The children will be assembling at the FACE School on University Ave. at 3:00pm for two hours of Fiddling Fun. There will be approximately 50 participants from the two schools combined. They have been attending the after school music and social development program since September 2013. The program runs four days per week, 2 hours per day. They will be playing violins and cellos.
The QMEA and Viva!Sistema are pleased to be able to keep up this annual tradition.
]]>If you are interested, or if you know someone that may be interested in having their child participate, please print our flyer or send the website link.
Download the Sistema 2013-2014 Flyer
In this documentary, the kids of St. Gabriel Elementary School in Point St Charles who participate in the program visit the FACE School to rehearse with the FACE Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Theodora Stathopoulos with assistance from tutors Gwenyth Epstein, Jenny Zhu, Kaia’tanoron Dumoulin Bush, Nicola Miller, Isadore Friedman and Program Manager Kerry Roebuck.
Also appearing in the video are the principal of St. Gabriel Elementary School – Jim Daskalakis, Governing Board Chair of St. Gabriel Elementary School – David Benoit, and composer/guitarist – Tim Brady
See the video of El Sistema Program at St. Gabriel School on Vimeo
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El Sistema, a movement that uses musical group instruction as a mean to affect social change in children and youth, is implemented in two Quebec communities for the first time.
“Music…has the power of forming the character and
should, therefore, be introduced into the
education of the young.” – Aristotle
On October 22, 2012, the Québec Music Educators Association/Association des éducateurs de musique du Québec (QMEA/Aemq) will launch the first El Sistema – inspired music program (Viva! Sistema), in two distinct school communities in Quebec.
In its first year, Viva! Sistema will provide 320 hours (10 hours/week) of after-school music education free of charge to elementary school students. Within three years, the program will have expanded and will include a regional “all-star” orchestra and choir.
The design of the program directly meets numerous social and educational objectives by providing young people with an opportunity for cultural and artistic enrichment and serving as a direct solution to problems such as bullying and violence. By actively engaging youth and at-risk children in a daily, after-school, community-focused activity, Viva! Sistema will build an inclusive network through which these students may develop resiliency, social capital, and the sense of accomplishment that stems from hard work, both as individuals and as a collective.
About the El Sistema movement in music education
El Sistema presently provides opportunities for inclusion and growth through music participation to more than 500,000 young people, many of them otherwise disadvantaged, at over 205 centers or nucléos throughout Venezuela. The program is now being adopted as a model for similar music education initiatives in more than 25 countries worldwide, including Canada. At least ten Sistema-inspired programs currently exist in Canadian cities across the country
About QMEA/Aemq
The QMEA/Aemq, is a professional association that was established in 1939 in order to promote, support and develop music education programs across Quebec. It nurtures a vital music learning community and seeks to accomplish this vision by serving and connecting those interested in music education, including current and future music educators.
For more information: qmea.aemq@gmail.com
Kerry Roebuck: 514‐261‐3365
Viva! Sistema Program Manager