Sinfonía por el Perú
In places where crime, violence and child labor threaten to maintain a status of material and spiritual poverty in the most underprivileged areas of Peru, the power of music is bringing hope of change for the new generations.
A musical instrument replaces a future weapon, teamwork replaces ganging, and the pride that families feel for their children's achievements replaces domestic violence and child labor.
How is this miracle happening?
Thanks to Sinfonía por el Perú, the social project I founded in 2011 inspired in El Sistema in Venezuela, which currently caters for more than 5000 children in numerous centers in Peru.
In these centers children play and sing in orchestras and choirs, where they develop high self-esteem, and a set of values, habits and attitudes which transform them and make them feel confident that nothing can stop their dreams.
By playing music, these children are enriched, they feel valued and appreciated. Now, they can face the world in a different way.
Sinfonia por el Perú reminds me every day of how music has changed not only my life, but also the lives of thousands of children, offering them a new future full of hope.
In 2014, for the first time Sinfonia por el Peru made a serious effort to measure the project's real impact by means of a thorough investigation into the participants and their surroundings. The studies showed convincing results: children taking part in Sinfonia show more self-esteem and creativity, they perform better in school and show greater determination in carrying out their tasks. On the other hand, children's verbal and physical aggression towards each other diminishes, and conviviality at a family level is greatly improved. In 2018, a second study about the impact of Sinfonía por el Perú was carried out. This demonstrated that the participants have better expectations for the future: they engage less in risky behavior, they show a decrease in rates of teenage pregnancy, they undertake more hours of study, and they have a considerably higher expectation of master’s degrees and postgraduate education.
These results fill us with pride and encourage us to go forward. We are very thankful to all people and institutions world-wide for their support, which encourages our purpose of changing the lives of more and more children and their families.
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