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‘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.

Stories, Not Statistics: Fact-Checking the Impact of Nairobi’s Ghetto Classics

Ginanne Brownell, author and journalist, London, U.K.

02-01-2023

I had to come to terms with the idea that some stories would have to be taken at face value, and then figure out how to present them so that readers would understand they were based on what I was told, not on what I could actually verify. Although many stats didn’t exist, just being at a rehearsal on a given Sunday could make even the biggest cynics question their critiques.

FOJI: Growing Orchestras across Chile

Miguel Farías, Executive Director, Fundación de Orquestas Juveniles e Infantiles de Chile (FOJI)

01-04-2023

Chile is a unique country. Its territories are incredibly diverse, from the driest desert (Atacama) to the mountainous, brisk lands at the continent’s southernmost point (Magallanes, Aysén). This adds a layer of complication to our work at Fundación de Orquestas Juveniles e Infantiles de Chile (FOJI), where we strive to make it possible for musicians in every region to participate in ensemble music performance—even if it requires multi-day trips by sea, land, and air.

Raising Refugee Voices at the Tumaini Festival

Thandi Dyani, Network Organizer, BMW Foundation Africa Region, and Trésor Mpauni, Founder, The Tumaini Festival

01-04-2023

At first, the participation of the refugee community was meager, because the idea of a festival in a refugee camp was almost inconceivable. After the first one, however, the community got a sense of what a festival is like and what possibilities and opportunities might come from it. News of the festival started spreading all over Malawi and abroad.

Teaching Mutual Understanding and Peace: The United World Colleges

Graciela Briceno, Education Officer, U.S. Agency for International Development; Founder, Boston Music Project

01-04-2023

What if there were an option for students—even those who could not afford additional years of school—to continue their “social development through music” journey? As it happens, there is one: United World Colleges (UWC), a consortium of higher education institutions that prioritizes—as does our field—peace, collaboration, and mutual understanding.

Scotland Choir Removes Barriers to Build Community

Cathy Phillips Brady, Music Development Officer, University of Glasgow; Global Leaders Project alumna

01-04-2023

In Edinburgh’s iconic Usher Hall, the Love Music Community Choir is knocking down walls. Cofounded in 2006 by professional composer and educator Stephen Deazley, Scotland’s ambitious community singing program is now some 330 members strong—the nation’s largest community choir.

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