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Sistemang Pilipino: A Decade of Continuous Learning

Lianne Sala, Founder and Executive Director, Sistemang Pilipino

04-05-2023

The story of the El Sistema–inspired program Sistemang Pilipino began quietly in April 2013 at an orphanage in Cebu City, Philippines. A mixed group of 21 music teachers, students, and musicians all began together with a teacher training workshop led by Graciela Briceno, a Sistema Fellow based in Boston, MA, in the United States.

Q&A: Jazz Hands For Autism Teacher-in-Training Tyler Roberts on Classroom Management, Confidence, and Booking Gigs

Donna Pignatiello-Iarocci, Teacher Trainer and Job Coach, Jazz Hands For Autism

04-05-2023

Downtown Los Angeles usually sees about ten inches of rain for the season. As of this writing, we’re 12 inches ahead of schedule.

Happily, the recent precipitation hasn’t dampened Tyler Roberts’ spirits. He’s got a lot to beam about: he’s the sunny spot at the center of a classroom at Kayne Eras Center in Culver City, CA, where he teaches drums to five spunky elementary students. Tyler’s smile lights up the room and his laid-back, inquisitive nature serves both him and his students well.

Let’s get to know a bit about Tyler, his gift for teaching, and what’s on his horizon.

Sistema Scotland: New Evaluation Shows Big Noise, Big Futures

Ianne Currie, Evaluation & Monitoring Officer, Sistema Scotland

03-01-2023

Sistema Scotland is excited to share the learning from a recently published evaluation report by the Glasgow Centre for Population Health (GCPH). The report, titled Statistical Analysis of Educational Outcomes Among Big Noise Raploch Participants, finds that young people who take part in Big Noise Raploch are more likely to achieve positive post-school outcomes and are more likely to be in employment than those who have not participated in the program.

GLI Imagined Community Concert: Ubuntu Bulamu at Brass for Africa

Maryen Muñoz (author), Atteqa Malik, Keziah Ntwiga, Kenneth Mwiti, and Catherine Aziz Shawky, Global Leaders ’23 cohort members

03-01-2023

During interviews, BFA Founder Jim Trott emphasized gender inequality as a prominent issue in the places where they work, citing data that indicates the problem has worsened during the pandemic. As Jim referenced several alarming practices—domestic violence, dowry violence, acid attack, forced marriage, sexual harassment, human trafficking, forced prostitution—it became clear to us that our imagined concert would need to raise awareness of this issue.

Miami Lighthouse Youth Music Program: Reimagining Music as an Empowerment Tool

Virginia A. Jacko, President and Chief Executive Officer, Miami Lighthouse for the Blind & Visually Impaired

03-01-2023

Nearly two decades ago, when I started going completely blind, I came to the Miami Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired to learn how to live as a blind person. It was there that I encountered extraordinary young people who either were born blind or went blind when they were young—but who were united in their abiding love of and talent for music.

‘Hosts in Their Own Home’: True Interculturalism at Los Cenzontles Cultural Arts Academy

Eugene Rodriguez, Founder, Los Cenzontles Cultural Arts Academy

03-01-2023

As I began my career teaching Mexican music to children, the advent of multiculturalism promised increased representation but actually delivered narrow spaces that forced us into stereotypes, akin to Taco Tuesday at the cultural center. So I began to practice interculturalism, within which we took control of our own self-definition and expression. We studied our traditions from within and created bridges to people of various cultures directly.

Sinfonía por el Perú, an Experience of Social Innovation

César Oré Rocca, Executive Board Member, Sinfonía por el Perú

03-01-2023

Right away, during the program’s first year, positive effects were obvious. In fact, the music’s potential seemed to go beyond the ability to learn a new skill or develop cognitively; it seemed like a means to tackle all sorts of issues—self-esteem, tolerance, cooperation, communication, dialogue, self-care, self-determination, and so much more.

Bridging Cultural Identities through Music

Fenia Biniari, Communications Manager, El Sistema Greece, Alexandros Gkonis, Greek composer, and Hasan Labendz, musician, El Sistema Greece

02-01-2023

An artist’s creative process is one of the most intriguing aspects of a composition—a giant basket of sights, sounds, ideas, and sensations that bring inspiration. But how do artists select and interpret these elements? And if they really are so personal to us, what happens when we share the contents of those baskets with others?

At El Sistema Greece, the B-Me: Blending Melodies – Bridging Cultural Identities project has given us a window into that process.

A Missive from the Field: Musical Growth and Joy in Papua New Guinea

Maestro Jesús Briceño, Music Director, Queen of Paradise Orchestra

02-01-2023

As Music Director, I was most impressed by the way students from each section were able to take turns teaching, conducting, and helping the group perfect the repertoire prior to the Christmas concert. For more than a month, older students worked patiently with younger, newer students, imparting their experience and knowledge. This says a great deal about the transformational effects of the Sistema model in the places where it grows.

Authentic Assessments: Prioritizing the Whole Student

Diogo Pereira, Founder and Executive Director, Harmony Project Phoenix

02-01-2023

Authentic assessments are projects that engage students in their own learning journeys and can be implemented by all ages and classes in the program throughout the academic school year. At the Harmony Project Phoenix, these authentic assessments focus particularly on Autonomy, Creativity, and Empathy. For example, in the Empathy assessment, students lead the project, with teachers serving as facilitators.

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