Marian Gutierrez-Curiel

On September 18th, our Strings Program Coordinator, Marian Gutierrez-Curiel travelled back to her country Venezuela to have an encounter with her musical family from “El Sistema”, an organization she has been part of for more than 20 years. On this occasion she had the opportunity to represent BRAVO Youth Orchestras as an active organization member of El Sistema USA.

From 18th to 23rd September, The II World Congress El Sistema brought together representatives from 40 countries from 5 continents, 80 orchestras and choir programs inspired by the Venezuelan program, as well as 88 international musicians who shared with their Venezuelan counterparts, all united in this event that aim to strengthen alliances and create new tools so that music continues to be the axis of social transformation.

During one week there were held presentations, workshops, academic exchanges, visits to the “núcleos” and other activities, during which participants were able to learn about the 12 programs developed by El Sistema; the functioning and scope of the “núcleos” and modules; the artistic level of the professional orchestras and choirs, and the methodology used to provide musical training to more than one million Venezuelan students who are currently members of El Sistema in Venezuela.

This second edition of the World Congress of El Sistema was focused on the commemoration of the legacy of Maestro José Antonio Abreu Anselmi, as a meeting and exchange of knowledge and academic experiences, which is projected as a time to interpret the various perspectives and tools that contribute to the development of training models inspired by El Sistema, from a global vision of musical art and its impact on the social work, as the primary ideology of the founding director.