Together in Harmony – Making Music with Refugees
Instrumental Music Lessons for Young Refugees
The project "Zusammenklänge" ("Together in Harmony") was launched in March 2015 by Klara Harrer-Baranyi (Ludwig van Beethoven Institute) and Andreas Wildner (hmdw) at the mdw. In this project, students teach young people with refugee backgrounds, focusing on musical interactions through instrumental and vocal lessons. Students have the opportunity to apply and to enhance their skills and knowledge, while young refugees benefit from high-quality musical instruction.
Students benefit from the guidance of instructors at the mdw guide, taking courses such as 'Practicum in Instrumental Teaching with Migrants' and 'Mentoring and Coaching,' where they serve as mentors for specific instruments. Given the unique nature of the program, students are also offered supervision and workshops to gain support in specific areas and to acquire specialized knowledge. "Zusammenklänge" can be taken as part of a module or an elective course. (for contacts, click here)
Contact with the young people in the "Zusammenklänge" project - those who are taught by students at the mdw - is established through the hmdw (mdw student union) and Live Music Now Unisono, in collaboration with the Integrationshaus, the Support Committee for the Integration of Migrants (UKI), the Ute Bock Association, and organizations such as Caritas, Diakonie, the Red Cross, and the Samaritan Association. If necessary, these young people are provided with instruments free of charge, and at the end of the semester, those participating in the project will be rewarded with certificates by Live Music Now Unisono.
www.livemusicnow.at/wien/stage/unisono
The end of the semester is marked by a closing concert, bringing together all "Zusammenklänge" participants and their caregivers for a chance to connect and exchange experiences.
"Zusammenklänge – Musizieren mit Flüchtlingen" won 1st place in the prestigious Sustainability Award 2018 in the category "Administration and Management," a special award speaking to the relevance and sustainable depth of the project.
The "Zusammenklänge" project is a product of close collaboration between the mdw and the mdw student union. Until the end of the 2019 summer semester, responsibility for the quality and implementation of the "Zusammenklänge" project lay with Klara Harrer-Baranyi, Angelika Wildner, Jakob Schlögl (hmdw), and Lukas Hartmann (hmdw). In October 2019, Karin Wagner (Ludwig van Beethoven Department, overall project lead) and Magdalena Fuchs (hmdw) took over the project's leadership. The current hmdw team is made up of Erika Spring and Diane Michele Galioit.
If you would like to support this project, please contact:
info-zusammenklaenge@mdw.ac.at or wagner-k@mdw.ac.at
Student Union
Anton-von-Webern-Platz 1
1030 Wien
Tel: +43 1 71155-8901
Ludwig van Beethoven Department of Piano in Music Education
Rennweg 8
1030 Wien
Tel: +43 1 71155-4401
Fax: +43 1 71155-4499