The New Nation - Internet Edition

Sheikh Arif Bulbon

"Kare jeno diechilam ei mon

Ajo mone ache sei khon

Ek muhurte se atit hoye gelo

Mon dite bhoi pai ekhon…"

These lines are composed by promising and enthusiastic musician Fariba Omar. She popularly known as Laura for her track 'Amar Mon' in her debut album titled 'Opekkhar Por'. The album was released recently under the banner of Bengal Music Co Ltd. There are 10 songs in the albums, which reflects thoughts, emotions and experiences that Laura went through while growing up.

While asked about her debut album she said, "After waiting for a long six years the day has finally come when I can present my album 'Opekkhar Por'. There were full of ups and downs while I work for this album but it is an experience, which I will remember. I started singing at the age of 13 and my father Omar Khaled Rumi, and I composed most of my music, which are around 2000 in number. My own compositions reflect different times of my life and my album is about the growing up of a teenager into an adult. It has many unanswered questions, which I still haven't figured out. May be I should let the songs speak for themselves and let all to find out the answers in them. This album is very close to my heart and truly hope that everybody can relate to it and keep it close to all's hearts."

Even though this was her first solo release, Laura has been involved with the music scene in Dhaka for a very long time. Thanks to her father Omar Khalid Rumi from the band Bangladesh and her artist mother artist Rokeya Sultana, Laura grew up with music, colours and art all around her. From the age of 14, Laura has been writing and composing her own music. She is turning 23 in a month.

She said, "My father literally made me go through a rigorous training. It is because of him that I have the confidence now to write my own lyrics, compose and work on the other technical details required to create a full fledged album."

Not only is she a trained vocalist, but Laura can also play several instruments. As teenager, she started off as a drummer for the band Bangladesh. She said, "After a while, the band needed a keyboardist and that's when I started to play the keys instead of the drums."

Laura herself has written most of the compositions, along with some of her friends and family members, namely Omar Khalid Rumi (Bangladesh), Rokeya Sultana, Mitul (Radioactive), Andrew Morris (Blue Note), Saber (Vibe), Saad (Prayer Hall), Panni, Zidan, Khoka and artiste Ornob.

While asked about the name of the album she replied, "This album is called Opekhar Por because I have literally waited for about six years for these compositions to come out in the open. I have gone through a series of ups and downs because of a few power-driven personalities in the music scene and could not release my album earlier."

About the track 'Maa' written by her mother artist Rokeya Sultana was a heart-warming composition, which her mother had written for Laura's maternal grandmother.

She said, "I performed this song at my launching. It was a very emotional moment. My grandmother died last year and I know how painful it was for my mother to write this song. When she asked me to compose it, I was very nervous and spent a long time working on this particular number."

About the track 'Chakri' of her album, she said, "The track is a self-written number which reflected the socio-economic features of the society that we live in. As boys and girls go through the usual stages of going to school and university, there comes a point when they are forced to choose between their passion and the demands that a society makes. After a degree, one looks for a suitable job with a decent salary, a life partner and a family, hence going through the cycle of life once again."

"Everybody goes through this in Bangladesh. All the young people can relate to this easily. In fact I have to go through it myself at one point," she pointed out.

About her song 'Ichhe Kore' she said, "A young girl who wants to fly away from all the obstacles that a girl faces while growing up. Even amongst the so-called affluent and educated families in our society, girls are restricted from expressing their passion for music, sports or anything else, which would actually lead them to mingle with people outside the vicinity. For young Laura, even though the situations weren't as bad during growing up, she did experience the society's conventional attitude towards women.

Some of her numbers also speak of young love and romance, for instance 'Amar Mon'. Amidst the calming touches of her keys, Laura spoke of a young girl, who thinks back to the time when she had thought that she was in love. Years later, she has changed and so has he. Yet she wonders if she could try offering her heart to the man of her dreams.

Besides attending the final year of BBA at the North South University, Laura is also working as Deputy Director - Marketing in a private company named Camair Tours.

Culture Desk

Georganne Bingham, executive director of the Art Museum of Western Virginia, announced today that the institution's new Randall Stout designed facility has been selected to receive one of the prestigious 2007 American Architecture Awards awarded by The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design and Metropolitan Arts Press Ltd. The new Art Museum is scheduled to open to the public in November 2008.

The American Architecture Awards honor and celebrate the most outstanding new accomplishments for architecture designed and built in the United States by leading American firms and international architecture firms practicing in the USA. The American Architecture Awards have become the most important awards program for public recognition for excellence in architecture in the United States. The awards identify the new cutting-edge design direction, urban philosophy, design approach, style, and intellectual substance in American architecture today.

"We are thrilled that the new Art Museum has been awarded this incredibly prestigious award, and we are so proud that it has been chosen as an example of the most cutting-edge design going on today nationally and internationally," said Georganne Bingham. "We knew Randall Stout would design a very exciting building. The recognition of the new museum as one of the best designed buildings in the world exceeds our expectations, and we are again reminded of the excellent choice we made in selecting Randall as design architect for the project."

Added Bingham, "We are delighted that the Art Museum has received such an important accolade even before it is completed. It gives us a great indication of the national and international attention that the museum will receive and bring to western Virginia and the Commonwealth when it opens next fall."

For the American Architecture Awards 2007, The Chicago Athenaeum received hundreds of submissions from the best and most renowned design firms in the United States and international firms working in the U.S. The submissions ranged from new corporate headquarters, institutions, airports, sports and transportation facilities, and urban planning projects to private residences and multi-family housing designed as of January 1, 2005. The jurying took place in Dublin, Ireland under the auspices of the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland.

Thirty-five buildings in Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Sweden, the Czech Republic, and Great Britain were selected by the jury for the 2007 awards. Projects selected include new corporate headquarters, schools and universities, libraries, art museums, foundation headquarters, transit projects, lofts, residences, and single-family homes.

No skyscrapers or large-scale office buildings were selected this year by the Irish jury, signaling an ever-growing European concern for smaller, more intimate building types, an awareness of energy conservation and sustainability, and profound respect for the built and human environments.

The 2007 awarded projects and other selected works will form an exhibition, New American Architecture, to open in New York in November 2007. Details have not yet been announced.

All awarded projects can be found on-line at The Chicago Athenaeum's website at www.chi-athenaeum.org.