Dr. Sarah Ghandour (DMA Cello, 2025) was recently featured in the Strad Magazine. The feature article “Music made with nature: how I explored the folk music traditions of Slovenia” explores Dr. Ghandour’s Fulbright scholarship experience diving into the traditions of Slovenian folk music.
Here is a short excerpt from the article where Dr. Ghandour explains a little of the impetus to explore Slovenian folk music during her Fulbright year.
“Before applying for a Fulbright Scholarship, I, like many, struggled to locate Slovenia on a map. Slovenia entered my life almost by accident, although in retrospect, it feels more like a quiet inevitability. During the early stages of my Doctor of Musical Arts degree, I gave a lecture-recital on a solo cello work by an Egyptian composer who wove traditional Arab melodic gestures in with Western polyphony. The project had special resonance with a desire to understand the meeting points between musical worlds, especially those shaped by oral tradition and complex histories.
Not long after, my professor, Dr. Erika Honisch, was helping to brainstorm countries for my Fulbright application and made a suggestion that would change the course of my life. ’Have you thought about the Balkans?’ she asked. ’I think you might find something there.’”
READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE:
https://www.thestrad.com/playing-hub/music-made-with-nature-how-i-explored-the-folk-music-traditions-of-slovenia/20615.article