The story of U.S. customs officials destroying a musician's 11 handmade flutes has sparked outrage from readers wherever it has been reported, with many readers posting messages of support for flutist Boujemaa Razgui.
So far, U.S. customs has not commented on the incident.
The story was first reported by "Slipped Disc" commentator Norman Lebrecht on ArtsJournal. Lebrecht later posted that the story was read by more than 100,000 people on December 31, the very day it was posted, and "almost halted traffic on ArtsJournal.com."
On January 1, Lebrecht posted a letter that Razgui wrote to him, thanking "Slipped Disc" for its support and including a picture of Razgui's handcrafted nay flutes.
Razgui wrote, "I have such great memories with these nays through the past years." He recalled, too, all the places where he has played them recently:
"They were my huge art connection with North America and Europe, through churches, synagogues (all of them in Montreal and almost all in Toronto), universities, colleges, theaters, com.centers, mosques, all kind of ceremonies, marriages, helulas, barMetzvahs, you name it."
"Crossing the U.S. in my travels," Razgui continued idiomatically, "l got to educate myself, meet other people and exchange ideas."
The nay is a reed flute that is played in Arabic music. Reed flutes like the nay have been played all across the Middle East for hundreds--possibly thousands--of years.
