Kabul's art music, which forms part of Afghanistan's intangible
cultural heritage. The AKMICA tradition-bearers' education initiatives
resulting from Baily's research have successfully reversed this trend.
The programme has grown from its small beginnings in Kabul, and in
2006 a second school was opened in Herat city. At present the two
schools have 157 students. Their work is not simply a matter of
preserving tradition, but also of promoting creativity and development
within this tradition. These schools have also improved the low status
of hereditary musicians, who are now seen both as artists and music
educators.
Baily's research on the global circulation of Afghan music and the
scarcity of teaching materials has led to the development on an online
tutor for the national instrument, the rubab (a short-necked lute), in
collaboration with Dr Evangelos Himonides (UCL Institute of
Education), who s responsible for the design and development of the
resource. The Online Afghan Rubab Tutor (OART) promises to become a
major multimedia pedagogical resource for Afghanistan, with a large
collection of notated compositions as well as audio and video
recordings, with a role going far beyond teaching people to play the
instrument.
the OART can be accessed here: http://oart.eu
