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The Ensemble seeks to connect and inform all people who are committed to ensemble music education for youth empowerment and social change.
 
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El Sistema USA Invites Sistema Europe to Participate in Upcoming Virtual National Symposium and Seminario

01-06-2021

El Sistema USA invites Sistema Europe to take part in its upcoming virtual National Symposium and Seminario (February 15–19) by presenting a session entitled “All Change! – Exploring European Sistema Strategies at a Time of Challenge” on 17 February (EST 12 noon -1 pm, CET 6 -7 pm, GMT 5 – 6 pm). Sistema Europe program leaders and teachers are invited to submit a proposal to make a brief (5–7 minute) presentation about their program’s specific pandemic response initiatives and their context, results, and impact. Approximately four presenters will be invited to speak, with a particular emphasis on the diversity and originality of various responses. Please send your proposals by 13 January 2021 by email to [email protected] and [email protected]. Ten to fifteen lines will be ideal to outline what you would like to present.

Connect.Adapt.Thrive! El Sistema USA Releases Theme for 2021 National Symposium and Seminario

12-01-2020

El Sistema USA has released the theme for their 2021 National Symposium and Seminario, charging the field to “Connect.Adapt.Thrive!” The event, now in its third year, will be held virtually and will be hosted by the Sistema-inspired program Miami Music Project. It will take place from February 15-19, 2021, and focus on three main areas: Racial Diversity and Cultural Understanding, Musical Excellence during the pandemic, and Team and Family Support pre- and post-pandemic. Requests for session proposals are due December 15. Proposal submissions can be made here.

Join The Walk to Support Refugees

11-18-2020

The Walk is a traveling arts festival from Good Chance Theatre. On The Walk, Little Amal, a giant puppet, will travel 8,000 km across Turkey and Europe in support of refugees, being welcomed by hundreds of cultural events along the way.

Contribute to the ABLE Assembly, Focusing on Intersectionality, Disability, and Arts Education—Deadline 12.15.2020

11-18-2020

Do you have something to share about working with students with disabilities? If so, consider proposing a session (20-minute pre-recorded video, with guidance provided by the conference leaders) for the ABLE Assembly: Arts Better the Lives of Everyone, Digital Conference, April 10–11, 2021. This year’s theme is Intersectionality, Disability, and Arts Education. Since the music for social change movement prioritizes the value of inclusion, it would be great for us to be leading contributors to this global field. The deadline for proposals is December 15; learn more and consider submitting one here.

Ambassador Talks: Tricia Tunstall

Axelle Miel, Ambassadors Program Leader (Philippines)

11-04-2020

Aside from working together on projects and publishing updates about their respective Sistema programs, Ambassadors are given the opportunity to receive various forms of enrichment throughout the year. This month, they met with Tricia Tunstall, who cofounded The Ensemble and The World Ensemble newsletters and authored the seminal book Playing for Their Lives: The Global El Sistema Movement for Social Change Through Music.

Early-childhood Music Program for Families with Infants

11-04-2020

Big Note, Little Note is a new early-childhood music program for families with infants. Designed by Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute in partnership with local community centers and organizations, the new ten-week music class offers a range of experiences for families to engage with their babies through musical play, singing, songwriting, instrument exploration, and more. The program is offered free to families around the world to support family well-being, early child development, and parent-child connection.

Applications Open for Carnegie Hall’s National Youth Ensembles

11-04-2020

Applications are now open for Carnegie Hall’s National Youth Ensembles. Please let your most promising students know about NYO2, a free orchestra program of intensive training and performance opportunities with a track record of recruiting musicians from communities underrepresented in classical music. The National Youth Orchestra of the United States (NYO-USA) deadline is November 12 ; the NYO2 application is due December 1; and NYO Jazz is due by January 21. All are free and led by distinguished artists.

Canada Connects

Kathryn Cobbler, Teaching Artist, OrKidstra, Ottawa, Ontario; Jacquie McNulty, Site Manager, Youth Orchestra of Northern Alberta (YONA) – Sistema, Edmonton; Karma Tomm, Director, Sistema Kingston, Ontario

11-03-2020

As El Sistema-inspired programs, we value community. Over the years, programs of various shapes and sizes have sprung up across Canada, laying down roots in priority communities. Although each program is unique in how it strives to support the students and families it serves, we are united as El Sistema-inspired programs in our shared belief in the transformative power of music. We are also bound together in confronting issues that concern all Canadians—issues of income inequality, racism, and systemic oppression, to name a few.

Collective Action for Greater Impact

Armand Hall, Executive and Artistic Director, ROCmusic Collaborative, Rochester, NY

11-03-2020

I am a musician, conductor, and educator who strives to bring reason and connection to my community. This focus was emboldened in 2009 when I was invited by Roberto Zambrano to come to Venezuela as a teaching artist with the Archipelago Project. There, I saw how real community engagement and collective effort can produce excellence. In 2018, I was fortunate to apply for a leadership job with the ROCmusic Collaborative in Rochester, NY. What interested me was the opportunity to work inside an atypical structure that could pool resources and work to recreate the communal spirit I witnessed in Venezuela.

On Organizational Service

Patrick Slevin, Executive and Artistic Director, Austin Soundwaves, TX

11-03-2020

The El Sistema-inspired field is committed to ongoing dialogue, reflection, and adaptation. We regularly analyze our successes and failures, and ask questions like, “What more can we do to support our communities?” and “How can we respond to events happening in our backyards and across the nation?”

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