Between Iraq and a Hard Place

For 10 days last July, the streets of an Iraqi city were filled with sound -- not of explosions or air-raid alarms, but of music. Hundreds of Sunni, Shiite, and Kurdish youths from across the country gathered to study and perform Gershwin, Ellington, and Jackson, as well as Bach, Vivaldi, and traditional Iraqi music and dance. It was the Iraqi National Unity Performing Arts Academy, organized by John Ferguson, executive director of the US nonprofit American Voices. Ferguson's biggest obstacles weren't violence or anti-Americanism. Instead, he faced logistical frustrations -- from equipment shortages to power failures to obstinate bureaucrats. The academy culminated in two days of performances before standing-room-only crowds.