18 year old Shehade Shelaldeh has his own violin repair shop in the West Bank where there has been a growing interest in classical music. Ramzi Aburedwan, a violist who runs a music center for Palestinian children, encouraged Shelaldeh, who lived next door to the center, to learn the trade. Shelaldeh spent 3 months apprenticing in Italy and also received lessons from visiting European luthiers. He’s still got plenty to learn and he’s hoping to attend Newark College’s violin-making program, but for now he’s keeping the students’ instruments in shape, for a musical escape from the politics that surround them.