The Road to Self-Discovery

The Road to Self-Discovery

            Every child enrolled in El Sistema receives a medallion imprinted with the motto tocar y luchar- to play and to fight.  A concise yet powerful message, this tangible pendant gives a child a dream he/she can physically hold and carry.  As I talked with my roommate, friend and colleague Andrea Landin, she reminded me that sometimes we see the beauty of El Sistema for its intangible items (social change, musical excellence, collective efficacy, etc…) but often a child is just looking for something physical to hold.  There’s power in the physicality.  It’s not something that you feel but it’s something you can touch, hold, and carry and with that comes sentimental attachment.  Paralleling with this idea is the notion of singing versus playing an instrument.  So many students I’ve met enrolled in the choirs are almost always instrumentalists.  Recently El Sistema even changed its name to the National System of Youth and Children’s Orchestras and Choirs of Venezuela “for the purpose of systematizing music education and promoting the collective practice of music through symphony orchestras and chorus as a means of social organization and communitarian development (FESNOJIV website).”

Monique and I with students in a núcleo outside Barquisimeto
(Diana is center)

            The notion of being an instrumentalist and a singer is something I’ve thought about a lot here in Venezuela.   Truthfully, it’s something I envy.  These kids have the opportunity to partake in both and gain different lenses in terms of not only the music but themselves.  As an instrumentalist, there’s an attachment to a physical thing, your instrument.  Your self-awareness stems from how you react to not only yourself but an object.  In return, you’re responsible for yourself and something else.  Singing is very different.  It’s completely done in the body.  You, nothing else, develop the sound, intonation, character, etc…  So how amazing is it that the kids of El Sistema have the capability to bridge the two every day?  By being in choir, you gain the opportunity of self-discovery and awareness so that when you get to orchestra you can apply that to your interaction with your instrument.  That’s not to say that orchestra doesn’t create self-awareness, quite the contrary, but it’s a different modality and approach.  These students are always gathering different tools to make themselves not only better musicians but also citizens.

Goofing around: we loved each other's sunglasses so much we traded!

            As I’ve watched the choirs and orchestras, I am still stunned by the level of commitment and passion.  The notes might not always be there but everyone sings and plays with such fervor and enthusiasm.  It can make even the toughest person tear up.  Here in Barquisimeto, hometown of Gustavo Dudamel, I had the opportunity to talk with a violin student, Diana.  When I asked her why do you come to the nucleo she said, “ Simple- it’s where I get to become a musician”. I thought about that response for a while, unsure if I was satisfied with her answer.  Then I began to dig deeper with her discovering that to her music wasn’t about proficiency on the violin or learning a choral piece but it was about becoming part of a family.  She said, “Sometimes I need my alone time, so I play my violin.  Sometimes I want to make music with others, so we sing.”  For Diana and many other kids in El Sistema, I’ve found that through music they are beginning the journey of true self-discovery and that through the help of others they are beginning to find themselves.