La Rinconada

Yesterday I was privileged to have an amazing tour through the nucleo of La Rinconada. La Rinconada is an area in the southwest of Caracas with sprawling and dangerous shantytowns. The nucleo here is one of El Sistema's oldest, and functions in a government run school space. I went there with a comission of El Sistema teachers, who are realizing a project of evaluation of El Sistema. They are currently developing a system of evaluation to be able to apply to all the nucleos, then they will visit nucleos all over the country, to assess how the music programs are developing and where they can direct funds to (supplies, infrastructure, teachers, etc).

The nucleo of La Rinconada was the first to be evaluated in a test run, the teachers are still revising the evaluation forms. As part of the assessment, we got to see all of the different groups of the nucleo perform a few songs for us. Then, with the woodwind teachers, we individually assessed a sample of the woodwinds of the orchestras. (of around the 1,000 kids we must have seen, there was only one oboe!)

We saw about 13 different groups perform, and it was stunning. We got to see groups from 2 years old with their parents, to 3 year olds banging on drums, to various different size and level orchestras. I'm so glad I took pictures! There was a lot to remember!

There are so many children at La Rinconada that the nucleo lacks some of the resources it would need. One of the orchestras did not have stands or music, so everything they learn is by memorization:

This is the performance of the oldest youth orchestra there, see caricatures of famous composers behind the conductor! They played Tchaikovsky's Slavonic March for us. (El sistema has a standardized repertoire for orchestras of each level-there are 4-to play from. However, we also heard some arrangements and original compositions of the teachers at La Rinconada-teachers can address individual needs that way.)


There was even a group of students learning traditional Venezuelan instruments and folk music-the teacher, who had taught all of the instruments, including flute, is blind.

The most moving performance by far was that of the "orquesta de papel," the paper orchestra, of students 6-8 years old. I of course at first had no idea what paper orchestra meant, but learned that there are so many students, that some do not yet have instruments, but start their learning on their parent-made cardboard instruments. With these instruments they can learn proper positions and posture, until they can get real instruments. Their performance involved singing and dancing. Here's a minute of it. (The lyrics-Today we come with lots of happiness to present to you a new beautiful paper orchestra. Let's start by naming all the different instruments you see in our paper orchestra-violas, cellos, violins...*thanks sebas for the correction here) When they finished, they gently put all the instruments into a big box. No need for protective cases.

Incredible. Besides that, I'm regularly teaching at San Antonio, and doing more of the same-going to concerts, playing ultimate, trying to schedule meetings. I miss you all very much, please write and find me on Skype or Facebook!

Kids and Oboes!

Hello everyone! I'm sorry I've been so terribly delinquent in writing. I would like to think that it's because I'm busier, but it may be because I'm wasting more time on the internet. A lot of interesting things have happened since I last wrote, and it's already mid-October! I just bought my plane ticket for Christmas in Germany, which is really exciting.

Anyways, back to the Caracan musical world. Since I last wrote, I have been to a ton of oboe lessons, and have met a ton of oboists (I've never been more glad that I play such a quirky instrument and have such nice colleagues!). Attending lessons (with 5 different professors, of all levels of students) has been really informative to learn about pedagogy here, to see what kind of exercises and repertoire are being taught. It was great for me, both as a teacher and musician, and sometimes felt very self-indulgent. ("That's a great scale study! I've never done that. I should go home and practice it.") The students I observed are studying with the best oboists here, so they themselves are the top of each age group, they get the chance to study privately and look at things outside of orchestral music-many kids who just learn in the nucleos also get private lessons, but spend most of their time devoted to orchestral repertoire.

I have spent a considerable time at the nucleo in a satellite city (dormitory city?) that is up in the hills outside Caracas, about 30 minutes by bus in San Antonio de los Altos. It's a beautiful and peaceful city, and the nucleo there shares a community building with sports and arts programs. This nucleo has only been around 3 years, and sprang from 80 to its current 400 students, speaking to its importance in the region. Many of the professors there told me that before the orchestra program there, there were many kids who would spend their afternoons loitering and doing drugs. Now many of them have an after school activity.

I arrived to San Antonio in time for a Seminario, which in Venezuelan orchestra speak, means intensive music workshop, that can last anywhere from a few days to a week-this one fell during a long weekend, and the kids were there from 9-6 every day, shuttled between sectionals and rehearsals. Lunch and snacks were provided. I got to teach some lessons and classes there (and will be continuing to go there, hopefully regularly!). I taught a 6 year old tiny girl with a special light Rigoutaut oboe that is small and has fewer keys (the normal oboe is too heavy and there's too much air pressure for someone with such small lungs!). I was having her just play one note at a time when she asked if she could play me a song. "Of course! I didn't know you could play a song!" She huffed her way through the melody of "Ode to Joy" and it was adorable. I was very proud of her. Today I conducted the woodwind and oboe sectionals. The kids spend a ton of time playing through and replaying and rehearsing orchestra parts, and the teachers have tons of patience and are very thorough, I tried to be so myself today.

Besides that, I've been continuing to go to concerts and rehearsals, playing ultimate frisbee, and am trying to plan some travels for later this month and next month. I hear it's cold in the midwest. I miss Autumn and its related activities, especially anything related to squash and apples, and maybe even Halloween. Some stores here have Halloween decorations, but most have skipped right to Christmas. I'd love to hear from all of you!