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Jourdan Urbach: Teen Concert Musician and Harvard Researcher

One of the Society's youngest ambassadors, Jourdan Urbach has gained national acclaim for his accomplishments as a concert violinist, author, scientist and philanthropist.

Jourdan, of Roslyn, N.Y., began playing violin at age 3, and has often been compared to a "Young Paganini" with buttery-smooth playing and laser-sharp technique. At age 7 he founded Children Helping Children, which organizes benefit concerts for pediatric wards and organizes in-hospital peformances, after touring a pediatric neurosurgery clinic for a school project. He developed a special interest in MS in 2003, when a cousin was diagnosed. Among his many recitals at world-class venues was a 2005 concert at Carnegie Hall, with all proceeds benefiting the National MS Society.

Jourdan took a moment from his frenetic schedule in late spring 2008, just after completing his junior year at Roslyn High, to catch us up on some recent accomplishments:

• Four perfect 800 SAT II scores
• Studying for five AP exams
• Received the Robert P. Sheppard Leadership Award for 2008 from Claes Nobel, founder of the National Society of High School Scholars, and performed before the U.S. Senate at the awards ceremony
• Performed in L.A. at the Associated Television International Hero Awards, and received the show's Young Hero Award
• Was one of six winners (out of 3,468 nominees) of the Better Hour National Scholarship Competition for Philanthropic Leadership and Public Service for his work in music and medicine. The prize honors the legacy of abolitionist William Wilberforce.

Jourdan said he was eager for exams to be over so he could get back to Harvard Medical School, where he is the youngest-ever assistant to renowned MS researcher David A. Hafler, MD. Jourdan also has conducted independent research on MS at Stony Brook University Medical Center. He presented his first scientific paper, "The Role of Laminin in Myelination," at the 2005 National MS Society national conference in Atlanta.

Among his many other awards, Jourdan has won a Prudential Spirit of Community Award, the Young Heart Medal from New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg, and the Caring Institute's Caring Award.

On his contribution to FaceofMS, Jourdan states, "My involvement with the Society is fueled in part by my personal connection with MS through my cousin, Marjorie, and also because I've met and become close with so many people at the Society that I feel a part of them, and I am just as driven to find a cure."

See Jourdan's video podcast, "The Future of Telemedicine," which won first place in NASA's National 21st Century Podcast Competition, and watch Jourdan's visit to the Motel Williams Show in March 2008 (.wmv).