{"id":5403,"date":"2024-11-24T01:27:21","date_gmt":"2024-11-24T01:27:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/expatbooks.org\/2024\/11\/24\/music-and-life-abroad\/"},"modified":"2025-07-27T23:36:24","modified_gmt":"2025-07-27T23:36:24","slug":"music-and-life-abroad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/expatbooks.org\/en\/music-and-life-abroad\/","title":{"rendered":"Music and life abroad"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Music<\/strong> is an important element in every culture. Here we offer a few memoirs that tell life stories where music<\/strong> played for the author a role as escape, emotional support, or affirmation of their identity.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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The Pianist of Yarmouk<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Aeham Ahmad’s, A Moving Memoir ” is a moving memoir that describes the story of the author, who was born in Syria to a Palestinian family. During the bombing in Damascus in 2012, Aeham Ahmad decides to bring his piano onto the street, and to play to ease the suffering of the population, and take the children’s minds off the destruction. His videos went viral. In 2015, he was forced to leave, and he made it to Germany via the dangerous Balkan route, with thousands of other refugees. Now he performs in concert halls all over Europe, and is a successful man, but he is far away from his family.  Music represents his comfort, but also a powerful message of integration.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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Sigh, gone: A misfit’s memoir of great books, punk rock, and the fight to fit in<\/mark><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

by Phuc Tran is the story of the author when he moved to America with his family in 1975, during the fall of Saigon. Between racism, a sense of isolation, and identity challenges, Tran finds comfort in reading classics and punk music. An honest recounting of how hard it was for a Vietnamese to feel welcome in American culture, of the injustices his parents had to endure, and of how the love for music<\/strong> is not only a refuge from a difficult reality, but also artistic inspiration, and a lifeline.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Purpose: An immigrant’s story <\/mark><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

by Wyclef Jean is a memoir about the author’s childhood in Haiti, and their escape to the United States when Wyclef was only 9 years old. In the US, he finds his path and success with the hip-hop group The Fugees, a term that is brief for \u201crefugees\u201d. A life not always easy, but full of success and falls, infidelities and scandals.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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A life in Music<\/mark><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

 <\/strong>by Daniel Barenboim is the story of the author, born in Buenos Aires in 1942, of his innate talent as a pianist, then as a composer. Barenboim’s career is extraordinary, and he conducted many renowned orchestras – the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestre de Paris, and the Bayreuth Festival Orchestra. Besides his passion for music, Barenboim is known for his strong political activism, advocating for a peaceful coexistence between Israelis and Palestinians. He brought his music to Ramallah and created music summer camps for Middle-Eastern students in Germany. In 2002, he received the prestigious Prince of Asturias Award for International Cooperation and Peace.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Read some interesting articles about music and expatriation:<\/p>\n\n\n\n