Youth Voice

 
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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EDITORIAL
Young People Are Speaking To Us. Are We Close Enough to Hear Them?

Dalouge Smith, Cofounder, The Creating Abundance Collaborative

12-03-2025

I’d been missing the presence and perspective of young people in these gatherings dedicated to arts education, young people’s wellbeing, and community health through the arts. When young people were present, it was most often as performers, and occasionally as panelists alongside adults.

Throughout these events, I had been wondering, “How is it that we continue to position young people as objects of conversation, and not the subject?”

EDITORIAL
The Power of Youth Voice

Ayde Diaz, El Sistema USA 2025 Youth Ambassador; YOLA Torres Student

11-05-2025

An instructor once told me, “When we listen to our students, we remember why we’re here. Their perspective makes us better.” That was the moment I realized our learning experiences aren’t a one-way street. In programs that truly value our voices, the impact extends far beyond the classroom. It reaches families, neighborhoods, and entire communities.

The El Sistema USA 2025 West Coast Regional Gathering

Patrick Scafidi, Executive Editor, The Ensemble

05-07-2025

At events like these, it’s easy to think about the word “community” as the people in the room. But El Sistema USA’s nifty trick was to upend that idea. Rather than celebrate our professional community—the connections we form with colleagues—the ESUSA leadership team explored the ties that bind us to larger, more diverse communities—of families, of activists, of scientists, of lawmakers, and of the folks that lawmakers tend to ignore.

Building Culture, Building Community at the RYSE Center

Jordan Daniel, Culture Builder Intern, The RYSE Center

05-03-2023

Growing up, I was taught to suck it up, because your pain isn’t serious until you become an adult. Feelings weren’t a thing, and neither were options. So when I joined a place that preached opposite ideas, I thought I had fallen into a parallel universe.

The Ambassadors’ Exchange: The 2022 Composition Relay

Axelle Miel, Program Manager, The Ambassadors

05-04-2022

Several of our Ambassadors had become busy with school, concerts, and auditions, and were unable to attend every meeting. Others had to stay up late at night or get up really early in the morning to participate. We asked ourselves: what if we created our entire composition asynchronously, to make it easier for everyone?

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