Past events:
Yearly Concerts at Hermeskeil
2017-Present
Concerts for Compassion presents annual concerts at a refugee camp in Hermeskeil, Germany. This year's concert featured the Meyjana Trio hosting an interactive performance. Many of the 1200 refugees at the camp are from Syria, Afghanistan, Turkey, Egypt, and Pakistan, and include families with children. The 45-min concert included pieces and songs from Iran, Syria, Iraq, Turkey, and Azerbaijan, in addition to well known songs from the regions where our audience members are from. The performance is part of CFC’s ongoing collaboration with musicians and refugee support groups around the world, bringing music and education to displaced peoples and their local communities.'s
After Arts Salon
New York, February 2023
For most of its history, Western classical music has relied on monarchs, aristocrats, and wealthy patrons to even exist. For example, we have Haydn because of a prince, Mozart and Beethoven because of a baron, and Stravinsky and Copland because of an heiress. And while the kings and barons have been replaced by trusts and philanthropists, inequality is still at play in classical music - Rachel Sherman, Professor and Chair of Sociology at The New School delves deeper into this topic in our February salon.
Benefit Concert
New York, December 2022
CFC kicked off its first in-person event since 2020 with a benefit concert on Saturday, December 10th, at the DiMenna Center for Classical Music in New York City. This concert featured performances and arrangements by our first-ever cohort of Fellows. These fellows joined CFC during the fall of 2022 to assist with our programming. We also formally welcomed our newest team members: Executive Director, Austin Berman, and Head of Public Relations, Sophia Szokolay.
Jennifer Saltzstein Kaffenberger Fellowship
New York, Summer 2022
CFC is a proud recipient of the 2022 Jennifer Saltzstein Kaffenberger Fellowship, giving CFC the opportunity to work with Arts Ignite at the Newcomer Youth Summer Academy 2022. CFC partnered with ARKAI to present an interactive performance at Arts Ignite for refugee children in New York City, playing original works and arrangements.
To learn more about Arts Ignite and read the press release, visit their website!
VISION Collective
Germany, Summer 2019
In collaboration with CFC, The VISION Collective toured central Germany, giving educational workshops and performing concerts at refugee camps for 120 children from Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Nigeria, and Turkey. VISION performed original works and arrangements by composers Hunter Hanson, Tengku Irfan, Nick Marsella, J.P. Redmond, Iván Enrique Rodríguez, Horacio Fernández Vásquez, and Aaron Wolff. The trip was funded in part by the George J. Jakab Global Enrichment grant from the Juilliard School.
To learn more about VISION, visit 1visioncollective.org
Benefit Gala - Buffalo String Works
Buffalo, NY, February 2019
Concerts for Compassion visited Buffalo String Works to play for the annual benefit concert. CFC performed alongside staff from the school, as well as with students of BSW.
United Nations Refugee Agency
Central America, December 2018
Concerts for Compassion visited Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Honduras, and Panama with The United Nations Refugee Agency. Engagements included educational workshops in refugee shelters, schools, cultural centers, shelters for victims of human trafficking, and youth community centers.
To learn more about UNHCR, please visit their Website and Instagram.
Benefit Concert - Church World Service
New York, November 2018
Concerts for Compassion performed a benefit concert for Church World Service at the Tenement Museum in New York City.
CWS aims to transform communities around the globe through just and sustainable responses to hunger, poverty, displacement, and disaster. CWS is both a global humanitarian organization and one of nine refugee resettlement agencies in the United States. CWS has 34 refugee and immigration offices spread across 17 different states. These offices provide services to newly arrived refugees and immigrants, helping them to integrate into local communities, find jobs and learn the necessary skills to support their new life in the United States.
Award Ceremony - The Hill-McGraw Robert Sherman
Outreach and Education Award
New York, September 2018
Concerts for Compassion is the proud recipient of the Hill-McGraw Robert Sherman Outreach and Education Award. This generous gift was presented by Terry McGraw in Paul Hall, The Juilliard School on September 24th, 2018.
Refugee Camps - Hermeskeil, Bonn, Doberlug-Kirchhain
September 2018, Germany
Concerts for Compassion performed at three separate refugee camps throughout Germany, sharing world music and giving brief educational workshops for children.
Peace First Summit
September 2018, New York City
Concerts for Compassion performed and spoke at the New York Peace First Summit at Florence Gould Hall. Headed by a member of the Obama family, Maya Soetoro-Ng, CFC was featured alongside other artists and activists.
"This full day of transformative story telling, lively discussion, and moving performances will bring together dynamic public figures, renowned artists, prominent journalists, and inspiring young activists to energize a modern peace movement."
Educational and Local Concerts
Jackson, Mississippi, September 2018
Concerts for Compassion gave a school-wide performance for the students of Jackson Preparatory School as part of their Global Leadership Program.
To raise awareness, CFC performed a community concert on Saturday, September 15th, at 7:30 PM at the Belhaven University's Concert Hall. The program consisted of composers who faced adversity in their lives and communities.
Benefit Concert, Support International
August 2017, New York
Concerts for Compassion performed a benefit concert for Support International, an organization that supports communities in Lebanon, Iraq, and Uganda.