Last Friday, Abreu Fellow Stanford Thompson made a special presentation at the TEDxPeachtree conference in Atlanta. Invited by organizer and El Sistema supporter Al Meyers, the subject of Stanford’s talk: ‘What if’ El Sistema was to come to Atlanta?’ Part of his talk is transcribed below.

To keep updated on the progress of the Abreu Fellows and their hope to change the landscape of music teaching for underserved communities in this country and internationally, click here.

An excerpt from Stanford’s talk…

“El Sistema is more than a music program. It’s an example of real life. To play or sing together means to intimately coexist towards harmony, self-esteem, excellence, structure and forging practical skills and values that are needed today. These skills are essential for professional success and personal fulfillment. Honestly, these skills determines who gets ahead and who doesn’t.

As Dr. Abreu mentioned in his TED talk, in the personal circle music develops the intellectual and emotional side into fully developing one’s personality. Those traits of leadership, posing and solving problems, commitment, creativity, dedication, responsibility, and achieving collective goals are encouraged through music education.

We need more “left-brain thinkers” as Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor mentioned in her TED talk. She mentioned experiencing nirvana the morning of the stroke as she slipped in and out of mental consciousness. I have experienced this same sense of nirvana through the musical process. These experiences and traits give a kid an identity and creates possibilities for them to embrace new dreams and goals.

In the circle of the family, while kids seek to better themselves on an instrument, those skills will transfer to other parts of their life. They will seek ways to make their friendships, relationships, families, churches, schools, and communities better.

In the circle of the community, music creates unity, a space for culture and new meaning. The moment they play their first note, they are on a new trajectory of building a new life.

Let me share two secrets with you:

The infrastructure of El Sistema is already in Atlanta. We have great teachers and performers in our communities and world class musicians and musical organizations in every musical genre.

There is no such thing as music disability. There is only music possibility within every child.

I am joined by a talented team and I am fired up about the possibilities as we identify the will within the city to develop el Sistema here in Atlanta.

‘What if…’

Thank You.”

This entry was posted on Monday, December 7th, 2009 at 11:03 am and is filed under José Abreu's Wish Blog. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.