The Daniel Pearl Memorial Violin

Daniel Pearl 1986

In November 2002, Jonathan Cooper, a well respected violin maker from Maine, had a wonderful idea for honoring Daniel Pearl, the violinist, fiddler and Wall Street Journal reporter who was murdered in Pakistan earlier that year.

To continue Daniel Pearl’s legacy through a musical mission of peace, Jon crafted a work of art - the Daniel Pearl Memorial Violin — and presented it to Mark O’Connor at a Boston concert in honor of Daniel — with the intention to have it presented to a talented violinist attending O’Connor’s Fiddle Camp.
In 2005, a second violin was anonymously commissioned so Daniel Pearl’s memory and mission of peace could be spread twofold.
Each summer at the Mark O’Connor Strings Conference, exceptional violists are awarded the honor to play these violins for one year.

“By passing the instrument through so many hands and playing past musical borders, we hope that the beautiful sound of these violins will help inspire listeners to live in harmony, on a peaceful planet.”

Daniel Pearl Memorial Violin Recipients:

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RUBY JANE SMITH - 2007

“I am so very honored to be awarded the Daniel Pearl Memorial Violin! I hope we can all play for peace and harmony during Daniel Pearl World Music Days!”

Born on November 17, 1994, in Dallas, TX, Ruby Jane Smith isone of the world’s premiere junior fiddlers and a fast-rising star in the landscape of country, bluegrass-Americana music. With deep familial and cultural ties throughout the Southeast, she resides in Columbus, MS, when not traveling as a musician, actress, or model.

Ruby Jane exhibited a strong connection to music as early as age one- responding to the rhythms of traditional Hebrew music. She began classical violin instruction at age two and at age eight was introduced to old-time and bluegrass music. Subsequently, she began old-time fiddle lessons and after only six lessons won first place in a competition. Granted an apprenticeship with the reknowned old time fiddler Charles T. Smith by the Mississippi Arts Commission, since 2005 she has competed in dozens of prestigious music competitions including the National Beginners Fiddle Championship which ranked her first nationally in her age category. In 2005, she also was named Mississippi State Fiddle Champion.

Ruby Jane has acted in film, contributed an original song to a film soundtrack, performed on the coveted Grand Ole Opry stage (making history as the youngest ever invited fiddler) as well as at the Ernest Tubb Record Shop. She is featured in a documentary about the legendary fiddler Jim Brock, with whom she now studies.. Now a veteran to radio, televison, film, and the press, she has appeared in such publications as W magazine, British Vogue, The New York Times, The L.A. Times, and in 2006 CBS News featured her on “Eye on America” , playing on American Airlines in-flight news program.

Ruby Jane listens to all kinds of music, writes her own original songs and plays several instruments including mandolin, harmonica, guitar, and spoons. She is learning to play bass, banjo, and dobro. Her newest CD “Creekside” is available as well as several videos on YouTube.

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MIKE BARNETT - 2007

“It’s an incredible honor to be a part of Daniel Pearl’s legacy”, said Barnett. “Hopefully, the music will bring people together and touch people’s lives. Winning this award has made me realize that music is really an international language; that no matter where you are in this world, music can bring people together.”
Mike Barnett is an eighteen year-old native of Nashville, Tennessee. Beginning with Suzuki Violin at the age of 4, he started serious fiddle study at age 10 with Crystal Plohman, Director of Vanderbilt’s Fiddling Program at the Blair School of Music who recently described Mike as “one of the hottest, fastest rising musicians in bluegrass music.”

Mike moved to New England in 2000 and has performed at a variety of prestigious venues including The Kennedy Center for the Arts, the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Grand Ole Opry. Mike recently completed a one year festival tour across the country with bluegrass legend Jesse McReynolds and the Virginia Boys. He recently joined the New England based folk/acoustic/bluegrass phenomenon, Northern Lights, tours with Tony Trischka and Double Banjo Bluegrass Spectacular and often accompanies Amy Gallatin and Stillwater, the New England Bluegrass Band and others.

Mike placed 9th in the Grand Master’s Fiddle Championship in 2005 and was 2006 recipient of the Alternative Styles Musicianship Award-Junior Category from the American String Teachers Association. He was honored at the 2007 Mark O’Connor Strings Conference in San Diego as a recipient of the Daniel Pearl Memorial Violin made by Jon Cooper.

Mike’s debut CD, ” Lost Indian” is a collection of bluegrass favorites recorded in Nashville with some of Music City’s greatest session musicians. Together with Gordon Stone and Aram Bedrosian he released a second CD, “ Rhymes with Orange” , a unique compilation of original acoustic melodies and funk adaptations of traditional fiddle tunes. Mike’s most recent recorded work is with mandolinist Joe Walsh on ” Fly Around” released in Spring 2007. A CD with Northern Lights is expected soon.

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JOHN & JAMES ABRAMS -2006

“We are honored to receive such a prestigious award, and we plan to ensure the year that we have this violin is one in which we can uphold the honor of a man who lived and died for what he believed in,” John and James stated.
The Abrams Brothers (http://www.theabramsbrothers.ca/home.cfm) burst onto the Canadian bluegrass music scene in 1999 when John and James were 9 and 6. (John is now 16, and James is 13.) Like Daniel Pearl, they were initially trained on classical violin but have since expanded their musical scope to include playing bluegrass fiddle and mandolin, as well as other stringed instruments. The highlight of their young careers came in October of 2005 when they made their debut appearance at country music’s most prestigious venue, Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry. They also have been featured on a variety of award winning radio shows and have played at many prestigious bluegrass and gospel venues and festivals throughout Canada, the United States and Europe.

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PHOEBE HUNT -2006

“For me, the fiddle is a symbol of peace, and I am truly humbled by being awarded the Daniel Pearl Memorial Violin. Like Danny Pearl, I believe that music is the one pure force that can bridge the differences between people. Without saying a word, two people who speak different languages can find a deep connection through a single note. I will treasure the year that I am privileged to play this wonderful instrument.”
Phoebe Hunt, 22, grew up in Austin, Texas, and she has been playing violin since she was six years old. She currently teaches violin at the Austin Montessori School and will graduate from the University of Texas this December with a history degree. Although she was trained as a classical violinist, the fiddle has become her passion, and she is a member of the popular Austin-based band, the Hudsons (http://www.thehudsonsmusic.com/), the self-proclaimed hardest working band in Texas, which is currently working on their third album.

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SAMANTHA ROBICHAUD -2005

“We are all part of this world, we should live life to the fullest and enjoy each other.”

Samantha Robichaud’s track record of over 200 awards for a variety of fiddle specialties, make her an up and coming force to be reckoned with. Her fourth recording, “Vivacious”, received two East Coast Music Awards nominations in the Instrumental Artist & Roots/Traditional Categories, displaying the influences of her Acadian heritage. She has been showcased at the International Folk Alliance Conference in San Diego, in New York at the Association of Performing Arts Presenters and in Montreal at the the Folk Alliance/Strickly Mundial. A Principal Violin with the New Brunswick Youth Orchestra, Robichaud played with the Orchestra at Carnegie Hall in 2003.

Displaying a special affinity for the ideals that Pearl displayed throughout his work makes Robichaud a natural spokesperson for preserving Pearl’s legacy through her music. “On my last CD I wrote a song called ‘Why does it matter?’ I wrote it from my heart, why does it matter our color, our citizenship, religions? We are all part of this world, we should live life to the fullest and enjoy each other. Since I did not have the opportunity to meet this wonderful man, I am so honored to be chosen to be part of keeping his memory alive.”

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ALEX HARGREAVES -2005

“I can’t believe how many times I’ve started jamming with someone I don’t really know, and then suddenly it feels like we’re best friends. I can’t think of a better way to bring people together than through music.” - Alex Hargreaves in regards to his responsibility as an ambassador of peace.
Alex Hargreaves has been playing violin and fiddle music for more than nine years. Along the way, he has studied a wide variety of string music styles including classical, jazz, bluegrass, newgrass, Scottish, Texas style, and western swing.
A boundless enthusiasm and open minded approach to string music has led Alex to pursue musical study from a wide variety of mentors, in an array of settings including the Mark O’Connor Strings Conference; as well as many others. Although his main instrument is violin, he aspires to be a multi-instrumentalist and has been studying the mandolin, piano and guitar, as well as singing in a choir.
As a classical player, Alex has performed as concert master with the Willamette Chamber Orchestra, and as a guest soloist.

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KAILIN YOUNG -2004

“I feel very honored to have received the Daniel Pearl dedication violin, and I feel spiritually connected to the cause of this musical mission of peace. I think its one of the most beautiful things ever to see people of all backgrounds come together, to be moved and transported to heaven by music, overcoming all the ugliness, hatred, and greed in the world. Our calling as musicians is to keep making beautiful music so that people are constantly being reminded of the positive side of Life.”
Kailin Yong came to the USA in 1999 to help found the Aerith String Quartet, performing extensively in the USA and Asia. Kailin eventually settled in Boulder, CO, and now performs across the USA as a solo artist as well as playing with Boulder Acoustic Society (neo-acoustic jazz), the Colorado Mahlerfestival Orchestra, the Tango Camerata (Argentine tango), and Saltanah Ensemble (Middle Eastern).
His band Boulder Acoustic Society was the winner of the Notes@9000 Emerging Artists Competition. Kailin combines his multitude of interests in the multi-genre project Infinite Possibilities Of the Violin (IPOV). He is also involved with Colorado chamber music outreach programs Up Close and Musical Ensemble and Art Reaching Kids. Kailin has been a teacher of violin and improvisational styles for more than ten years, and was invited as a soloist and instructor at the First Asia Suzuki Conference.
In 2005, Kailin Yong and the Boulder Acoustical Society composed a new piece of music dedicated to the memory of Daniel Pearl. “Karma,” written for acoustic quartet and symphony orchestra includes elements of free improvisation, world music, and the western classical tradition. The piece premiered on May 15th in a concert with the Boulder Youth Symphony Orchestra. Students of BYSO were taught to reach beyond their expectations of orchestra music and asked to speak a mantra calling, “Peace, For Humanity, Through Music.”

Visit the Boulder Acoustic Society to hear “Karma”

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JEREMY KITTEL -2003

“Daniel believed in the power of music, a power that can promote understanding, friendship and harmony among people. This power is real; there are moments during performances when I feel a profound sense of purpose, communication and joy among listeners and musicians. These moments are the reason I perform, and they show how powerful music can be in making connections between people. Receiving the Daniel Pearl Memorial Violin has given me new inspiration to bring people together through music, a goal that will remain central to me for years to come.”
Jeremy Kittel is rapidly earning a reputation as one of the nation’s top young traditional musicians. Winner of the American String Teacher Association/National Orchestra Association Alternative Strings Award for Traditional Style, 2005 University of Michigan Stanley Medal, 2004 Detroit Music Award for Outstanding Acoustic/Folk Instrumentalist, 2004 US National Scottish Fiddle Championship in 2000, he won the Junior National title the previous two years and also qualified for international competition in Irish fiddling four consecutive years.

Kittel has performed at hundreds of concerts and festivals over the past few years including the Millennium Stage of the Kennedy Center, — Prairie Home Companion,– Chicago Celtic Fest, Bethlehem Musikfest, Detroit Festival of the Arts & Milwaukee Irish Fest. His first CD, Celtic Fiddle, was called “one of the top 20 Celtic albums of 2000, and certainly the best by a new young artist,” by the syndicated radio show Celtic Connections. Jeremy’s new release, Roaming, is getting rave reviews from a broad range of publications including Sing Out and Fiddler Magazine. As one reviewer commented, “It’s a much over-used cliché, but I really believe this is what genius sounds like.” Roaming has received air time across the country, including NPR’s show “The Thistle & Shamrock.”