El Sistema 40 - A Celebration

The world knows Gustavo Dudamel today as one of the biggest names in the conducting business. But it wasn t always so. Once he was just a schoolboy in Barquisimeto. Dudamel s parents had enrolled him in music classes at their local núcleo, part of Venezuela s music education programme. Affectionately known as El Sistema , the National System of Youth and Children s Orchestras and Choirs of Venezuela does a great deal more than merely keep youngsters off the streets. Music really did change my life, says Dudamel today. El Sistema gave our society two priceless gifts: the gift of appreciating beauty, and the gift of striving for artistic excellence. These things are anchored at the core of my being.

Two major studies funded by the Inter-American Development Bank in partnership with the University of Caracas have documented the social impact of El Sistema. Children who participate in the programme go on to do better at school and are far less likely to run into trouble with the law. Their chances of productive employment, not necessarily in the arts, increase dramatically. Their communities benefit. Music teaches them citizenship, social awareness and an aesthetic sense of life, Abreu says. These are the first steps

And, as Dudamel s success has demonstrated, the music education offered in Venezuela is not only socially worthy. More and more El Sistema graduates are moving on to distinguished international careers. Unlike conventional youth orchestras, which set age limits and hold auditions annually, El Sistema s ensembles are based on social cohesion and grow older along with their members. So the Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra has grown into the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra and become one of the world s most popular ensembles, with the Teresa Carreño Youth Orchestra following in its footsteps, and younger groups close behind them. Smaller ensembles, like the flagship Simón Bolívar String Quartet (SBSQ), have developed alongside the larger ensembles.
Organist, economist, conductor, politician and educator, Abreu has been awarded everything from Special Ambassador Status for UNESCO to the Polar Music Prize, the Erasmus Prize and the Right Livelihood Award. But the ultimate proof of his work is in the music-making itself, as presented on this recording.
Shirley Apthorp