SFCM Grad Named TED Fellow in Recognition for Work with Refugees

Sahba Aminikia’s voice just got a little louder.

The 2013 alumnus was named a TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) Fellow in the influential organization’s 2024 class for his work with the Flying Carpet Festival, which also led him to give one of the group’s popular TED Talks this year.

Growing up in post-revolutionary Iran, Aminikia’s Baha’i faith left him at odds with the new, conservative Islamic rule. Despite being the second-largest religious group in the country, the Baha’i have been historically persecuted, a prejudice that increased after the Iranian revolution in 1979. Despite the country’s new constitution guaranteeing religious freedom for the Christian, Jewish and Zoroastrian minorities, the Baha’i went deliberately unmentioned, setting the stage for decades of human rights violations.

Aminikia left Iran at 19 for Russia, spurred by his love of Dimitri Shostakovich, before immigrating to America in 2006 to study at SFCM with David Garner, David Conte and then-chair of composition, Conrad Susa. While still a student, he got a big break thanks to one of the Bay Area’s most beloved institutions: the Kronos Quartet.

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The greatest show on Earth — for kids who need it most

I'm beyond excited to share that my TED Talk, "The Greatest Show on Earth — for Kids Who Need It Most," is now live on TED.com! This talk is deeply personal to me and reflects years of work, dreams, and collaboration through the Flying Carpet Festival, where art, music, and storytelling meet to offer joy and healing for children impacted by conflict.

In this talk, I discuss why I founded the Flying Carpet Festival and what it means to bring art to some of the most vulnerable children in the world — children growing up in areas affected by war, displacement, and social fragmentation. Many of them have known more struggle in their short lives than most of us can imagine. Yet, through the circus and the festival, these young people are discovering new ways to express themselves, build confidence, and find hope.

The Flying Carpet Festival began with a simple idea: to create a space where beauty, culture, and joy could flourish, even in the unlikeliest of places. But it’s become so much more. It’s a platform where young Syrian refugees and Turkish youth perform as artists, collaborating across cultural divides, and showing audiences that connection is possible even when society is fractured. These performances don’t just entertain; they build empathy and understanding, and they challenge us to see each other differently.

As I prepared for this TED Talk, I was reminded of the power of storytelling, of sharing a message that, I hope, resonates with everyone who believes in the transformative force of creativity. My hope is that this talk will bring more awareness to how art can be a healing force for children who have been affected by trauma and that it will encourage others to think about ways they can bring a little bit of “magic” into lives that need it.

For everyone who has been part of this journey — performers, mentors, supporters, and audiences — thank you for believing in the power of art to create change. I invite you all to watch the talk, share it, and join us in our vision for a world where every child has the opportunity to experience “the greatest show on earth.”

Thank you, TED, for giving this vision a platform, and thank you all for your support! Let’s keep spreading the magic.

Interview with Sahba Aminikia

His musical compositions have been widely performed around the world by ensembles including the Kronos Quartet, Brooklyn Youth Chorus, Carnegie Hall Ensemble Connect, Minnesota Philharmonic Orchestra, Symphony Parnassus, San Francisco Conservatory of Music New Music Ensemble, Mobius Trio, Delphi Trio, Amaranth Quartet, The Living Earth Show, Verdigris Ensemble, Music Of Remembrance, One Found Sound, and the Afghanistan National Institute Of Music. Phonetic Planet is so grateful to the inspirational Sahba Aminikia for sharing his positive energy with us in a recent interview! 

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