When you think of courageous living, playing music is probably not the first thing that comes to mind. But Dijana Ihas, a professional musician and refugee of war, learned how to transform her viola skills into a remarkable display of bravery. As bombs rained down over Bosnia and Herzegovina in the early 1990s, Dijana and several other musicians risked their lives to host hundreds of concerts.

Many Roads to Here is a production of The Immigrant Story. This episode was produced by Mae Ghylin, with audio editing by Gregg Palmer and executive producer Sankar Raman.

The music used in this podcast episode were recorded live on stage at Alex L. Parks Performing Arts Center, Jesuit High School in Beaverton, Oregon, on Saturday, September 11, 2021 by Kapila Chandramouli of Kapshur Lab. The Immigrant Story Live recreated the music of the Sarajevo String Quartet, with Dijana Ihas playing the viola accompanied by local string players. 

This episode was funded through a generous contribution from Marie Lamfrom Charitable Foundation.

For more episodes, https://theimmigrantstory.org/category/episode/ or subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.

Many Roads to Here is expanding. We’re looking for radio producers, especially those from immigrant communities and communities of color, to join our team. We’re all-volunteer for now, but we’ve got dreams. Please email [email protected] for more information.

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