This spring, Sistema Ravinia became the first program in the world to connect virtually with El Sistema, spending a month, from April 12 to May 15, on a “virtual tour” together. While Sistema Ravinia’s instructors and guest teachers from other US programs participated in professional development workshops, the young musicians in Sistema Ravinia collaborated with students like themselves in Venezuela and rehearsed with Venezuelan coaches and teachers. The goal of the tour was to provide students both in Chicago and Venezuela with an empowering international experience that fostered growth, confidence, and social change.
The event culminated on Saturday, May 15, when students, teachers, and representatives of El Sistema joined virtually with Sistema Ravinia students, families, and guests to enjoy a variety of experiences: the premiere of side-by-side student performance videos; breakout room activities for students; a panel discussion with leaders of the El Sistema movement, including Arlette Dávila, Ramón Román, and esteemed conductor Gustavo Dudamel; and more.
The joint performance by students in the Venezuela and Ravinia programs included the world premiere of a new work called We Are El Sistema, commissioned by Ravinia from Raimundo Pineda, the former principal flutist of El Sistema’s flagship ensemble, the Simón Bolívar Orchestra, who is now the conductor of Sistema Ravinia’s Lake County nucleo.
The grand finale of this historic event has premiered on Ravinia’s YouTube page for all to experience the inspiring international collaboration. Take a look at the finale of this historic “virtual tour”!
About Sistema Ravinia
Sistema Ravinia was founded in 2012 and now serves more than 180 4th-8th grade students in Chicago and Lake County public schools. Students in the program receive daily ensemble and orchestral instruction on their instruments. Sistema Ravinia includes three sites: the first was launched at Catalyst Circle Rock School located in Chicago’s Austin neighborhood. With the success of the Circle Rock site, Sistema Ravinia expanded to Lake County in October 2015, using Bennett Gordon Hall on Ravinia’s grounds as a program site, and this year established a program in Lawndale, expanding Ravinia’s presence in that Chicago community. Sistema Ravinia is just one of the festival’s Reach Teach Play education programs, which serve 75,000 community members each year. To learn more about Ravinia’s Reach Teach Play programs, visit bit.ly/RaviniaRTP.