Asia/Oceania

Music possesses the power to transcend borders and unite hearts. That’s why, last month, a hundred children in Vanimo, Papua New Guinea packed their instruments to bring their music to Jayapura, Indonesia. It was a historic milestone: the first international tour for the students in the Queen of Paradise Project, launched seven years ago by Music Director Jesus Briceno with the support of Father Miguel de la Calle. Father Martin Prado is now the CEO of the project.

On March 21, Luxembourg City celebrated Bach’s 341st birthday with the 16th year of Bach in the Subways—52 free performances of his music in 21 venues, including arts venues, shops, restaurants, and bookstores.

Applications are now open through November 19 for the Asian Cultural Council’s 2026 Fellowships and Grants, supporting cultural exchange activities for arts professionals and organizations in Asia and the United States.

With their decades of positive impact and wealth of institutional knowledge, it would have been easy for DWS to focus on maintaining their success. Instead, we at the Playing For Change Foundation were recently privileged to partner with DWS to bolster and expand their music program. The initial goals of our partnership were simple: identify and hire professional music educators who can help take the existing program to the next level, and maintain the standard of excellence that DWS has achieved in its other extracurricular programming.

One of the most memorable experiences from my time in Vanimo was helping the students prepare music for a truly special occasion: the visit, last August, of Pope Francis. With only three weeks to prepare, the students were able to put together both a fully recorded concert for the Holy Father and a few live pieces for his visit to the IVE Fathers in Baro.

The world enjoys Maori culture through its vivid kapa haka (performances of song, dance, and chant) and the famous haka displayed at All Blacks rugby games. There are no piupiu, poi, or taiaha (traditional garments, food, or weapons) at Sistema Whangarei–Toi Akorangi, in New Zealand’s far north, and yet Maori principles are quietly, seamlessly woven through the fabric of our program. They create the foundations for endless possibility.

A good conference asks an important question; a great conference launches an answering process that reaches beyond its few days. In September, ITAC7, the Seventh International Teaching Artist Conference, brought hundreds of teaching artists from around the world to Auckland, New Zealand, to address the question of what the global field can learn from Indigenous wisdom about art and community.

I had known about Mixit for quite some time. Their work was not only fascinating from an artistic and pedagogical perspective but inspiring in its longevity; the organization has provided opportunities for young people from diverse backgrounds for the past 19 years. Still, I was curious to learn more. As a migrant myself, I had found there to be a lack of projects in Aotearoa New Zealand that use creativity and artmaking in intercultural, collaborative settings—despite the nation’s rich multicultural population.

On May 14, 2017, we were on our way to Tinglayan, Kalinga in the Northern Philippines to screen films and teach filmmaking to young people—a five-hour drive from our base in Tuguegarao City. It had been five months and three film workshops since we’d founded the North Luzon Cinema Guild; Tinglayan Film Camp was our first collaboration with an Indigenous community.

While we were driving downhill on the foot of the Cordillera Mountains, the brake pads of our yellow 1999 Toyota Fun Cargo gave out. As we careened down the mountain, an old bus headed uphill came into view. Seeing it was going to be tight, we angled our car toward the side of the road…and kept rolling…