Social Connection and Mental Health

 
The Ensemble seeks to connect and inform all people who are committed to ensemble music education for youth empowerment and social change.
 
The Ensemble Newsletter

Regions

Africa

Asia/Oceania

Europe

Latin America

North America

Topics

Teaching & Learning

Program Design

Student Voice & Leadership

Community Building

Collaborations

Funding & Support

Perspectives & Collective Action

News & Resources

Curation, Not Composition: Strategies for Healthy Collaboration in the Classroom

Mike Roberts, composer and sound artist specializing in electronic, choral, and community music; Founder/Head of the Electronic & Produced Music Department at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London, U.K.

05-01-2024

It was during a choir rehearsal, at age nine, that I decided to become a composer. Choir was an oasis of joy in an otherwise difficult school experience; I simply lived for each opportunity to sing. Since then, it’s been my joy to witness, time and time again, music’s transformative power in community—never more so than in communities of singers, and never more powerfully than when those singers are empowered to compose their own songs.

Exploring Music Therapy in Rwanda with Musicians Without Borders

Amelia Caesar-Homden, musician and final-year music therapy student at the University of the West of England (UWE), Bristol, U.K.

05-01-2024

Music therapy for hearing-impaired people? I’ve been a musician for 20 years, and I am currently a third-year trainee music therapist studying at the University of the West of England in Bristol. But I never really knew how impactful music can be for children who are deaf or have hearing impairments until I had the opportunity to accept a professional placement with Rwanda Youth Music in Kigali, Rwanda.

Art Heals: Arts as a basic need in humanitarian settings

Samar Bandak, Global Communications Manager, Community Arts Network

03-05-2024

I have worked in the humanitarian sector for almost 15 years, in both Jordan and Lebanon, which have the highest refugees per capita in the world. In that time, I’ve learned thousands of life stories: of people who lost their homes, their possessions, and their established lives; of traumatized children and departed loved ones; of extreme health crises, both mental and physical. Yet, despite the hardships they reveal, these stories have always been more about bravery, strength, resilience, faith, and love.

Safe Spaces in Unsafe Places: Talking with Lucas Dols of Sounds of Change

Patrick Scafidi, Executive Editor, The Ensemble, in conversation with Lucas Dols, Founder/Director, Sounds of Change

02-07-2024

When we last spoke to Sounds of Change Founder and Director Lucas Dols, in 2022, he was hopeful about an upcoming year of growth for the organization… Seventeen months later, the world is no less difficult or overwhelming for young people looking to find their way. With a focus on those who are most affected by violence and displacement abroad, we talked with Lucas about the work Sounds of Change is doing to help.

 

Courage and Community at Ghetto Classics Dance

Joanna Priwieziencew, Head of Ghetto Classics Dance, Nairobi, Kenya

02-07-2024

The river is fighting to flow through the densely settled garbage, scavenged by Korogocho inhabitants. The heat of the sun bounces from the ground, the rising dust fills my eyes, while a gang member greets me in Swahili.

Five years into my work with Ghetto Classics Dance, I am again presented with the opportunity to write about our program.

ESG’s Young Leaders Strike Chords of Empowerment

Fenia Biniari, Communications Manager, El Sistema Greece

02-07-2024

On Saturday, November 25, following the International Day for Children’s Rights, El Sistema Greece’s Young Leaders Program welcomed Anna Mertzani, Manager of the Intercultural Center “PYXIDA” of the Greek Council for Refugees.

Share

ABOUT US MASTHEAD THE AMBASSADORS THE ARCHIVES SUBSCRIBE CONTACT
© Copyright 2022 Ensemble News