What started as a passion for world music is now a mission to combat divisiveness by highlighting the beauty of other cultures. Our non-profit, GreenRoom Exchange, curates global music to bring the best to the Bluegrass. By using music as a universal language, we illustrate that we are more alike than different. As I write this on Martin Luther King day, it seems fitting to give a message of unity.
We love presenting incredibly talented artists from other countries. In this case it was Tarta Relena, 2 women from Barcelona Spain who sing ancient music with modern electronic beats*. It was transcendent, other worldly. We were wowed. There was something to learn from it.
Here are some observations on opening your heart to other cultures.
KINDNESS AND ACCEPTANCE IS UNIVERSAL
The assumptions people might have about other cultures dissipate when you come face to face with reality. We have been consistently humbled to discover the kindness and acceptance we experience from people from other countries. The universality of this illustrates that many of the unkind things said simply aren’t true. This’s particularly true about people from Mexico and Haiti, whose excellent musicians we’ve been proud to present.
BECOME INSPIRED
What happens when you hear something you’ve never heard before? I’m amazed and inspired. The brilliant creativity of Tarta Relena reminded me that when you develop your own ideas, deepen your own concepts into something original, you become clearer, stronger. a role model for others to do the same. I’ve done that with the social justice work, and certainly Tarta Relena models it as well.
EXPAND YOUR UNDERSTANDING AND COMPASSION
When we meet people who have different life experiences and learn about them, it expands our world view. I love hearing other people’s stories. Some have been through extreme hardship; others have extensive classical education we don’t have. It helps put things about our culture in perspective. Every culture has something beautiful to offer. We can learn from and honor one another.
How do you combat divisiveness? Reach out if you’d like to explore it.
