My name is Scott Thompson, and I am a cellist in Oakland, California. I play cello bedside for people in end-of-life situations, and I am commissioning composers in order to create a body of compositions that will serve to comfort people and families as they navigate death and the transition of dying.

Kinan Azmeh of the Silk Road Ensemble has recently begun composing a piece for this project. Mr. Azmeh is a Syrian composer and clarinetist who, among many other things, has written works for Yo-Yo Ma and won a Grammy Award with Yo-Yo Ma’s Silk Road Ensemble. I have paid the deposit of $2,500 out of pocket and am raising funds to cover the whole cost of this commission which is $5,000.

In a recent phone conversation with Mr. Azmeh, he said about this idea: ‘Your project has so much connection with life. It is a very simple concept that nobody thinks about. It is such an obvious...it is moving. To think that someone can do something for somebody in that situation.’

I have been drawn to Mr. Azmeh's compositions since the very first time I learned of him. I feel that his music is relational and that an authentic heartfelt connection is what is driving this project. He is uniquely connected to humanity through his work and told me: 'I cannot write a piece that doesn't come from my heart.'

It is this relational aspect of music that will ultimately help people heal and also bring us closer together. Please help me to bring this work of art into the world by donating to fund this commission.

Thank you.

Sincerely,

Scott Thompson

www.lifeandcello.com