Sistema Saskatoon

WELCOME TO SISTEMA SASKATOON!

Jose Antonio Abreu founded El Sistema in 1975 to help underprivileged Venezulan children learn to play a musical instrument and be part of an orchestra. Thirty years later, El Sistema has become a nationwide organization of 102 youth orchestras, 55 children's orchestras, and 270 music centres - with close to 250 000 young musicians. There's a simple concept behind Abreu's work: for him an orchestra is first and foremost about togetherness, a place where children learn to listen to each other and to respect one another.

Sistema Saskatoon is based on this Venezulan initiative El Sistema which uses music education to help children from impoverished circumstances achieve their full potential and learn values to favour their growth as human beings. Sistema Saskatoon focuses on the ideal that every child should have the opportunity to enrich their lives through music and teamwork.

The Sistema Saskatoon Initiative:

Currently we are going into Vincent Massey Community School one day a week to work with two classes of children aged 7-9.  Our goal is to expand into a program that runs five days a week after school.

El Sistema's Ideals:
  1. Intensity of instruction - it is better to learn quickly and consistently in order to engage and sustain attention and cultivate practice habits
  2. Joy - Engagement before information
  3. Community - Learning and playing in groups 
Our Program Objectives:
  • Develop a program based on El Sistema tailored to the needs of the under-privileged children of Saskatoon
  • Foster a sense of community and teamwork through orchestral performance
  • Establish a sense of personal responsibility and self worth for all participating children
  • Provide each student with a violin, viola or cello and two hours of instruction after school everyday at no cost to the participating students