Two Berkeley MBA students, inspired by the rich sounds of Afghanistan and the tragic plight of its people, embarked on a digital recording mission to the country last summer, which has now resulted in the release of their 11-song album of traditional Afghan music, called Afghan Music Project.

The team, Adam Gouttierre and Chris Becherer, both Berkeley MBA 06, traveled to Kabul, Afghanistan, to record folk musicians in a time rife with civil unrest, which included riots and frequent kidnappings of Westerners. The students chronicled the trip through their blog.

The Afghan Music Project, now available for download through 40 online music stores, including Apple’s iTunes and Real’s Rhapsody, was made possible with the help of a fellowship from the Haas School's Clausen Center for International Business and Policy.

The initial idea for the project came to Gouttierre and Becherer on their first-year MBA tech treks to technology companies in the San Francisco Bay Area, when the two fledgling musicians realized just how easy it is to make digital recordings and to distribute them over the Internet.

All proceeds from the project will fund Afghani music teachers in Kabul, who will teach music education to youth, particularly young women. According to the team, just 600 song downloads (or 60 album sales) will fund one teacher's salary for an entire year.

Learn more about the project and how to buy the album