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Daniel Pearl Concert by the Young and Musically Gifted

In an innovative show of support for the media and music, the U.S. Embassy hosted a concert by the young and musically gifted at the U.S. Ambassador’s Residence on October, 10, 2007, the fifth anniversary of the death of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl. Pearl, who was abducted and murdered by terrorists while researching a news story in Pakistan, in February 2002, would have turned forty-four on the day of the Embassy’s Daniel Pearl World Music Day concert. The promising sounds of 6-year-old Ashley Ondoua Konga, 10-year-old Willy Théophane Yombo and 12-year-old Ely Gabriel Nsang Oyongo on the grand piano won over a crowd of proud parents and teachers, artists, media and diplomats – all working worldwide, and in their own way, to bridge cultural differences.

Every year, in the first two weeks of October, the U.S. Department of State asks U.S. Missions around the world to commemorate U.S. journalist Daniel Pearl to raise awareness about the work that journalists do and to bring communities a step closer to mutual understanding through music. In comparing the risks that journalists take in bringing the world the news and the risks that diplomats sometimes face in keeping lines of communication open, Deputy Chief of Mission Rick Nelson told guests in his remarks, “Music, admittedly, outdoes us both in reach and scope.” This acknowledgement is to the credit of the young Cameroonian pianists who, literally, set the tone for the event. (dcm remarks | Photo gallery)