Ahmad Naser Sarmast Wins Cultural Heritage Rescue Prize 2016

The second Cultural Heritage Rescue Prize, awarded by Associazione Priorità Cultura, was given to Afghan musicologist Ahmad Naser Sarmast in Spoleto. Francesco Rutelli, president of the association, presented the prize at Teatro Nuovo Gian Carlo Menotti. The award ceremony coincided with a terrorist attack in Dhaka, Bangladesh, where 20 people were killed, including 9 Italians. Sarmast founded a music school in Kabul and continues to run it despite being severely injured in a suicide attack. The Taliban have long opposed music, but the Afghan government now supports Sarmast's work. Bonnie Burnham, President Emerita of the World Monuments Fund, praised Sarmast's efforts to save Afghanistan's cultural traditions. Sarmast met with Italian Minister of Cultural Heritage Dario Franceschini, who committed to three requests: training for young Afghan musicians in Italy (with La Scala as a potential partner), hosting Italian musicians and teachers in Kabul, and helping open new music schools in smaller Afghan towns.