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Call for participants – Choir for Ukraine

The International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation is implementing musical activities dedicated to Ukrainian children.

 

With the guidance of a choir director (Paul Sojo) and the Ukrainian pianist (Dmytro Sukhovienko), the children will learn to sing together a one-hour long repertoire composed of both Ukrainian and European songs.

 

From September until December 2022, different music activities will be offered to the children:

(1) Rehearsals – Wednesdays afternoon from 2-430pm + 30min snack.

September: September 14 / September 21 / September 28

October: October 5 / October 12 / October 19 / October 24-25-26

November: November 9 / November 16 / November 23 / November 30

December: December 7 / December 14 / December 21

(2) Music Workshops – 27/28/29 of October (10am- 430pm).

(3) Final performance – Friday, December 23, 2022.

 

No previous musical knowledge or experience is required to participate.

Working languages: Ukrainian – English – French – Dutch

Required age: 8 to 15 years old.

Activities, travel, and subsistence costs are entirely covered by the International yehudi Menuhin Foundation and its sponsors.

 

If you wish to participate, please register by September 10, 2022, by clicking the link below:

https://forms.gle/tV3pCZNyvc7nX2B49

For more information, please contact us:

simon.eychenne@menuhin-foundation.com

+32 (0) 2 673 35 04

www.menuhin-foundation.com

ЗВІТ ДЛЯ УЧАСНИКІВ

Міжнародний фонд Єгуді Менугіна проводить музичні заходи, присвячені українським дітям.

Під керівництвом керівника хору (Пол Соджо) та українського піаніста (Дмитро Суховієнко) діти навчаться співати разом годинний репертуар, який складається як з українських, так і з європейських пісень.

 

З вересня по грудень 2022 року дітям будуть запропоновані різні музичні заходи:

(1) Репетиції – середа вдень з 14:30 до 16:30 + 30 хвилин перекусу.

Вересень: 14 вересня / 21 вересня / 28 вересня

Жовтень: 5 жовтня / 12 жовтня / 19 жовтня / 24-25-26 жовтня

Листопад: 9 листопада / 16 листопада / 23 листопада / 30 листопада

Грудень: 7 грудня / 14 грудня / 21 грудня

(2) Музичні майстер-класи – 27/28/29 жовтня (10:00-16:30).

(3) Підсумковий виступ – п’ятниця, 23 грудня 2022 року.

 

Для участі не потрібні попередні музичні знання чи досвід.

Робочі мови: українська – англійська – французька – голландська

Необхідний вік: від 8 до 15 років.

Витрати на діяльність, проїзд та проживання повністю покриваються Міжнародним фондом Єгуді Менухіна та його спонсорами.

 

Якщо ви бажаєте взяти участь, зареєструйтеся до 10 вересня 2022 року, перейшовши за посиланням нижче:

https://forms.gle/tV3pCZNyvc7nX2B49

За додатковою інформацією звертайтеся до Міжнародного фонду Єгуді Менухіна:

simon.eychenne@menuhin-foundation.com

+32 (0) 2 673 35 04

www.menuhin-foundation.com

Fundraising Concert for Peace and Solidarity

On 7th of April 2022, the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation together with the Permanent Representation of Lithuania in Brussels, organized a peace and solidarity concert to raise funds in support to Ukraine and for actions aiming to support refugees from Ukraine in Belgium through the practice of the arts.

Florika Fink-Hooijer (Directorate General for the Environment) introduced the concert and the speakers of the evening which were: Kateryna Sinkevičienė, Marianne Poncelet (IYMF Executive Vice-President) and Ambassador Arnoldas Pranckevičius (Permanent Representative of Lithuania to the EU). Each said a word about the situation in Ukraine and how the world reacts to it.

Today the wound is immense in Ukraine and our heart bleeds in unison to see so much violence darken the lives of peoples who only dreamed of peace and freedom. We want to think that through music, which is the most refined expression of our civilizations, we will uplift hearts and souls and help relieve this infinite pain while preparing, thanks to all of you, a more serene future for deracinated children : hence, music is intrinsically neutral and a-political.

“There are wounds everywhere.

You have to know how to forget your own

and try to heal the universal wound.”

Yehudi Menuhin

As Marianne Poncelet explained in her speech for this concert:

Yehudi Menuhin’s father was from Gomel. His mother was from Crimea. His name means « the Jew of Peace ». All his life he fought for peace with courage, always advocating to give a voice to all cultures. He knew that music is the key to rebuild trust, even in devastated hearts. With this in mind, we wanted to offer you a special concert for peace and solidarity with the Ukrainian people who suffer hugely.

Arnoldas Pranckevicius concluded the event by saying:

“a significant transition from Myroslav Skoryk’s melancholic and profound ‘Melody’, which is considered Ukraine’s spiritual anthem, recalling the terrible war crimes in Ukraine and the great humanitarian tragedy, to Ludwig van Beethoven’s ‘Ode to Joy’, which concludes the concert, symbolising the future, the hope for Ukrainians to live in a peaceful democratic Europe. I hope that we can respond to this wish of the Ukrainians, which they express with their hearts, and that this ‘Ode to Joy’ will one day unite us all in a united and peaceful Europe”.

we all #standupforukraine, for peace and solidarity

We all #StandUpForUkraine, for peace and solidarity.

Please consider joining the solidarity effort. The needs of the displaced are enormous and we all can help the refugees from Ukraine in Belgium through the practice of the arts!  Feel free to make your donations into the King Baudouin Foundation account through a simple scan of the QR code and an click:

Donations are to be made at the following account number at the King Baudouin Foundation:

IBAN BE10 0000 0000 0404  – BIC BPOTBEB1

Structured communication [compulsory] 623/3712/60034

Donations online: https://donate.kbs-frb.be/actions/FFO-IYMFUkraine

The funds that will be collected thanks to this concert will be used to create a choir made up of Ukrainian children in Brussels, directed by a choirmaster who will have the children sing together for the next months, with a view to then presenting the results of this work on stage. This initiative will be led by the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation in collaboration with an association welcoming Ukrainian children in Belgium. In a second step, if the funds allow it, we plan to extend our action to primary schools welcoming Ukrainian children in Brussels.

On this special occasion, the talented musicians from the Brussels Chamber Orchestra Quintet were joined by violinists Olga Šroubková and Diana Tishchenko for the solo parts.

 

CapacitArte transnational meeting in Belgium

On February 3rd and 4th, the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation hosted the 4th CapacitArte transnational training meeting in Brussels. 

During this 2-day meeting, artists from Belgium, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Portugal and Spain gave workshops in order to exchange good practices. 

CapacitArte is a training project for professionals in the artistic-pedagogical world that allows them to extend and develop their skills in non-formal methodologies active from art, creativity and culture.

The first day started with an introduction word from IYMF Executive Vice-President, Marianne Poncelet who emphasized the importance for the Foundation to be part of and organise such projects where we give the possibility to artists from different countries to participate to trainings and share good practices. During these kind of events, the artists provide each other with innovative and creative new ideas that they can adapt to their own art language. 

As IYMF’s input in the CapacitArte project are artists from Homelands, places of belonging, Sergio Roberto Gratteri, Homelands artistic director also gave an introduction word. The Homelands project promotes social inclusion by creating a sustainable dialogue between Belgian citizens and newcomers through one of the most powerful tools of each culture: ART. 

To follow his words, the first workshop was given by Leandro Ramirez, Homelands artist of 2020. During his workshop, the participants had to reflect on what meant “home” to them. One of the main objectives of his workshop is to create an environment where everyone can express themselves freely through drawing.

Afterwards, Angela Peris Alcantud (Spain) gave her theatre workshop on zoom. Through different exercices she wanted to work on our point of view on diversity and how we sometimes have prejudices. 

Next were two presentations from Italy. Silvia Iossa shared the good practices of META Participatory lab and the role of MoCa Future Designers as evaluators of the project. Barbara Marcaccio gave a presentation concerning Montepacini which is a social cooperative that aims to give job opportunities and guarantee an autonomous and independent life to fragile people through work in the countryside.

Later that day, Judit Hochrein from Hungary gave a music workshop. The goal of her workshop is to strengthen the participants desire to experiment, to encourage individuality, their manifestations, the free expression of their ideas. We discovered the joy of creating together and “in-the-moment” music using percussion, body and voice. 

The first day finished with a cartoon workshop given by Evamaria Deisen from Germany. Through small subject ideas, we had to share in small groups stories related to it and then put it in a cartoon. This is a great way to show how art can be an impulse to create a dialogue but also to learn the participants to use their imagination and promote their creativity and artistic expression.

The second day was a little bit less intense but still very interesting.

Two artists coming from Portugal started the day with their workshop. Claire Honigsbaum was first with a music workshop. Using their voice and the tools at hand, the participants created a unique sound. Efthimios Angelakis followed with a dance and drama workshop. He proposed several exercices that promoted listening, cooperation and sharing of a common space.

And last but not least: Patries Wichers, artist from MUS-E Belgium gave a workshop called “Sharing moments” which also a good way to call the 2 day meeting.

It's wonderful the connection between participants. We all give ourselves to the practical exercises, which give us a sense of integration and harmony and free our body and soul. It's amazing how creative workshops have a real effect on human being.
Anonymous
CapacitArte participant

The meeting concluded with a roundtable. What mostly came out from everyone is the appreciation to participate to this project and how connected everyone felt to each other after just 2 days.

All the workshops had a common tool: art. All the workshops had a common goal: create a connection between people.

UNESDA Soft Drinks Europe partners with the IYMF to support aspiring artists on www.concertwithyou.com

UNESDA Soft Drinks Europe signed a partnership agreement with the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation to support 6 musicians with an opportunity to produce original music video and perform concerts in 2022. This will be part of the Foundation’s www.concertwithyou.com initiative, a streaming concert platform that allows artists to share their music and engage with the public.

Marianne Poncelet, Executive Vice-Present and co-founder of the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation in Brussels, comments: ‘’We are delighted to establish this cooperation with UNESDA Soft Drinks Europe to strengthen our mission to support the next generation of talented artists. Making our societies more inclusive and united is truly transformative and music is a powerful tool in achieving it. We are grateful to UNESDA Soft Drinks Europe for its commitment to promote artistic excellence and give new artists the chance to contribute to our society with the sound and power of their music. With this partnership, we demonstrate that we can drive change together and make a positive difference in the lives of several artists.’’

Nicholas Hodac, Director General of UNESDA Soft Drinks Europe, states: ‘’We are thrilled to support the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation. The soft drink sector’s social impact goes beyond the jobs it generates. Providing wider benefits to our local communities by giving back to them is equally important. The number of social initiatives undertaken by our members in the countries they operate is a testament to that. As an EU industry association, we also want to do our part to change lives for the better. Music is a universal form of art, but not everyone has equal access and opportunity to create it. Our aim is to break some barriers and help new artists unlock their full potential and succeed. As violinist Yehudi Menuhin influenced generations of people during his time – and continues to be a source of inspiration to many across the world -, we want to empower the artists who we will support to show their talent and inspire others through their music and noble example.’’

The original music videos by the six artists that UNESDA Soft Drinks Europe will support will be freely accessible to anyone on www.concertwithyou.com as well as on the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation’s YouTube channel upon their announcement.

About UNESDA Soft Drinks Europe

Established in 1958, UNESDA Soft Drinks Europe is the Brussels-based trade association representing the non-alcoholic beverages sector. Its membership includes 10 companies and 23 national associations from across Europe. UNESDA members are involved in the production and/or distribution of a wide variety of non-alcoholic beverages including still drinks, carbonates, fruit drinks, energy drinks, iced teas and sport drinks.

UNESDA’s policy priorities are Sustainability (e.g., beverage packaging, collection, recycling), Responsibility (e.g., sugar reduction, school policies, marketing practices towards children and labelling) and Competitiveness (e.g., taxation, market access).

www.unesda.eu  

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Capacit’Arte Transnational training in Lisboa

This September 2021, CAPACITARTE held its second transnational training meeting, this time in Lisboa, Portugal.

Artists and national coordinators from Spain, Italy, Portugal, Hungary, Germany and Belgium joined together to share and exchange good practices for training adults. 

The International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation shared the good practices of the project “Homelands, places of belonging“.

Leandro Ramirez, Homelands artist in 2020, introduced a workshop about co-creation. At the hand of drawing and music, he invited the participants to think about their home and what “home” means to them.

 

The objectives of his workshop were:

  • To develop a workshop that allows us to appreciate the influence of music on our activities and moods.
    To generate an environment in which we can express ourselves freely by drawing.
"I am glad to have participated in the CapacitArte workshop in Portugal. It's always a great experience to meet people who desires to create art for others as a way to integrate and involve. As well, in the Homelands Project I have learned that doing Co-creation is a good way to create art in a more participative way. I think out there are a lot of people who needs to be touched by the art"
Leandro Ramirez
Homelands Artist

During these two days of training, Leandro participated in workshops about co-creative writing, dance and movement, music, forest bathing, etc. He realized, that even if he isn’t a big dancer, it is a good way to start an activity as it makes people move, and be aware of each other. He realized that you can have fun with words, that there is a writer in all of us. He realized that you can use dance to teach math. 

This training opportunity is a good way to exchange ideas and inspire each other on other ways to give a workshop while sending the same message. Some artist realized that they could use other disciplines to start their activity, and that they are able to do it themselves even. 

Kick Off “Homelands, places of belonging”

Homelands, places of belonging started strong with a 5-day residency in Mohiville with 3 IYMF artists ambassadors as trainers: Andor Timar (HU), Ilse Wijnen (BE) and Raul Iaiza (IT).

“Homelands, places of belonging” is a community co-creation project for and by newcomer artists. Paired up with a socio-cultural partner, they will have to lead a co-creation workshop with a local community.

This year we have 7 artists and 6 socio-cultural partners in Brussels, Leuven and Namur.

In Brussels:

  • Ali Sabri, a multidisciplinary artist from Iraq who participated in Homelands 2019, will give workshops at GC Ten Weyngaert. 
  • Kamand Razavi, Iranian photographer/videographer has been matched with someone Frome Résidences Art and will work at Kanal Centre-Pompidou. 
  • Frederico Araujo, a Brazilian actor currently studying at RITS as a director will work with Wolubilis.   
  • Ahmad Al Saadi, a young Syrian photographer who has already participated in Homelands 2019, is back in the municipality of Ixelles.

In Namur: 

  • Babacar Diop, a Senegalese musician, will give djembe workshops at the Abattoirs de Bommel (Cultural center of Namur).

In Leuven:

  • Hanane El Farissi, a multidisciplinary artist from Morocco, and Poya Sadeqi, an actor from Afghanistan, will form a trio with KNEPH and will work with the students of UCLL.

 

Find out more about them on www.thehomelandsproject.com 

How to start a co-creative process? How to turn creative ideas into action? How to involve everyone in the group? How to work in an interdisciplinary way ? These are some of the issues that have been addressed during this first training in order to start in an enthusiastic and dynamic way their project.

 

During the first day they learned how to create a group feeling and build trust between each other. 

On Tuesday, we had two teachers from the intercultural courses from UCLL, Liesbeth Spanjers and Katrien Mertens, give a workshop on how to make people from a different background, comfortable enough to share their story.

Wednesday was focused on how to give feedback to someone in a constructive way and as of Thursday, the different pairs really dove in the co-creative process by giving themselves mini-workshops.

From October 2021 until March 2022, they will have to apply these learnings during the co-creative workshops that they will have to lead. 

Follow Homelands, places of belonging to accompany them on their journey.

ARTISTIC RESIDENCY FOR THE SOCIAL INCLUSION OF YOUNG REFUGEES – PRESS RELEASE

ARTISTIC RESIDENCY FOR THE SOCIAL INCLUSION OF YOUNG REFUGEES IN BELGIUM

PRESS RELEASE

The International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation is holding a musical residency for young newcomers from the Red-Cross and Fedasil reception centres of asylum seekers in Belgium. The residency will take place from the 4th until the 9th of October at the Domaine de Farnières (Vielsam) in the context of the Creative Europe programme: UCREATE. Musical creation workshops will be led by four professional musicians and artists and given to 10 young aspiring musicians who are newcomers to Belgium.

Creating social connections through music

The objective of the UCREATE project, which includes the residency, is to facilitate the social inclusion of young migrants and refugees in European societies by enabling the creation of social connections between local populations and newcomers in Belgium through artistic creation. In Belgium, the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation is implementing music creation workshops to foster the exchange of artistic knowledge and to provide development and learning opportunities for young residents aged 19 to 27 from the Red Cross and Fedasil reception centres of asylum seekers in Belgium.

Objectives and programme of the residency  

The residency marks the beginning of an artistic training process aimed at promoting development opportunities for the young participants and creating a long-term relationship with the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation. Through the workshops, knowledge about music creation and educational tools will be transmitted to the young musicians. Motivated and interested participants will then be offered the opportunity to continue their musical training by attending other workshops. The aim is to empower participants with the ability to conduct the musical co-creation workshops of the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation in Belgium themselves. Designed by the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation together with its musical director, Thierry Van Roy, to meet this educational objective, the residency workshops are both rich and diverse:

  • Andor Timar – workshops on multi-sensory communication

This workshop aims to facilitate communication between the participants and the coordinators through movement and improvisation. It would facilitate musical co-creation by promoting better group cohesion from the first days of the residency.

Aleksandar will initiate the creative process with the participants by sharing ideas, creating sequences as in folk and traditional music and exchanging musical motifs.

The aim is to create and compose music collectively from video clips.

 

UCREATE: A European project

UCREATE is a project supported by the Creative Europe programme of the European Commission in which 4 cultural organisations located in Belgium (International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation), Hungary (MUS-E Hungary), Italy (Big Sur) and Portugal (Hangar) initiate an artistic project aiming at facilitating the social inclusion of young (19-27 years old) newcomers to Europe and creating spaces for exchange, encounter and co-creation between these young artists and the local communities. Each of the partner organisations is specialised in one artistic discipline (i.e., film, photography, art education, music).

 

For more information, attend the workshops, meet the participants and coordinators, please contact us!

 

Elise VANDERHOFSTADT [UCREATE Project Manager]

elise.vdh@menuhin-foundation.com | +32 (0) 470 60 57 10

 

Simon EYCHENNE [UCREATE Project Assistant]

simon.eychenne@menuhin-foundation.com | +32 (0) 470 55 21 36

 

ucreate website

Résidence musicale pour des jeunes réfugiés – Communiqué de presse

RESIDENCE ARTISTIQUE POUR L’INCLUSION SOCIALE DES JEUNES REFUGIES ASPIRANTS MUSICIENS

 

La Fondation Internationale Yehudi Menuhin organise une résidence musicale destinée aux jeunes primo-arrivants des centres d’accueil Croix-Rouge et Fedasil de Belgique. La résidence se tiendra du 4 au 9 octobre au Domaine de Farnières (Vielsam) dans le cadre du programme Creative Europe UCREATE. Des ateliers de création musicale seront animés par quatre musiciens et artistes professionnels et proposés à 10 jeunes aspirants musiciens primo-arrivants en Belgique. 

 

Création de liens sociaux par la pratique musicale  

L’objectif du projet UCREATE, dans lequel s’inscrit la résidence, est de faciliter l’inclusion sociale de jeunes migrants et de réfugiés dans les sociétés européennes en permettant la création de liens sociaux avec les populations locales grâce à la création artistique. En Belgique, la Fondation Internationale Yehudi Menuhin met en place des ateliers de création musicale afin de favoriser l’échange de connaissances artistiques et d’offrir des opportunités de développement et d’apprentissage pour des jeunes résidents de 19 à 27 ans des centres d’accueil Croix-Rouge et Fedasil de Belgique. 

 

Objectif et programme de la résidence  

La résidence marque le début d’un processus de formation artistique visant à promouvoir des opportunités d’épanouissement pour les jeunes participant.e.s et à créer une relation sur le long-terme avec la Fondation Internationale Yehudi Menuhin. A travers les divers ateliers, des connaissances sur la création musicale ainsi que des outils pédagogiques seront transmis aux jeunes musicien.n.e.s. Il sera ainsi proposé par la suite, aux participant.e.s motivé.e.s, de poursuivre cette formation musicale en suivant d’autres ateliers. L’objectif étant de leur permettre de conduire eux-mêmes les ateliers de co-creation musicale de la Fondation Internationale Yehudi Menuhin en Belgique. Conçus par la Fondation Internationale Yehudi Menuhin et son directeur musical, Thierry Van Roy, pour répondre à cet objectif de formation, les ateliers de la résidence sont à la fois riches et variés :  

  • Andor Timar – ateliers sur la communication multi-sensorielle 

Cet atelier a pour but de faciliter la communication entre les participants et les coordinateurs à travers le mouvement et l’improvisation. Il vise ainsi à faciliter la cocréation musicale en favorisant une meilleure cohésion du groupe dès les premiers jours de la résidence.   

Aleksandar enclenchera le processus de création avec les participants autour du partage d’idées, de la création de séquences telle que dans la musique populaire et traditionnelle et l’échange de motifs musicaux. 

Il s’agira de créer et de composer collectivement des musiques à partir d’extraits vidéo. 

 

UCREATE : Un projet à l’échelle européenne  

UCREATE est un projet soutenu par le programme Creative Europe de la Commission européenne dans lequel 4 organisations culturelles situées en Belgique (International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation), Hongrie (MUS-E Hungary), Italie (Big Sur) ainsi qu’au Portugal (Hangar) initient un projet artistique visant à faciliter l’inclusion sociale de jeunes (19-27 ans) primo-arrivants en Europe et créer des espaces d’échange, de rencontre et de co-création entre ces jeunes artistes et les communautés locales. Chacune des organisations partenaires est spécialisée dans une discipline artistique (i.e., le cinéma, la photographie, l’éducation par l’art, la musique).  

 

Pour en savoir plus, assister aux ateliers, rencontrer les participants et les coordinateurs n’hésitez pas à nous contacter ! 

 

Elise VANDERHOFSTADT [UCREATE Project Manager]  

elise.vdh@menuhin-foundation.com | +32 (0) 470 60 57 10 

 

Simon EYCHENNE [UCREATE Project Assistant] 

simon.eychenne@menuhin-foundation.com | +32 (0) 470 55 21 36 

ucreate website

MUS-E Festival

The International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation is proud to present the very first International MUS-E Festival ! The festival will entirely happen online and will be broadcasted on www.concertwithyou.com, the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation’s online platform that helps emerging musicians getting development opportunities.  

Everyday from July 19 until August 08th MUS-E organisations from Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Hungary, Portugal, Spain, Belgium, Brazil and Israël will present the work of artists that lead activities locally aiming at promoting equal access to culture and the arts. 

Visitors will have the chance to discover a wide eclectic selection of art works made all around Europe ! This festival is a way to promote all social initiatives and artisitic creations that happen within the MUS-E network, support MUS-E artists in sharing their work and raise awareness about all MUS-E network activities and missions. 

MUS-E in a nutshell

Through practicing arts, MUS-E helps children, artists and teachers thrive together in school, so they can become ambassadors and active members of a more balanced, equitable and inclusive society. 

MUS-E is aimed at primary schools, mainly in Europe, which are faced with the challenge of educating a growing multicultural group of children, many of whom come from migrant or disadvantaged families and are at risk of social exclusion or other societal problems. In the presence of teachers, professional artists actively involved in MUS-E introduce and share various art forms (singing, dancing, music, movement, theatre, visual arts and multimedia, etc.). Through this collective work, the MUS-E programme encourages dialogue and conviviality, while awakening children’s sense of creativity, empathy and resilience. MUS-E is active in 12 countries around the world including: Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Hungary, Portugal, Spain, Belgium, Brazil, Israël, Cyprus, Kosovo and Lichtenstein. Spain (250) & Italy (157) have the largest number of school and institutions while Cyprus (2) and Kosovo (5) concentrate the smallest number.  

Program

19 – 20 July : MUS-E GERMANY 

Artists: Constanze Betzl, Cris Gavazonni, Erwin Ditzner, Evamaria Deisden 

21 – 22 July : MUS-E ITALY 

Antonino Talamo, Massimiliano Caretta, Davide Bonetti, The Ring Around Quartet 

23 – 24 July : MUS-E SWITZERLAND  

An Chen, Jalalu-Kalvert Nelson, Ueli VON ALLMEN 

25 – 26 July : MUS-E BELGIUM 

Nicolas Ankoudinoff 

27 – 28 July : MUS-E HUNGARY 

Guessous Mesi, Gulyás Anna, Tóth Szabolcs 

29 – 30 July : MUS-E Portugal  

Catraia, Ines Maria Silva, Marta Countinho & Ruca Rebordao 

31 July – 01 August : MUS-E SPAIN 

Daniela Ventero, Pablo Ventero, Nora Usterman 

02 – 03 August : MUS-E BRAZIL  

Educardo Dos Santos, Louruz Sena, Paulo Ricardo 

04 – 05 August : MUS-E ISRAËL  

Avshalom Sarid, Uri Bracha, Dafna Peled 

MUS-E ON STAGE final concerts : Música na bagagem

What if we create a digital choir of children of the MUS-E Programme all singing one Portuguese song? That was the idea we had in March 2020 far away from imagining that in 2021 many schools in Europe will still be closed, and that a kid singing in a classroom won’t be that simple. But we made it! With more than 160 children and exceptional professional artists in 6 countries.

To close this symbolic project and show this choir, we are holding 2 special concerts with the musicians at the heart of the project: Celina da Piedade, the Brussels Chamber Orchestra and traditional Portuguese musicians. One will take place in Leiria with children on stage, the other one will be broadcasted from Brussels at a location close to the European institutions. This concert will also celebrate the end of the Portuguse Presidency of the European Union.

THE MUS-E ON STAGE PRoject

MUS-E ON STAGE is one of the 10 Creative Europe projects selected under the Music Education and Learning Call in the framework of the Preparatory Action “Music Moves Europe”.

 

Music education is beneficial in many ways! Not only to enhance creativity, but also to develop social skills, social inclusion and critical thinking. It can also lay the foundations for a career in the music sector. Convinced of the role of music in schools, MUS-E ON STAGE improves the accessibility of music education for primary school children from disadvantaged and migrant backgrounds in Europe. This project is led by the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation and the Associação Yehudi Menuhin Portugal in collaboration with 5 partners of the MUS-E Programme based in Belgium,, Hungary, Spain, Italy, and Cyprus.

 

At the heart of this project we have the great collaboration between professional classical musicians from Belgium and traditional musicians from Portugal. The idea was to create a dialogue between different musical and cultural backgrounds and create a music repertoire at this image. The music repertoire was then the foundation for the launch of music sessions from January to May 2021 in primary schools in Europe. So, children in 4th grade of the school « Jardin d’Elise » in Brussels learn the same song and at the same time than children of Limasol primary school in Cyprus or in Scuola Fontana in Turin, Italy or Coruna in Spain.

 

At the end of the project, children were recorded and filmed and we were able to mix the voices together to create one choir of MUS-E children.

CONCERT IN LEIRIA, PORTUGAL

The first concert will be held in the region at the heart of the project, in Leiria, orchestrated by Rui Amado, local coordinator of the MUS-E programme and supported by the municipality of Leiria. At this concert, it is the children who are the stars, the children who have participated in the music workshops throughout the project, who will take to the stage with the traditional musicians and Celina da Piedade.

This concert will take place on 26 June 2021 at 4pm after a week of online music workshops that are still part of the MUS-E ON STAGE project. This concert will take place at the Teatro José Luis da Silva in person.

CONCERT IN BRUSSELS TO CLOSE THE portuguese presidency of the european union

As the international celebration of the project as well as as the official closure concert of the Portuguse Presidency of the European Union, we will hold an exceptional online concert  in a symbolic location close to he European institutions.

This will take place on the 30th June at 8 pm and here are where to watch the show:

Watch the show on Facebook
Watch online

UCREATE – Open call for young musicians’ artists

The International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation is currently seeking to collaborate with young musicians’ artists aged between 19 and 25 (+2) that arrived in Europe recently (i.e., max 5 years) and that plan to settle in Belgium for a minimum period of one year AND/OR young musicians established in Belgium for many years coming from cultural minorities at risk of social exclusion.

Last year, we launched together with 4 European artistic organisations the training program UCREATE dedicated to facilitating intercultural dialogue and social inclusion of young artists from cultural minorities and migrant backgrounds trough artistic co-creation.

UCREATE includes multiple artistic disciplines – Visual arts (Big Sur, Italie), Art education (Mus-e Hungary, Hungary), Photography (Hangar, Portugal). At the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation we chose to focus on music by coordinating a series of workshops led by professional musicians and sound professionals in Belgium.

The first workshop, “The Residency” will be held in Farnières (South Belgium) from the 4th until the 9th of October 2021. The residency constitutes the first step of the program. The collaboration with participants will later be extended throughout a series of workshops and a live concert event in an iconic venue of Brussels.  

CONTENT OF THE RESIDENCY

Although artists will learn and enrich their musical techniques, the process is what matters the most, the collective act of creation and what artists will discover in terms of creation. The co-creation becomes a tool of personal creation, amplified by the energy of the group as well as a tool of social inclusion with high level of communication.

TEAM OF PROFESSIONALS

Thierry Van Roy, Artistic Coordinator 

Composer, self-taught musician, music producer (Melanie Gabriel/Taïga Maya, Abdelli, Farafina, The Black Slavics etc.) and sound engineer, Thierry is also an independent radio producer (music documentaries in Cape Verde, Angola, Yakutia, Mexico, Azerbaijan, trance music in Africa, shamanic music, green music, etc.), a video clip producer/editor (Taïga Maya) and a stage musician (Abdelli, Melanie Gabriel).

Andor Timar 

Andor Timar first graduated as an actor in Budapest in 1994. Since then he has worked in theater and film projects and pursues a career in the entertainment world. In addition to his artistic activities, Andor is also a graduate of the Academy of Executive Coaching in London and offers training courses for all generations.

Andor Timar will open the residence and work with the group on space, multi-sensory communication, with the aim of connecting participants to a higher level of communication, through movement and improvisation. Her workshops will focus on learning through the practice of co-creation and group dynamics. Participants will therefore have notions to give workshops themselves. 

Aleksandar Caric

Aleksandar Caric is a musician and actor. Born in Yugoslavia, Aleksandar Caric was a member in the 1980s of the improvisational theater and music company CirKo della primavera, with which he produced many shows that were never repeated more than once, in a constant search for new spaces and forms. Aleksandar has also collaborated with many actors and musicians as an actor, musician and musical composer in theater and dance performances as well as in European and international events and festivals.

Aleksandar will initiate the creative process with the participants around sharing ideas, creating sequences as in popular and traditional music and exchanging musical motifs. These workshops will lead to a final concert in front of an audience. 

Shanglie Zhou

With Shanglie, musicians will get familiar with music on film and the use of this medium. In 1991 Shanglie Zhou left Shanghai to settle in Antwerp. Her name already bears the notion of a bridge and a connection, since “Shanglie” is a compound of Shanghai, the place where she was born, and Leningrad, the place where her father was staying when she was born. Her first artistic experiments were a mix of Chinese elements and her Western artistic perceptions. After leaving her country and completing her studies in Antwerp, her work evolved from 2D to 3D, exploring the possibilities offered by space. In her recent works, she has tried using the daily life environment in which people perform routine tasks. Shanglie breaks out of the mould of the traditional workshop in favour of a space shared by everyone. To create a work, she prefers starting with the conditions offered by the context itself, inviting the audience to become really involved. In the past few years, she has integrated video into her work.

AIM OF THE PROGRAM IN BELGIUM

  • Foster intercultural exchange of musical knowledge and skills between local communities, newcomers.

 

  • Provide support and long-term opportunities to the participants (i.e., trainings, transfer of knowledge, live concerts, exchange with professional musicians and technicians, etc.)

 

  • Create a sustainable relationship between the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation and young newcomers’ musicians and musicians coming from Belgium cultural minorities. 

Profile of the participants

Contact

  • If you are interested in taking part in this program and that your profile corresponds to the points enounced above, please feel free to contact us.

     

    International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation

     

    Elise Vanderhofstadt :

    elise.vdh@menuhin-foundation.com

    +32 477 60 57 10

     

    Simon Eychenne :

    simon.eychenne@menuhin-foundation.com

    + 32 470 55 21 36

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CO-CREATION, means or end?

Information gathered by Marianne Poncelet.

co-creation: definition

Generally speaking, co-creation is used to describe an artistic process that gathers artists, whether or not they belong to the same discipline, who wish to create a common work together. These so-called “multi-hand” artistic practices are not new. More recently, they have emerged within groups of artists who wish to think and produce together around chosen ways of living and creating, aesthetic, social or political commitments, etc.

Co-creations between artists are distinguished from practices that include participation or interaction with the spectator, with which they are not mixed, but which they may include.

Artists are defined as those through whom the changes and interactions occur, through whom the relationship is established. They have the capacity to break with the established order of things, to make a new order of relationships, to imagine the unexpected beyond the known limits and to create the new.

social impact of art

For a long time now, the artistic proposal has not been reduced to the sole relationship between the artist and his work. In a participative or co-creative approach, the artist intertwines his or her subjectivity with others, with subjectivities that he or she solicits, whether it be during the involvement of an audience, a public or when he intervenes in a neighbourhood, a prison or a hospital. Art comes out of its private circle, and this openness underlines a democratic advance. Art develops outside of cultural institutions in the mode of an abundant creativity that connects with life.

negotiation

In a social context, the artist is divided between the expression of his art and the interactions on which this expression depends. The artist is both involved and challenged in a situation of co-creation. At this point, negotiation appears: when the artist enters a space (be it a neighbourhood, a hospital, a prison) and negotiates with himself the motivation that commits him to go to this place, when he invites an “audience” to share his creation and discusses it with them, when the participation of the audience forces him to question himself in order to negotiate the meaning of this event and successfully integrate it into the creative process.

Negotiation characterises artistic practice, which integrates various factors such as an audience, an institutional environment, an event, an encounter, etc., into an artistic proposal, whether it be theatrical, plastic, musical or other. In all cases, there is an artistic proposal and, behind it, an artist or a collective of artists who act. The process of negotiation is inherent to this proposal and constitutes it at its most fundamental.

When art integrates societal concerns, when artists make their creation depend on the interactions they provoke with certain audiences, for example with migrants, when creation takes on an increasingly relational dimension, one might ask the question of the very identity of the artistic function, which is diluted in the social. In what way does creation then remain properly artistic?

 

In fact, the artist does not lose himself in these confrontations and interpersonal transactions. On the contrary, he builds himself through them because they shed new light on his practice, they challenge him, they solicit him. All those who work in neighbourhoods, prisons or hospitals emphasise how productive these transactions are for the practice of their art. One director is aware that he would probably not have been interested in a particular work if he had not decided to work in a prison environment and if he had not had to negotiate his involvement. Another creator reminds us of the extent to which the work with autistic people reactivates strong issues in the history of theatre and wonders whether, without this work, he would have looked back on such a rich history. Another emphasises how his work in a company has led to the emergence of specific aesthetic forms and has been experienced as a real artistic adventure.

If the process is productive for the artists, it is also productive for the people and institutions involved in the artistic process. It allows people to discover something about themselves that they did not know. Such an approach leads to forms of depropriation and reappropriation that give a new vision of life. 

political laboratory

Art proposes moments of sociality. It is here that art reconnects with the question of politics, through its capacity to create new arrangements and new territories of life, in the face of the empty and invasive forms of markets and various purely utilitarian, often disembodied institutions. As such, it functions well as a political laboratory.

The creative artist discovers that his or her subjectivity merrily intermingles with other subjectivities, those he or she solicits when involving an audience or those who surprise him or her by the chance of a neighbourhood encounter. How could the artist create inside a hospital or a prison without his subjective dispositions being affected?

The artist makes an appointment with different, sometimes irreconcilable worlds. It is a way for him to deepen his art by confronting it with other practices and other environments. Co-creation would then be an art that unfolds outwards and discovers a certain truth in this confrontation and this openness that provokes and enriches.

However, co-creation cannot be considered as a socio-cultural animation. This would be to deny active art and its commitments its “raison d’être”. Socio-cultural animation proposes an education in art with the aim of emancipation. Co-creation broadens the artistic proposal and experiments with new ways of making art.

the co-creation process in "homelands, places of belonging"

Refugee artists in Belgium work in pairs with leaders of cultural associations on a common artistic work, after having received training on co-creation from artist trainers of the Menuhin Foundation. Each pair then offers participatory art workshops to various audiences. The pairs present their artistic creations during a series of public events as well as a final event that brings together all the stakeholders at the end of the journey around the theme “What does it mean to feel at home? “.

Making art more accessible to a wide range of (new) audiences is a goal that is now a top priority in the mission of most cultural centres today.

While in the past decades many efforts have been made to encourage new audiences that passively ‘consume’ art, today we see a new emphasis on involving audiences in a more active and participatory way. This is not only due to the desire to find new approaches to attracting new audiences, but also to the understanding of the importance of active participation in art for our own personal development and thus its beneficial impact on society as a whole.

Artistic co-creation is a practice that goes even further. In co-creation, participants do not just ‘participate’ in what already exists, but become (decision-makers) within the artistic process itself. This is when art really becomes a ‘common (play)ground’.

The advantages of this approach are many:

  • It gives non-professional individuals and local communities the opportunity to share the ‘power’ of art making.
  • It creates a space for dialogue and reflection on the role and meaning of art for us today, regardless of our background or artistic experience.
  • It helps participants to develop the individual and collective skills inherent in a co-creation process (sense of collaboration, trust, solidarity, creativity, self-esteem, problem solving, critical thinking, etc.)

The co-creation process allows people who do not know each other, or even distrust each other, to quickly feel connected. The process quickly creates a feeling of belonging to a group with a common objective: to create a work of art.

The actors interviewed emphasise the importance of expressing and listening to each other’s ideas in co-creation. Decisions are made in a democratic way. The participants become aware that the work is collective and therefore rich in the diversity of the participants.

The workshops are an opportunity to better understand the contributions of the different cultures brought by the participants, artists and mediators, to better understand the experiences of migrants and the points of view of each one on the central theme of the project which is “what does it mean to feel at home?

This project is an effective part of building an inclusive, intercultural and intergenerational society. It also enables the migrants’ artists to be valued in their artistic practice, to fight against prejudices and stereotypes and thus to fight against discrimination, which was the intended aim of the project.

The method of fluid organic decision-making in the artistic process

In the framework of the “Sharing All Voices” and “Voices for Tomorrow” projects of the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation, Thierry Van Roy, Artistic Director, initiated a method of working with several groups of artists, based on the principle of “fluid organic decision”, and which was tested for six years in seven different countries each year, involving different audiences each time. This method also involves co-creation in the sense that the participating artists work as a group according to specific rules that bring out their talents.

The aim of this method is to decompartmentalise, open up and broaden creative abilities through group work, respecting specific rules.

This method is a powerful tool to develop the humanistic values of Yehudi Menuhin in a group, notably respect, non-violence and the blossoming of the individual through artistic creation, the search for harmony with oneself and the diversity of the world.

The method is aimed at artists and people who wish to work on the creative impulse independently of the field of application of their creativity. In practice, the group, through preliminary work, becomes an organic entity, with its own intelligence, its own dynamism, and its own creativity in addition to the individual creativity. It can be compared to a school of fish that pursues a group logic and not that of separate individuals.

By the principle of “organic decision-making”, the creation in the group is always led by one of the participants of the group, and this leadership is established in an organic and fluid way for a very brief moment or a longer experiment according to the creative responses of the other members: the one who gave the creative impulse at a certain moment leads the group, and he or she will immediately hand over the decision-making to another member in a fluid way, always keeping in mind that the individual must give priority to the group.

Relationships are based on specific rules:

  1. Mutual trust, responsibility for the group and its creative process
  2. Non-judgement: nothing is good or bad, it is about obeying creative impulses first and foremost, regardless of individual opinions.
  3. Non-verbal communication: no room for polemics, we experiment to decide; we work on ethereal, corporal, sensory communication.
  4. Putting oneself at risk in a creative field: indispensable, it broadens the horizons of one’s own creativity.
  5. “Impermanence“: creation is never fixed: the method is based on the fluidity of time and form, and on the idea that a work can continue indefinitely. It is not the result that matters, but the process of creation, which becomes a process of personal transformation over time.
  6. Non-production: the process of creation starts from nothing and without a clear end goal except to create something following the logic of the entity that is the “group”.
  7. There may be “snapshots” (performances, moments of sharing), but this remains a never-ending “work in progress”.
  8. Adaptability: the creation of the group adapts fluidly and instantaneously to changes and unforeseen events: composition of the group, external or internal element or event.

 

The impact of such an approach is rich and is mainly on the level of the personal revaluation of the participants, which takes place on several levels: the awareness of one’s own creativity and that of the group, the sharing of one’s own values and those of others, the richness of interculturality, the strength of art as a vector of social change, the artistic quality of the professionals with whom they have worked, the participation in a quality show in front of a public that is generally seduced.

This method succeeds in creating harmonious and creative human microcosms. Its ambition is to transpose these results into the human macrocosm, human groups and organisations. The artist-ambassadors who have participated in this project are now bringing this new group dynamic into their personal practice.

There is also an expected impact at the level of the artist ambassadors on at least two aspects of their artistic life: on their creativity processes and on their ways of stimulating creativity processes with the audiences they will be working with: children, teenagers, artists in training, teachers, researchers, professionals of all types…

co-creation, means or end?

Co-creation is a process that profoundly transforms the people who participate in it, whether it is the artists themselves in terms of the expression of their own creativity, which is inspired and “boosted”, or whether it is the public engaged in the process by the artists, who discover that they possess artistic fibres that they did not know they had.

In view of the processes described above and the results obtained, co-creation is therefore much more a means than an end in itself, aiming to enrich those who initiate it as artists and those who participate as audiences. Co-creation is a powerful tool for awakening the personality through art, generating links and meaning, revealing potential within the individual and the group.

Sources: https://pnls.fr/lexperience-de-la-co-creation-lart-qui-sentremet/

                 Evaluation reports by Dr. Dina Sensi for the IYMF

                   Organic fluid method by Thierry Van Roy

   Descriptive text of the Homelands project

CAPACITARTE – Training Meeting in Spain

This May 2021, CAPACITARTE held its first transnational training meeting in Miraflores de la Sierra, Madrid.

Trainers and national coordinators from Spain, Italy, Portugal, Hungary, Germany and Belgium joined together to share and exchange good practices for training adults from each other. 

The International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation presented the currently happening online co-creation workshop held by Andor Timar (HU), Ilse Wijnen (BE) and Raul Iaza in the context of Homelands, places of belonging. Showing the activity of Ilse Wijnen from the first online workshop, the artists and national coordinators present participated actively to this (not live) online workshop. 

Using words inspired by different portraits from different eras, the participants created an “elf” poem also representative of their feelings through the Covid period.

Hear here some of these poems.

What about the other partners?

The University of Extramudera (Spain) presented its workshop on “Active Methodologies from Art for University students of education” where the goal is to bring non-formal educational methods to future teachers. 

“Most young people are unaware of non-formal action methodologies, and what they can contribute to the classroom, since they are usually conditioned by the form of formal education that they have been routinely given, and it is difficult for them to understand this proposal, which unites and mixes tasks for teachers and artists combining dynamic intervention methodology from art in classrooms.”

MUS-E Hungary explained how they took the methodologies learned from their online classes for children and used them to do online trainings for adults. Using different digital tools as zoom, Youtube Studio, Jamboard and Mentimeter, these online workshops can be prepared together and are very interactive.

The artist Vera Vaiano, from Fermo (Italy), held a workshop on juggling. The goal of this workshop was to show us that when fear is shared, it can be more easily handled than alone. It also showed that for every action, there is a reaction on our part. 

Joining this action-reaction message, was the workshop from the Artist Paulo from Portugal. There is a reaction for every energy passing through us, the importance is in your (body and eye) engament to the other.

This training meeting in Madrid was a collection of presentation of good practices, and active workshops that will help us implement various good practices through Europe in our current projects.

WORLD ART DAY: IYMF MISSION

The freedom to culture, which is not included as such in the Constitution but which represents a fundamental pillar in our society, must be asserted.

Quentin Dujardin

 

 

The World Health Organisation published a report in the end of 2019 which affirmed the beneficial impact of art on our physical and mental health. Based on 900 scientific papers, it stated that artistic activities are crucial to our development from conception to old age, and should be mainstreamed alongside therapeutic protocols in hospitals, education and everyday life to improve our well-being.

Barely a year and a half later, the whole world has faced the Covid-19 epidemic. A crisis which is causing unprecedented health, economic and social damage and which is having a lasting effect on our mental and psychological health. Psycho-social risks are becoming an emergency for specialists, especially in young populations.

However, for the past year, almost all cultural venues have come to a standstill and streaming on the Internet has become the main vehicle for the arts but also for the teaching of artistic disciplines. The International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation and the MUS-E Network were no exceptions and had to take a turn and adapt their activities. All our projects were impacted deeply and we come back on some of them :

THE MUS-E NETWORK

The MUS-E Network and all the MUS-E Organizations active in Europe, Brazil and Israel and implementing artistic sessions in primary schools and other institutions for disadvantaged and vulnerable learners have shown all their creativity and innovative spirit. The artists of the programme have been able to create online courses, artistic initiatives to keep the children engaged in the school (not only in the MUS-E sessions but for all the more classic disciplines taught in schools). The apparition of the digital technologies in the MUS-E Programme may have produced a deep reflection on the future of the programme and its need for transformation and innovation as much as it has shed a light on the necessity of such a programme in Europe to build resilient school systems. Further surveys and evaluation of the MUS-E transformation of activities will be analyzed this year by the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation.

HOMELANDS, places of belonging

  • Homelands, places of belonging is one of the big project led by the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation. Through this project, we implement co-creative trainings for refugee and newcomer artists and co-creative workshops involving the local communities. We act really on the ground in local cultural and artistic centers. Those centers being closed, it was very hard to maintain the activities. We have experienced great difficulties in keeping the spirit up of the public we are working with. Being an artist in this period is very difficult. Coming from another country and trying to establish oneself as an artist in a new homecountry is even more difficult. Some of the refugee and newcomer artists could not proceed and had to stop their artistic profesional activity to find another professional direction. The crisis revealed once more the great necessity to maintain and continue to create opportunities of exchanges between newcomer and local communities, to continue to provide trainings for artists and have cultural events and activities that provide a sense of belonging, a sense of empowerement and bonds in our societies. Homelands, places of belonging also had to rethink and adapt its activities and of course confront the digital technologies and distant training or learning activities on the arts. We are very proud to have had the strenght and resources to produce a special Homelands digital talk show, and to launch this month online trainings on co-creation. Homelands adventure continues, stay in touch !

OUR CONCERTS

  • Our concerts, of course, were deeply impacted as well as our network of artists ambassadors for whom we are constantly trying to provide with new artistic opportunitites. Our great multicultural concerts are part of our the International Yehudi Menuhin Foundation DNA. Bringing together musicians from different cultures, filling great venues with audience in awe while discovering a Syrian dancer, make people vibrate with the sound of the violin of Alessandro Quarta, etc. This is something we do since our creation. Our annual concert is not only a milestone of the year in the way we keep the bond with people and promote strong messages of peace, tolerance and intercultural dialogue, it is also a very important event for the Foundation financial stability. Again, this was a challenge. But very early in the crisis we tried to create musical content, to keep on providing opoortunities (even if not on a real stage) for musicians and to offer high-quality online concerts. We started with a short video of the Italian song « cade l’oliva » with some of our artists amabssadors and young European musicians, then a concert from home with Matthieu Sagli live from his studio, then a magnificent 1 hour concert filmed at the Brussels City Hall with the Matthieu Saglio Quartet to finish the year with music.

 

CONCERT WITH YOU

  • We did not stop there. In view of the situation, we also have launched an online concert hall ! Probably one of the first one : concertwithyou.com The aim of this platform is to first give visibility to young musicians impacted by the crisis and eager to break through but also create new opportunities for them. Indeed, the donations collected with this platform will be entirely dedicated to support young musicians to have the resources to create high quality musical content, high quality materials showing their work and produce them live when possible. With the money collected, we provide musicians with the necessary materials for recording, rehearsal and diffusion. As soon as i twill be possible, the money collected will also serve to the organisation of live representations of these artists.

STANDING WITH QUENTIN DUJARDIN

  • We also want to come back on an initiative of one of our artists ambassadors, Quentin Dujardin. Did you hear about the 5 minutes of his song ‘Ave Maria’ that he played in the church of Crupet (Belgium) before being interrupted by the police who put an end to his performance. Quentin really opened a breach, drew attention to the status of the artist but also to the power of music. Quentin has been a powerful and meaningful advocate for one of the Foundation’s missions since its creation: giving a voice to the voiceless. IYMF is standing with him and we are preparing a special event with him, in a majestic place that he will fill with his music.

 

Of course, all of this cannot replace our deep need for direct access to beauty. Contact with art, far from being a “non-essential” activity, is on the contrary indispensable for our well-being, especially in times of crisis and we hope to come back soon with more !

MUS-E ON STAGE virtual choir

MUS-E ON STAGE improves the accessibility to music education and learning for primary school-aged children who come from underpriviledged and migrant backgrounds in Europe. The project involves 150+ children from Portugal, Belgium, Cyprus, Hungary, Italy and Spain interacting with 15 professional musicians in face-to-face music workshops.

Creation of a virtual choir of children

MUS-E Belgium, Fundación Yehudi Menuhin España, MUS-E Italy, MUS-E Cyprus and MUS-E Hungary – have committed to implement music sessions for 15 hours in one school per participating country. The music sessions will be aimed at piloting the on-line musical resources and to the co-creation of a choir of children in each country on the same musical piece. Each contribution of the MUS-E organizations will be gathered and assembled to create a virtual choir involving 50 children from different European countries and reflecting European diversity and beauty through music.  IYMF, with the support of the Embassy of Portugal in Belgium, will present the virtual choir with live musicians on the occasion of its annual concert in Brussels after the end of the project.

The song : Menina Estas a Janela, by Vitorino

MUS-E Belgium, Fundación Yehudi Menuhin España, MUS-E Italy, MUS-E Cyprus and MUS-E Hungary – have committed to implement music sessions for 15 hours in one school per participating country. The music sessions will be aimed at piloting the on-line musical resources and to the co-creation of a choir of children in each country on the same musical piece. Each contribution of the MUS-E organizations will be gathered and assembled to create a virtual choir involving 50 children from different European countries and reflecting European diversity and beauty through music.  IYMF, with the support of the Embassy of Portugal in Belgium, will present the virtual choir with live musicians on the occasion of its annual concert in Brussels after the end of the project.

Vitorino: Ambassador of Alentejo Popular Music

Vitorino Salomé Vieira, or just Vitorino as he is known, is a Portuguese singer, born in Redondo, Alentejo, in 1942 in a family of musicians.

His music combines the traditional folklore of Alentejo and the urban and popular style of his voice.

In 1968 he entered the Fine Arts Course and migrated to France where he studied painting.

Present in some key moments of Portuguese Popular Music (for example the famous March 1974 concert at the Coliseum), Vitorino was a stage companion and songs by José Afonso, Adriano Correia de Oliveira, Fausto, Sérgio Godinho and other fundamental names of Portuguese music of the last thirty

WE CAN’T WAIT TO SHARE THE PERFORMANCES FROM ALL THE CHILDREN !