VOX MUNDI- Raising youth multicultural awareness through choral music

Background The research undertaken by our consortium in the 5 partner countries (Romania, Serbia, Poland, France and Slovenia)-Asociatia Culturala Kratima, Les Choristes,The Aurin and Miraculum Foundation, The Stars, Friends of Skowronki- through different choral music activities (training courses, camps, music lessons, concerts, integrating choral music in other educational activities) has proven that there is no cultural activity with a greater social impact than choral music. A choir means the unity of dozens of young people who breathe, sing and live together, and choral singing, as a group activity, helps - say sociologists, psychologists and even psychiatrists - to reduce social differences, juvenile delinquency, increase intellectual performance and school results, to maintain a good physical and mental health and - very importantly - to create a social identity without distinction of race, social affiliation, economic condition. Complementary, by singing together, young people from different social backgrounds and cultures manage to build bridges of communication and relationships, to know each other and to accept each other. Objectives The aim of our project was to promote choral music among young people, as an instrument to acquire new skills. The objectives of our project were: 1. Developing non-formal educational activities aimed at testing the relevance of choral music nowadays, through elaboration of 3 intellectual outputs, organization of one youth exchange and 5 dissemination activities. 2. Cultivating choral music practices among a group of 50 young people through an intensive 10 days youth exchange and through 5 multiplier events. 3. Equipping 10 youth workers with skills and competences necessary to use choral music in non-formal education activities, through constant participation in the elaboration of 3 intellectual outputs 4. Reviving the choral tradition by developing a choral movement through activities organized by 5 partners active in the field of choral music and reputed at international level. Implementation The project was implemented over the course of 26 months, as a collaboration between 5 partners that are active in the field of choral music. The activities conducted in the project were in line with the application and some new activities were implemented as a contribution of associated partners. The activities we implemented are the following: - consultation with different institutions that are using choral music in their current activity (schools, youth centers, social centers, etc). - elaboration of intellectual outputs as a cooperation process between the five partner in the project. - organization of a mobility for young people - 65 participants from 4 countries - multiplier events in 4 countries- Romanian, Serbia, Hungary and Poland -workshops and piloting activities in Serbian and Hungarian schools, conferences with national participation in Poland and activities with young people from disadvantaged categories in Romania. - concerts and community activities in Romania, Poland, Hungary and Serbia - international and national participation in contests and festivals of choral music (in Hungary, Germany, Bolivia). Achievements The results of the project are the following: - A collection of choral music songs gathered from 5 countries (patriotic, dynamic songs that can be used equally by young people who are acquainted with choral music and new comers to the filed). The innovation consists of the fact that these songs are available online and they are accompanied by descriptive information related to the local and historical context. - A set of online tutorials focusing on developing skills for young people engaging in choral activities such as: cooperation, coordination, discipline, volunteering etc. The innovation consists of the holistic approach of choral music. - An app available for young people, youth workers and other educational practitioners who use choral music as a method. The innovation consists of gamifying choral singing. - A project website were the contents and the results of the project are being communicated. The project was piloted in the five consortium countries, but its scope is larger, the results are significant and it can be easily replicated in other countries and turned into an ongoing process of raising voting consciousness among young people.