Amir Siraj Advocates for National Parks Through New Music Project

Pianist Amir Siraj ’17 Prep, ’22 Harvard/NEC was featured by the National Parks Service for his new project, Music For The Parks. This music video series, launched this week, features newly commissioned compositions based on the majesty of U.S. National Parks, using the power of music to advocate for the preservation of the National Parks. Amir won a From the Top Alumni Leadership Grant for this project, which is also supported by Steinway & Sons.

Amir studies in the Harvard/NEC dual degree program, earning a master's degree in Piano Performance at NEC while simultaneously earning a bachelor's degree in astrophysics at Harvard. He is an alumnus of NEC's Preparatory School.

I’ve always had dual interests in music and in science, and early on I realized that both music and science are deeply powerful in their own way. One of the special aspects of science is that it can help you ask questions and discover truths about the world, which I find remarkable.

Something that I think is unique to music and to art is that they can move and connect people in a way that might be unachievable otherwise. I was able to witness that when I started bringing more of my music outside the concert hall and into the community, whether with seniors or with children. These experiences helped me understand how universal music is and how it connects people from all walks of life. Music grounds us in shared experience.

Nature has always had a very special place in my heart because it is sort of the embodiment of both science and music. Nature is arguably the most wonderful thing we have. The complexity and beauty of our singular home, the Earth, are really just unimaginable. Science and music allow us to interface with the world and with each other, and they help us appreciate the inspiration that nature gives us.