems in dancers.

Proposals for presentations are being sought on clini-cal

dance medicine, dance medicine research, dance

science, dance education and general dance topics.

Presentations will be categorized as Practitioner Wis-dom,

Descriptive Research, Intervention Research,

Theoretical Analysis or Movement Sessions. The

deadline for submissions is February 15, 2002.

IADMS promotes medical, scientific and educational

activities aimed at enhancing the treatment and

training of dancers with the ultimate goal of improv-ing

dancers' health, well-being and performance.

Contact Steven J. Chatfield, PhD, Executive Director,

IADMS, Department of Dance, 1214 University of

Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403-1214 USA.

Telephone: (541) 465-1763. Fax: (541) 465-1763.

E-Mail: <executivedirector@iadms.org>

Website: <http://www.iadms.org>

From November 7 through November 10, 2002 the

National Association for Drama Therapy (NADT) will

present its 23rd Annual Conference in Albuquerque,

New Mexico. Entitled "Dramatic Differences:

Encouraging Deeper Consciousness of Diversity in

Drama Therapy," the event will explore ways to deep-en

consciousness of diversity within the drama thera-py

community. It is hoped that participants will be

inspired to move beyond tolerance into a place of

respect for difference and a willingness to challenge

their own safe constructions and ideas.

Topics addressed will include cultural pluralism, the

relationship of such modalities as Therapeutic The-ater

or Theater of the Oppressed to drama therapy

and diversity and multi-culturalism in the training of

drama therapy students.

Contact NADT, 733 15th Street NW #330, Washing-ton,

DC 20005 USA.

Telephone: (202) 966-7409. Fax: (202) 638-7895.

E-Mail: <nadt@dmg-dc.com>

Website: <http://www.nadt.org>

The Italian Culture Institute of Naples provides

training in art therapy at its offices in Naples, Italy.

CISAT -- Centro Italiano Studi Arte-Terapia (Art-Therapy

Studies Italian Center) -- is a four-year

school of specialization and training in art therapy.

Online courses are also available. The school is a

member of the World Council for Psychotherapy and

the International Networking Group of Art Therapists.

Individuals with degrees in psychology, medicine,

education, philosophy and such subjects as arts, for-eign

languages and literature are candidates for

admission. A "good instrumental knowledge of

English" is required for course completion. Along

with the theoretical training, participants engage in a

cycle of sessions of personal training throughout the

four year program.

Contact Italian Culture Institute, Via Bernardo Cav-allino,

89, 80131, Naples, Italy.

Telephone: 081/546 16 62. Fax: 081/220 30 22.

E-Mail: <cisat@istitalianodicultura.org>

Website: <http://www.centrostudiarteterapia.org>

Arts Medicine Association (PAMA), is now

available from the publisher. Included in this issue

are articles entitled "Tinnitus and the Performer,"

"Psychosomatic Findings in Musician Patients at a

Department of Hand Surgery," "Upper Extremity Dif-ficulties

in the Dedicated Amateur Instrumentalist"

and "Prevalence of Medical Problems among Double

Reed Performers."

Contact Liz Troy, Hanley and Belfus, Inc., 210 South

13th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107 USA. Telephone:

(215) 546-4995, Extension 18. Fax: (215) 546-8235.

E-Mail: <ltroy@hanleyandbelfus.com>

Website: <http://www.hanleyandbelfus.com>

the newsletter of ArtAge Publications, has been pub-lished.

Articles include "Mature Performers Help

America Heal" by ArtAge Publications President Bon-nie

Vorenberg on how senior theater companies

responded to the September 11 tragedies, book

reviews, examples of senior theater activities through-out

the U.S. and a list of publications on senior the-ater

available through ArtAge Publications.

Contact Bonnie L. Vorenberg, ArtAge Publications,

P. O. Box 12271, Portland, OR 97212-0271 USA.

Telephone: (503) 249-1137. Fax: (503) 249-1137.

E-Mail: <bonniev@seniortheatre.com>

Website: <http://www.seniortheatre.com>

The International Society for the Psychopathology of

Expression and Art-Therapy (SIPE) has published the

September 2001 issue of its newsletter (Number 26).

The newsletter is written in English.

Included in this issue are notes on publications such

as books and newsletters; past and future events

including conferences, seminars, lectures and exhibi-tions

and continuing education and training opportu-nities.

In a statement of sympathy for the American victims

of the September 11 tragedies, SIPE expresses its

resolve to "work indefatigably to weave and strength-en

bonds of respect and esteem with all those that

nourish a spirit of tolerance and open-mindedness."

Approximately one year ago SIPE established an orga-nizational

website at <http://mageos.ifrance.com/

art-therapy/art-therapy/sipe.htm> The site provides

information about SIPE activities and statutes; a com-prehensive

list of degree and qualification courses in

Europe and other parts of the world; literature refer-ences;

and news. SIPE is delighted at the level of uti-lization

of the website and has also found e-mail to be

an indispensable communication tool.

Contact Dr. Guy Roux, 27 Rue du Marechal Joffre,

64000 Pau, France. Telephone: 33 5 59 27 69 74.

Fax: 33 5 59 27 69 74. E-Mail: <sipearther@aol.com>

Website: <http://mageos.ifrance.com/

art-therapy/art-therapy/sipe.htm>

The American Music Therapy Association (AMTA)

response to the September 11 tragedies. The publica-tion

contained accounts of how music provided a

means of response as well as a means to cope with the

disaster. An especially moving article recounted the

experience of a Juilliard music student who played

for hours at the Armory in New York for rescue work-ers

and family members of the missing. The organiza-tion

Music Therapists for Peace, already in the fore-front

of response to Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome,

called for music therapy interventions with trauma-tized

victims of the disaster.

A special plea was made for AMTA members to attend

the October AMTA conference in Pasadena, CA. The

message was taken to heart as over 1,000 AMTA

members overcame their understandable reluctance to

travel in a time of increased security and perceived

danger to attend the conference only six weeks after

the September 11 tragedies.

Contact AMTA, 8455 Colesville Road #1000, Silver

Spring, MD 20910 USA.

Telephone: (301) 589-3300. Fax: (301) 589-5175.

E- Mail: <info@musictherapy.org>

Website: <http://www.musictherapy.org>

quarterly publication exploring all facets of creative

expression including visual arts, sculpture, music,

creative writing and teaching, dance and performing

arts, cooking and gardening. Each issue will show-case

a collection of artists along with a music and per-formance

art sampler. Feature articles will cover the

dynamics of creative expression in people's lives.

All artisans are invited to submit to an open juried

exhibition. An annual entry fee includes a free web-page

free directory listing in each issue.

MI 48624 USA.

Telephone: (989) 539-2838. Fax: (989) 539-2838.

E-Mail: <arts@joymagazine.org>

Website: <http://www.joymagazine.org>

Fithian Press has published a book on Mozart by

retired physician/musician Benjamin Simkin, MD.

of Mozart's career and music, showing his incom-parable

but troubled genius and suggesting that he

may have suffered from Tourette's Syndrome and

other psychiatric disorders. The book is divided into

three parts: "Flowering of Genius," "Mozart's Society

Music" and "Mozart's Personality Idiosyncrasies." It

includes many examples of the sharp discrepancy

between Mozart's sublime music and bizarre person-ality.

In one account Dr. Simkin tells how Franz Anton

Mesmer, a physician/musician and patron of Mozart,

used the glass armonica (sic) to improve the vision of

a 17 year-old blind piano virtuoso through induction

of a dream-like hypnotic state. Simkin also explores

the theory that Mozart had Tourette Syndrome as evi-denced

by the use of vulgarity and uninhibited lan-guage.

Simkin, once a staunch advocate of the posi-tion

that his earlier hypothesis was subject to chal-lenge

and that perhaps Mozart had, instead, "a spec-trum

of disorders based on common mechanisms."

Following a review of the medical histories of Mozart

and his family, Dr. Simkin suggests a genetic triad of

perfect pitch, hyperactivity and migraine headaches.

Contact Fithian Press, P. O. Box 1525, Santa Bar-bara,

CA 93102 USA.

Telephone: (805) 962-1780. Fax: (805) 962-8835.

E-Mail: <dandd@danielpublishing.com>

Website: <http://www.danielpublishing.com>

Prof. Hans-Helmut Decker-Voight, PhD, MA, together

with Prof. Dr. med. Ralph Spintge and the Institute

for Music Therapy of the Academy for Music and The-ater

and interested patients. The publication is

written in German. The first issue was released in

March, 2001. The September, 2001 issue is now

available and includes articles on such topics as using

music to treat pain, chronic headaches and creativity,

helpful hints for breathing and voice and music thera-py

in hospitals.

Contact Eres Edition Horst Schubert, Postfach 1220,

Hauptstrasse 35, 28865 Lilienthal/Bremen, Germany.

Telephone: 0 42 98/1676. Fax: 0 42 98/5312

E-Mail: <info@eres-musik.de>

Website: <http://www.eres-musik.de>

by Eliza Lo Chin. The book is a collection of sto-ries,

poems and essays on the topic of what it means

to be a woman physician. Eliza Lo Chin corresponded

with over 151 individuals -- from pioneer lady doc-tors

to today's medical students -- to gather reflec-tions

on doctoring from a women's perspective.

Categories in the book include Early Pioneers, the

Formative Years, Life in the Trenches: Internship

and Residency, On Doctoring, Mothering and Doctor-ing,

Making Choices, Barriers, Connections, Balanc-ing,

Our Families' Perspectives and Reflections.

Chapters include "From Chivalry to Off-Color Jokes

to Acceptance and Respect," "On Being a Medical

Mom," "Breast Feeding: Straddling the Fence

Between Work and Home," "Not Having Children"

and "The Feminization of Medicine."

Contact Sage Publications, Inc., 2455 Teller Road,

Thousand Oaks, CA 91320 USA.

Telephone: (805) 499-0721. Fax: (805) 499-0871.

E-Mail: <info@sagepub.com>

Website: <http://www.sagepub.com>

According to an article by Seth Hettena of the Associ-ated

Press on November 22, 2001, researchers at the

University of Tubingen have found that the brain

waves of professional musicians respond to music in a

way that suggests they have an intuitive sense of the

notes that amateurs lack. Professional German vio-linists,

unlike amateurs, were found to be able to hear

music simply by thinking about it. Brain scans

showed the professionals had significant activity in

the part of their brains that controlled hearing where-as

the amateurs showed more activity in the motor

cortex, the region that controls finger movements --

seemingly more concerned with hitting the correct

notes. Researcher Gabriela Scheler of the University

of Tubingen, a former violinist with the Nuremberg

Philharmonic Orchestra, reasons that professionals

are able to listen, judge and control their play because

they have "liberated" their minds from worrying about

playing the right notes.

In a second experiment brain scans showed that pro-fessionals

heard the music in their heads when they

imagined playing the music without moving their fin-gers.

According to an article from the Associated Press

dated September 25, 2001, researchers have found

that music can stimulate the same parts of the brain

as food and sex. Anne Blood of Massachusetts Gener-al

Hospital in Charlestown, Massachusetts suggests

that the fact music has been shown to trigger systems

in the brain that make people feel happy explains why

people turned to music to help them deal with sadness

and fear following the September 11 tragedies. The

research was done with music found so beautiful and

moving by test subjects that it sent shivers down the

spine. There was no such response to other types of

sound such as less appealing music, general noise or

silence.

A 17 year-old Canadian violinist born without a right

hand has been admitted to the Curtis Institute of

Music in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. According to an

article by music critic Peter Dobrin in the July 1, 2001

was admitted to Curtis following an audition that was

so profoundly beautiful that it brought Curtis violin

faculty members to tears. Renowned violinist Ida

Kavafian who judged Adrian at his Curtis auditions

will work with him on strengthening his technique

(including relaxing his left hand a bit) and repertoire.

Anantawan was admitted for the summer of 2001 to

the prestigious Meadowmount School of Music based

on the submission of a tape without the school's

knowledge about the special circumstances of his play.

Anantawan's mother provided him with lessons and

special therapy beginning at the age of nine in the

hope that music lessons might bring some focus to his

life and that the violin might some day become a

hobby. After music became part of his life, his grades

improved and he became more highly socialized.

He wears a prosthetic device that holds his bow. The

device, one of several he wears for different activities,

has a "spatula" at the end that grasps the bow. He

can feel the vibrations of the notes as they travel

through the artificial device. Anantawan has no right

hand and his forearm is only five inches long. At its

tip are very small nubs, would-be fingers.

According to Dean Shibata, assistant professor of radi-ology

at the University of Washington, deaf people

sense vibration in the part of the brain that other peo-ple

use for hearing -- which explains how deaf musi-cians

can sense music and how deaf people can enjoy

concerts and other musical events. Shibata performed

the research while at the University of Rochester

School of Medicine in New York. He also found that

the deaf subjects in his study showed brain activity in

the auditory cortex, otherwise usually active only dur-ing

auditory stimulation. People with normal hearing

do not show such brain activity.

According to Shibata our brains are not hard-wired at

birth and genes do not directly dictate the wiring of

our brains. Genes, rather, provide a developmental

strategy so that all parts of the brain are used to

maximal efficiency.

Andrea Boudra is a full-time organist/pianist with a

degree in organ performance. In February, 2001 she

developed DeQuervain's Tenosynovitis in her right

thumb. She believes the disorder may be related to

having practiced Franz Liszt on a mechanical-action

organ too long and too intensely without breaks.

Ms. Boudra went to three orthopedic hand specialists

who gave her cortisone injections which did not help

much and, to a man, recommended surgery to cut the

tunnel. The problem improved some after not playing

for three months but has since returned. It seems to

be worse with piano than non-mechanical action

organs.

Contact Andrea Boudra, 4849 Carriagepark Road,

Fairfax, VA 22032-2300 USA.

Telephone: (703) 426-1951. Fax: (703) 356-5442.

E-Mail: <aboudra@ineva.com>

Daniela Nicolae Badita is a 29 year-old physician/

musician living in Bucharest-Romania who wishes to

correspond with anyone who shares her dual interests

in music and medicine. She has diplomas in general

medicine and bacteriology and just finished training

in infectious disease and surgery. While awaiting her

license to practice at the beginning of 2002 she is

working as producer of a jazz radio program called

"The Jazz Collection."

Ms. Badita studied classical music as a young child.

She discovered jazz at the age of 14 and began to work

on improvising style. She continued playing jazz as a

medical student and has participated in concerts, fes-tivals

and competitions in such cities as Vilnius,

Lithuania and Paris, France as well as in her own

country. She won a $5,000 scholarship to Berklee Col-lege

of Music several years ago. She has masters

degrees in journalism and managing and marketing

and five years experience in producing jazz radio pro-grams.

With piano solo recordings, jazz standard

tunes and some compositions of her own, Ms. Badita

has enough material for a CD.

Ms. Badita believes that music can help people under-stand

life and cope with difficulties. She also believes

the pursuit of music prepares the musician for hard

work and helps maintain a competitive spirit.

Contact Daniela Nicolae Badita, Pitar Mos str., Nr. 27

#9, Bucharest 70151, Romania.

Telephone: 00 40 1 650 5588.

E-Mail: <d.badita@fx.ro>

Florida College sophomore voice student Hilary

Krumrei is seeking diagnosis and treatment for her

experience of numbness while singing. It doesn't hap-pen

every time she sings. It doesn't matter if she is

standing up or sitting down. It starts in her cheeks

and progresses to her hands, shoulders, legs and, last

of all, her chest. When it reaches her chest she senses

a "big void" around her heart and her heart itself feels

heavier than normal and "fuzzy" around the edges.

Ms. Krumrei first experienced the phenomenon when

she entered college last year as a freshman.

As she has sought help for this unusual phenomenon,

Ms. Krumrei has been advised by some to see a psy-chologist

or psychiatrist for possible emotional causes

and by others to see a chiropractor for possible mis-alignment

of the back affecting the brain stem.

Contact Hilary Krumrei, 119 North Glen Arven

Avenue, Temple Terrace, FL 33617 USA. Telephone:

(813) 899-9212. E-Mail: <hkcatsmeow@hotmail.com>

Gert Terny is an actor, director and vocal coach living

in Belgium and working for the Belgian Federation

against Cancer. He is also studying spiritual psy-chotherapeutics.

As the result of designation as "Lau-reat

of the Belgian Foundation for Vocations" in 1999,

Terny was able to study briefly at the Voice and

Speech Centre in London. Following this experience

he, was offered admission to the Lessac Institute of

Voice and Body Training at the University of New

Hampshire and received an invitation from Robert T.

Sataloff of the Voice Foundation and Thomas Jeffer-son

University. Terny would like to work not only in

theater but also in therapy (e.g. relaxation for cancer

patients). Terny is seeking financial support for fur-ther

study.

Contact Gert Terny, Bisschoppenhoflaan 151, 2100

Antwerpen (Deurne), Belgium.

From September 28 through October 14, 2001 an

evolving photography exhibition and sale entitled

"Here is New York -- Images from the Frontlines of

History: A Democracy of Photographs," took place in

New York City in a building which became vacant

because of the September 11 tragedies. Organizers

included the staff and students of the School of Visual

Arts.

Everyone who took pictures related to the tragedy

was invited to bring or e-mail their images to the

gallery where the work of amateurs was displayed

beside the work of top photojournalists and other pro-fessionals.

Proceeds went to the children of victims of

the tragedy.

By displaying a wealth of pictures from the widest

possible variety of sources, the exhibition hoped to

create a dialogue of a new and different sort than one

with words and to help in the development of a new

way of looking at and thinking about what happened.

Contact: Kristin L. Wolfe, Office of Communication,

School of Visual Arts, 209 East 23rd Street, New

York, NY 10010 USA.

Telephone: (212) 592-2010. Fax: (212) 592-2012.

E-Mail: <kwolfe@adm.schoolofvisualarts.edu>

Website: <http://www.schoolofvisualarts.edu>

On October 9, 2001, the College of Physicians of

Philadelphia sponsored a presentation by artist Eliza-beth

Meyer at the College headquarters in Philadel-phia,

Pennsylvania. Entitled "Peripeteia," the pre-sentation

was a visual journal of post traumatic

stress disorder and covered a chronology of Ms. Mey-er's

response to being assaulted and terrorized by a

robber who entered her home at night and illustrated

the impact of the event on her creative vision.

Contact Sofie Sereda, the College of Physicians of

Philadelphia, 19 South 22nd Street, Philadelphia, PA

19103-3097 USA.

Telephone: (215) 563-3737, Extension 232.

Fax: (215) 561-6477.

E-Mail: <sereda@collphyphil.org>

Website: <http://www.collphyphil.org>

On October 27, 2001 the Art Therapy Department of

the School of Visual Arts, in conjunction with the

Visual Arts Foundation, presented its 18th Annual

Fall Conference. Entitled " A Sense of Place: Creat-ing

Healing Environments," the event took place in

New York, New York.

The keynote speaker was Shaun McNiff, PhD, ATR,

President-Elect of the American Art Therapy Associa-tion,

whose presentation was entitled "The Practice of

the Collective Imagination." Dr. McNiff addressed

the use of all of the arts, using ritual and environ-mental

energies, to enhance the creative experience.

Morning and afternoon workshops covered a number

of variations on the conference theme.

Contact Art Therapy Department, School of Visual

Arts, 209 East 23rd Street, New York, NY 10010 USA.

Telephone: (212) 592-2610. Fax: (212) 592-2633.

E-Mail: <dfarber@adm.schoolofvisualarts.edu>

Website: <http://www.schoolofvisualarts.edu>

The Second Annual Music Has Power Awards cere-mony

scheduled to be held on November 26, 2001 in

New York, New York was postponed until December

2002.

Contact Institute for Music and Neurologic Function,

Beth Abraham Family of Health Services, 612 Aller-ton

Avenue, Bronx, NY 10467 USA.

Telephone: (718) 519-5840. Fax: (718) 519-4160.

E-Mail: <info@musichaspower.org>

Website: <http://www.musichaspower.org>