Playing for Their Lives: The Global El Sistema Movement for Social Change Through Music

by Tricia Tunstall, Eric Booth

In some of the bleakest corners of the world, an unprecedented movement is taking root. From the favelas of Brazil to the Maori villages in New Zealand, from occupied Palestine to South Central Los Angeles, musicians with strong social consciences are founding intensive orchestra programs for children in need.


In this captivating and inspiring account, authors Tricia Tunstall and Eric Booth tell the remarkable story of the international El Sistema movement. A program that started over four decades ago with a handful of music students in a parking garage in Caracas, El Sistema has evolved into one of classical music’s most vibrant new expressions and one of the world’s most promising social initiatives. Now with more than 700,000 students in Venezuela, El Sistema’s central message—that music can be a powerful tool for social change—has burst borders to grow in 64 countries (and that number increases steadily) across the globe.


To discover what makes this movement successful across the radically different cultures that have embraced it, the authors traveled to 25 countries, where they discovered programs thriving even in communities ravaged by poverty, violence, or political unrest. At the heart of each program is a deep commitment to inclusivity. There are no auditions or entry costs, so El Sistema’s doors are open to any child who wants to learn music—or simply needs a place to belong.


While intensive music-making may seem an unlikely solution to intractable poverty, this book bears witness to a program that is producing tangible changes in the lives of children and their communities. The authors conclude with a compelling and practicable call to action, highlighting civic and corporate collaborations that have proven successful in communities around the world.

Genres: Music

432 pages, Hardcover

Published September 13, 2016

Reviews

[Jay French · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite an interesting story about community bands consisting of youth, becoming popular throughout the world. The book describes the history of the “el Sistema movement”, starting in Venezuela and growing in cities throughout the world. The idea is that professional musicians can give back to their community by leading a band of youth. The band tends to provide the instruments, the training, and the opportunities to play before audiences. The youth involved in the project gain by being involved as integral parts of a group endeavor, by learning that they can learn something new, and by learning new habits related to practice aiming at mastery. These last benefits of the program are the focus of the book. The authors claim that youth involved in these student bands and orchestras are less likely to be involved in the bad things happening in a community, like gangs. In some cases, the kids can choose gang life or being in a band. Story after story, in cities across the globe, the same benefits surface. The author does a good job of describing the good that the program can accomplish. It was kind of humorous to read the author repeat quite a few times that there hasn’t been time to objectively measure the benefits of the program, so they have to focus on the subjective and on stories. It struck me as humorous because I was picturing some similar types of programs that have similar social goals and results. For example, chess clubs could be another type of project used for social good, providing many of the same benefits mentioned above with the band project, but without, perhaps, the performance aspect and the emotion. Emotion, you say? The authors focus on the emotional aspects of playing and understanding music, providing another possible benefit of increasing the emotional intelligence of youth.

I was reminded of the musical “The Music Man” when reading this book. While the musical revolved around an itinerant bandleader with questionable intentions, he sold a town on a community youth band. And he presented similar benefits to the community as El Sistema present here. If pool halls were in the same league as gangs…