Mr. AlHaj will be performing a piece written for an oud and string quintet, telling the story of Iraqi women and children who wrote actual letters to the United States of America during the invasion and the sectarian violence in Iraq. For this performance, Mr. AlHaj will be accompanied by instrumentalists Kim Fredenburgh, Amy Huzjak, David Felberg, and Christine Chen (tutor).

Rahim AlHaj, virtuoso oud musician and composer, was born in Baghdad, Iraq and began playing the oud (the grandfather of all stringed instruments) at age nine. Mr. Alhaj studied under the renowned Munir Bashir, considered by many to be the greatest oud player ever, and Salim Abdul Kareem, at the Institute of Music in Baghdad, Iraq.