Eighty-six members of the Brazilian Youth Orchestra quietly filed onto the stage of Union City High School’s auditorium on Nov. 22. Suddenly the 11- to 18-year-olds burst into an energetic rendition of the overture to “West Side Story,” at one point leaping into the audience as they played.
The public performance was hosted by the Union City Music Project, with the Brazilian group as an invited guest. The Music Project is a just-forming after-school orchestral program whose founder hopes to build it into a group that can be just as good as the Brazilian Youth Orchestra and similar programs in South America. UCMP founder Melina Garcia wants to reach out early next year to local kids, especially those from low-income families, and get them involved. She saw the Nov. 22 Brazilian concert as an example of what her local project can become.
South America
Garcia grew up in Venezuela and was greatly inspired by her own experience with the country’s rigorous “El Sistema” music program for youths. After having lived in Union City for six years and getting to know her community, she reached out to Mayor Brian Stack in November, 2010 to found a music project.
“Talent is not enough,” Garcia said. “What these children need is the opportunity to foster and grow that talent.”
Stack immediately offered to help her implement the music program in Union City in any way that he could.
“He has kept his word,” Garcia said.
“I believe that we all have a collective responsibility to do our part to make our society better.” – Melina Garcia
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What is El Sistema?
In 1975, musician and economist Jose Antonio Abreu created a system of youth orchestras in Venezuela with the notion that the orchestra is an ideal microcosm of life as a whole. The discipline, community, and talent of group musicianship can help create the foundation for a thriving, healthy society. But one must start early.
Students as young as 2 years old attend free local music class groups called “nucleos” up to six days a week for around four hours a day, not including the many supplemental retreats and intensive workshops.
The program quickly went international and already has around 50 offshoots in the U.S.
El Sistema has produced such musical giants as Los Angeles’ Philharmonic Director Gustavo Dudamel, world-renowned bassist Edicson Ruiz, and the popular Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra.
‘Changing lives through music’
Before she made the decision to try and bring El Sistema to her own city, Garcia had been working full-time for the Bill Clinton Foundation as a communications specialist. She had also earned a dual bachelor’s degree in studio art and communications from Hunter College in New York City.
In late October, Garcia left her job in order to dedicate herself full-time to her non-profit organization. She grew tired of complaining about the local teenage pregnancy rates and the fights and the bad behavior she saw common among her city’s young people.
“As a resident, a parent, and a citizen, I believe that we all have a collective responsibility to do our part to make our society better,” Garcia said. The best way to do so, in her eyes, is through music.
When she held an initial informational meeting with local families, she found that many did not know that instruments besides the guitar, piano, and drums existed.
“These families come from very rural areas where artistry is not really supported,” she said.
The future of the UCMP
The initial plan for the UCMP, which will begin in earnest in early 2012 depending on funding, is to provide an after-school music program that will run from 3 to 5 p.m. and offer students vocal and instrumental classes.
The pilot program will include two sections, one for 3 to 5 year-olds held at the Early Childhood Center, and one for 6 to 12-year-olds at Veteran’s Memorial School.
Garcia wants to focus on making the program available to low income families, but will not turn anyone away.
“UCMP will give children from an underprivileged background an advantage for success,” she said. They will charge $100 per student for the entire year.
The regimen will be intensive. There will be an application process, and parents must be heavily involved. Students must attend every session every day.
Garcia is in the process of researching grants and will continue to work with Stack and the Board of Education.
“Some may call me an idealist, some may call me naïve,” Garcia said, “but I don’t care. I have the will and I have the vision to bring this program to Union City.”
Further information can be found at www.ucmusicproject.org.
Gennarose Pope may be reached at gpope@hudsonreporter.com