Program Description
Event Details
Join us in the Scott Room to learn about the extraordinary connection between the Scarsdale community and the Afghanistan National Institute of Music.
When the Taliban reached the gates of Kabul in August 2021, Dr. Ahmad Naser Sarmast, the founder of the Afghanistan National Institute of Music, the nation's first co-educational music school, knew he needed to act. He called upon Ms. Lesley Rosenthal, the President of the foundation that supports the school, to convene a world-wide effort to save the school, its 273-member community, and Afghan music education itself. The ensuing evacuation and repatriation of the school is now the subject of a Voice of America documentary, Symphony of Courage.
Come to the film screening and engage Ms. Rosenthal and Ms. Jessica Lustig in a Q&A about the school, the rescue, and the Scarsdale connection.
About the presenters:
Lesley Rosenthal is President of Friends of ANIM, the US-based foundation that supports the school. In her professional life she is Chief Operating Officer and Corporate Secretary of The Juilliard School. Previously she served as EVP, General Counsel & Secretary of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York. She was first introduced to ANIM thanks to Scarsdale High School Orchestra's pairing with the Afghan Youth Orchestra for a performance at Carnegie Hall in 2013.
Jessica Lustig is Treasurer of Friends of ANIM. In her professional life she is the Founding Partner and Managing Director of 21C Media Group. With more than 25 years in the music business, Managing Director Jessica Lustig brings a global perspective to 21C. Clients have included Google, the Global Fund and the World Bank. Lustig holds an undergraduate degree in music and an MBA in international business and marketing from New York University.
Refreshments will be served at this program.