Before War, A Punk Drummer Preserved Syrian Chants

[Sally]

I would imagine that many of the Syrians who are now refugees and all those who have left Syria in previous years would enjoy hearing these old chants again.

Before War, A Punk Drummer Preserved Syrian Chants

August 07, 2014 3:39 PM ET

Before the civil war in Syria destroyed ancient religious sites — and scattered some of the oldest Christian communities in the world — Jason Hamacher made several trips there, taking photos and recording ancient Sufi and Christian chants.

The project got its start when Hamacher read in a book about "the world's oldest Christian music." He tracked down From the Holy Mountain author William Dalrymple, who told him there were no recordings of the music — and that "it's not a monastery in the desert; it is a Syrian Orthodox church in the middle of the city of Aleppo." Hamacher ended up staying at that church as a guest of the archbishop, who has since been kidnapped by rebels.
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Before War, A Punk Drummer Preserved Syrian Chants : NPR

 

[aris2chat]

We can't live in the past or recreate some ideal of what was, but we can respect the past, culture, art, and relate to the people back then. We can also learn from the past.