Since as far back as we have record, people have been making music.  Birds sing songs, nature plays its tunes, and humans make music.  It can be said that our ability as humans to make music is one of the greatest things that sets us apart from other creatures.  Music can serve a multitude of purposes and can be made in innumerable ways.  It seems that no matter how it is made, music always has the ability to penetrate deep into the core of the soul and communicate to the listener powerful emotions.  Music has a way of speaking that other forms of communication sometimes lack.  We believe that by using music, song, dance, videos, and other cultural performances, we can touch the souls of all who can hear—inviting our hearts to be at peace and uniting us in an effort of love, to serve those with who are in need, beginning in our own families, communities and then expanding outward. 

Our Mission

      Our mission is to help build unity and peace between groups who have not found a space or a reason, to mix and work together. Martin Luther King Jr. said almost fifty years ago that, “Through man’s scientific genius and technological ingenuity he has dwarfed distance and placed time in chains. Jet planes have compressed minute distances that once took days and months to cover...Through our scientific genius we have made this world a neighborhood; now through our moral and spiritual development we must make of it a brotherhood. In a real sense, we must all learn to live together as brothers, or we will perish together as fools. We must come to see that no individual can live alone; no nation can live alone, we must all live together; we must all be concerned about each other.” Due to globalization, a peaceful collaboration is becoming increasingly important; we are no longer islands unto ourselves. 

How we are Different:

      We believe that peace is possible to the extent that we are willing to strive for it in our own lives and in our relationships with others. We must learn to love and find ways to work with peoples of different cultures and disciplines. So we create multimedia productions that include the use of song, dance, videos, and other cultural performances, to invite individuals into a space that will help build a foundation for greater intercultural understanding, exposing the humanity of all involved.

      When we sense the humanity of another person our heart is touched and we begin to feel love towards the soul we have discovered.  In many instances however, this is where the powerful experience stops.  After a moving concert people go their separate ways with a good feeling in their hearts and a determination to help, but there is little or no direction as to how to serve and when.  We as the @RTIMOS committee want to provide a powerful concert, but don’t want the experience to stop there, @RTIMOS is more than just a concert.  We want to see the principles of love and charity in practice.  We believe that these attributes are verbs requiring action!

      What is unique about our mission is the fact that we give our audiences a reason to mix and work together--a reason to act now; a reason to step out of their comfort zones and serve their friends, in their own homes, communities, and the world--making the world a better place one step at a time. We extend this invitation to enter this space at the end of the production, when audience members are asked to put the emotions of love and charity into practice by getting their hands dirty as they help lift the burdens of others who are in need by participating in a series of service projects in the community.  For example, we have sought help and insight from the Kapuna (Elders-both men and women) of the community in an attempt to assess the community’s needs.  We believe that it is important to understand what the community feels that it needs as we seek to provide service.  Using their ideas, a series of service projects will be planned, and attendees of the concert will join with those who came to our last @RTIMOS concert to work to fulfill the needs of the community and sue for peace in the hearts of everyone within our reach.

History Behind @RTIMOS:

      In 2008, in response to an assignment received in an International Business course, Art Saowichit decided he wanted to host a musical production, which he called @RTIMOS-Leadership Through Music.  This concert included a variety of vocal, instrumental, and dance performances, which provided a fun evening for all in attendance.  Because of the positive reaction to his production, Art felt it was important to do it again, this time the focus was on establishing peace internationally.  This production was a huge success.  The attendance was great, and the responses to the experience were extremely positive.  People’s hearts were moved.  We hosted a service project in the community allowing @RTIMOS attendees to connect with community members as we cleared a jungle of a front yard in the pouring rain.  When other community members heard about what had been done they were moved to tears.  This kind of experience is what @RTIMOS is all about.  We want to see these kinds of connections made as we progress towards a better relationship with ourselves, and within the community.