Carrboro concert ends aid series

About 30 people gathered together Sunday night in Carrboro to support a charitable cause, help facilitate peace and appreciate musical diversity at a world-music concert for tsunami aid.

The concert, the last in a series of six, was created to provide relief for the victims of the Dec. 26 tsunami in Southeast Asia.

All proceeds from the series will go to the relief organizations UNICEF and Mercy Corps.

Some people danced and leaped around the Carrboro Century Center concert hall, while some listened quietly. One man spun two gleeful children in circles with both arms.

Sunday’s concert also served to generate a sense of connectedness and peace for many attendees, some said.

“We need to take the seed of consciousness and plant it in the universe … and if we do it consciously with good intentions, we can bring forth this peace on earth,” said attendee Bruce Thomas, a meditation leader at the Balanced Movement Studio in Carrboro.

Sunday’s concert featured three local bands: Zindagi, a world beat band; Jaafar, a Middle Eastern fusion band; and the Latin group Saludos Compay.

“It’s music for peace and for making that connection across the Earth,” said Padmini Hands, the lead singer and saxophone player for Zindagi.

The six-man band played music from a range of countries, including Bulgaria, Pakistan and Africa. Its lyrics focused on themes of peace, love and freedom — a match for the philanthropic drive of the concert.

The concert series was organized by Gerry Williams and his wife, Janet Place, who said they wanted to give more to the relief effort.

Admission Sunday was based on a suggested minimum $10 donation or a check made out to the organizations, generating about $500 in all by the end of the night. The series as a whole collected about $7,500.

Despite the relatively small turnout Sunday night, Williams said he was pleased with the proceeds and the reaction of the community to the cause.

“I think the whole response from the musical community … has been really great. There’s been more musicians who’ve wanted to play than I’ve found spots for,” Williams said.

Ray Utsumi, a friend of Hand’s from Cary, suggested that similar concerts should be held to maintain awareness of global issues.

“Somehow we have to get the aware of the suffering that’s going on,” he said.

“It doesn’t have the impact as something like 9/11 does, but it’s even more devastating.”

 

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