ATTENTION EDITORS – THIS IMAGE IS 18 of 22 TO ACCOMPANY A PICTURE PACKAGE ON AFGHANISTAN’S ONLY MUSIC ACADEMY, BASED IN KABUL. SEARCH KEYWORD “MUSIC ACADEMY” TO SEE ALL IMAGES PXP700-721.
A teacher gestures towards a female student playing the violin at the Kabul Music Academy January 7, 2012. In Afghanistan’s sole music academy, students learn how to play traditional and western instruments as part of a government initiative to relieve the pains of decades of war through music. Despite a rich musical legacy, Afghanistan’s melodic development has been severely disrupted by years of war and outright banned during the austere rule of the Taliban. At the Afghanistan National Institute of Music, orphans learn how to sing and play instruments alongside talented promising musicians who are selected on merit. Picture taken January 7, 2012. To match Feature AFGHANISTAN-MUSIC/ REUTERS/Omar Sobhani (AFGHANISTAN – Tags: SOCIETY CONFLICT)