About Us

WHO WE ARE

The International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation (IYMF) was created in 1991 by Yehudi Menuhin in Brussels to realise his humanist dream: giving a voice to the voiceless through the arts. The Foundation serves as the base for the implementation and coordination of many socio-cultural projects and programs, the first of which was the MUS-E programme.

Mission

Education: Promoting and implementing the use of creative arts through education
Social Inclusion: Contributing to intercultural dialogue and social inclusion at both national and international levels through creative arts.
Artistic Creation: Enabling co-creation and exchange between emerging and established musicians and artists, including from lesser known minorities

Vision

Every child deserves a chance
Every human being has a voice
Every culture has a channel of expression

Values

Inclusion

Equality

Solidarity

Reciprocity

Creativity

Diversity

Our History

Established in 1991 by Yehudi Menuhin and our Executive Vice Président and co-founder Marianne Poncelet the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation (IYMF) is registered as a non-profit association by royal decree.

As one of the greatest violinist and humanist of the twentieth century, Yehudi Menuhin always believed that arts and creativity must have a central place in any process of personal and/or societal development.

In 1993 Werner Schmitt (IYMF Vice-President), Marianne Poncelet and Yehudi Menuhin created the MUS-E programme. Since 1993, MUSE-E associations have developed operations in 13 countries involving 61000 children and up to 500 schools. Over the years, we’ve crafted a wealth experience in implementing the use of creating arts in traditional primary schools working particularly with children from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The Foundation in a few milestones…

1991

Creation of the International
Yehudi Menuhin Foundation
by Yehudi Menuhin

1993

Launch of the MUS-E Programme in Europe

1996

Creation of the Assembly of Cultures of Europe (ACE) by Yehudi Menuhin, to give a voice to the voiceless. Its work is complementary to that of sovereign states: alongside vertical concepts within borders, ACE sees cultures as horizontal processes and wants to build bridges between different cultures, a dialogue with institutions, a peaceful coexistence in Europe in mutual knowledge.

ACE’s objectives are :

– Promote European integration of all cultural groups while respecting their diversity and specificity.

– Act as an intermediary between cultural groups and European institutions.

– Develop the cross-fertilisation of cultural groups by multiplying contacts and sharing cultural activities.

– Defend and protect the right to be different from any form of assimilation.

1997

Production of the Voices for Peace concert which leaves its mark on the music scene and establishes the Foundation as a strong cultural and artistic actor producing high-quality concerts around tolerance and intercultural dialogue

2016

Celebration of Yehudi Menuhin’s
hundredth anniversary at the
Centre for Fine Arts in Brussels

2018

Development of the project “Homelands,
places of belonging, a project for and by refugee artists