Social Action Through Music: The 2018 El Sistema USA Symposium
I’m not new to symposiums, conferences, and conventions. Between academia and the other aspects of my professional life, I’ve been to nearly 40 of them. Some are mostly sophisticated marketplaces, where professionals can maybe find the newest products and knick-knacks in the industry. Others focus primarily on burgeoning research, where you might find yourself presenting a potentially significant contribution while also anticipating the potential shredding of your conclusions, chastising you politely in the form statements masquerading as questions.
Yet another type brings together like-minded individuals to reinforce like-minded ideas. One can envision the hazard in this sort of preaching-to-the-choir event, resulting in positive-yet-unproductive talks, an audience head-nodding in self-affirming agreement, and the mostly absent and otherwise apologetically-admitted disagreement.
So what, then, commenced at the 2018 El Sistema USA (ESUSA) National Symposium, held during a surprisingly snowy mid-January on the campus of Duke University? Yes, there was certainly a prevalence of head-nodding among the nearly 200 like-minded individuals, but the kind that instead infused the room with a sense of eagerness and a desire to challenge and improve rather than just engaging in self-serving justification. And for every occasional (and necessary) feel-good talk came productive opportunities to learn and engage in discourse.
For those unfamiliar with El Sistema, it famously began in a garage in Caracas, Venezuela, circa 1975. It’s founder, Dr. José Antonio Abreu, wanted to provide an opportunity for music making to the far too many impoverished children of the city. Fast forward 30 years to a brilliant concert tour by its 150+ Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra, led by young upstart conductor, and program alumnus, Gustavo Dudamel (perhaps you’ve heard of him!). With this, they showed the world what could be accomplished with the El Sistema model. Similar programs throughout the world blossomed, with over 100 organizations in the United States, and a number growing yearly. I should also note that I both teach in an El Sistema program in Austin (Austin Soundwaves) and serve on the Board of Directors for El Sistema USA.
Among the two themes of the symposium focused on racial equity, so powerfully conveyed during the keynote by David France (Revolution Hope), titled “Dear White People: Use Your Privilege.” It was eye-opening, though the room obviously relished the moment — a sort of “hell, yes” murmur permeating the audience. He spoke emotively about the role of El Sistema in verbs instead of just adjectives, imploring us all that “Inequality is intentionally built into the fabric of our society…so we have to be equally intentional to undo this.”
Adam Eccleston (Bravo Youth Orchestra) expanded on this idea, stressing that finding new ways to engage students only strengthens goals of racial equity already inherent in El Sistema. And Calida Jones (Bravo Waterbury) challenged the audience to be present in the neighborhoods they served: “don’t just drive by…stay for dinner, have a conversation, and find common ground.”
To no one’s surprise, both informal conversations and formal presentations centered around El Sistema’s impact. During the kickoff luncheon honoring ESUSA founders Mark Churchill and Stanford Thompson, retired physician and Bravo Youth Orchestra founder Bonnie Reagan proudly admitted that, “The work and impact [you two] do as teacher[s] is more than I could have as a physician.” And indeed the second of the symposium’s themes focused specifically on Collective Impact, the collaborative model for making social change through a deliberate, multi-organization, and shared goal-oriented framework.
Collective Impact topics covered included Sara Zanussi (ComMUSICation) addressing the need for a reliable neighborhood infrastructure so that members can consistently access community programs. Christine Taylor (Reach*Teach*Play) spoke on how ESUSA’s Guiding Principles can help programs achieve Collective Impact. Speakers also delved into the various positive and negative outcomes, such as the talk by Anna Pietraszko (Miami Music Project) and Michelle Hospital (Florida International University), where they presented findings of their three-year study on the community-university partnership between their respective organizations. Tricia Tunstall also touched on how existing collaborative efforts, such as the El Sistema New Jersey Alliance, can benefit from and contribute to the execution of a Collective Impact model.
A site visit to Kidznotes (the El Sistema-inspired program in Durham whose documentary about the program, The Music Inside, won a 2018 Emmy Award) provided a convenient, if not convincing, example of Collective Impact. They partnered with the East Durham Children’s Initiative and several other organizations across the area, to provide the locally underserved community with a breadth of programs and opportunities. So then, unique for many perhaps wasn’t necessarily Kidznotes itself (though a very fine example of a successful El Sistema-inspired program), but rather its role as an integral piece of a puzzle, the music education arm of a larger community providing value.
Interspersed between the formal TED-style talks were several breakout sessions aimed at encouraging dialogue between the presenter and audience. I had the privilege to lead a workshop focused on increasing student engagement, delving into strategies on student-led learning, where ownership over learning outcomes is shifted largely to the students involved. Another session empowered students through collaborative composition projects, providing an opportunity for the kids to own both the creation and performance of the music.
The overwhelming sense of not just community-building within programs but building a community within El Sistema itself allowed this symposium to be the exception rather than the pejorative stereotype. Bringing together El Sistema from across the country meant folks (finally) got to put faces to familiar names, share many stories, and develop new networks of learning and support. And attendees were not just eager to learn — they craved the chance to work and try new things. Solutions were often met with “how does that look like with my kids?” rather than “prove it.” The incredibly motivating stories from the plenary speakers didn’t leave you simply only with awe and fuzzy feelings — they provided specific challenges for every attendee, combining the inspirational with the actionable. This took a very meta turn at the $100 per ticket fundraiser dinner, where Seth Truby (Bravo Youth Orchestras) challenged everyone present to raise an additional $10,000 — was it even surprising that the cohort surpassed that goal?
What was maybe missing was a little more time to breathe and digest the words and lessons learned, especially considering the havoc wreaked by the ill-timed weather. Then again, there is a sort of understanding that that’s truly “El Sistema-y”: keep on keeping on and roll with all those inevitable punches. That the work is never-ending, frustrating, and richly rewarding. That nothing is perfect and that the solutions shared may only be temporary — and that that was indeed ok.
Going back once more to Calida Jones, she best captured the most important takeaway from the weekend during her plenary, encouraging everyone to “get comfortable with being uncomfortable.” Was she preaching to the choir? Perhaps. More importantly, the head-nodding around the room indicated, like this first symposium, that we were headed in the right direction.
