Music Can Change the World

"That was the first time I experienced the power of music to heal and I recognized that there was a connection between the power of music to heal and the power of music to unite. The two of them were intertwined and you could not have one without the other" (talking about 200,000 people gathered in Central Park singing "Imagine" in perfect harmony after breaking a 10 minutes silence in honour of John Lennon in 1980).
For more than 25 years, Todd Mack has made a career as a musician, songwriter, and producer based upon his unwavering belief in the power of music to change the world. In October 2005 Todd organized an informal backyard jam in honor of his friend and band mate Daniel Pearl, the late Wall St. Journal reporter abducted and murdered by terrorists in Pakistan in 2002. Fueled by a resonating belief in the power of music to bridge divides between people, that backyard jam has grown into an internationally touring non-profit organization called Music in Common, whose mission is to strengthen, empower, and educate communities through the universal language of music. By producing publicly accessible concerts, school programs, and multimedia productions with an interest in underserved communities and areas where there is a history of conflict, MiC provides a platform for the exchange of ideas and collaborations that can lead to positive social change. To date, Music in Common has served thousands of people in more than 200 communities across the US, Middle East, and Far East and operates multiple programs locally, nationally, and internationally.
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Eighteen American, Palestinian, and Israeli teens ages 13-18 gathered at Bard College at Simon's Rock for the 2014 MiC International Youth Summit in August 2014. Over the course of 8 days they worked, lived, and played together, collaborating to write and record an original song and produce a music video that speaks their collective voice and message. Through communication, cooperation, respect, trust, and understanding these youth discovered their differences and found their commonalities and translated those into the song and video presented here. The inter-cultural, multi-faith experience and their commitment to working together represents their vision of a world where change is possible.