Children from less-privileged backgrounds, whose families may be at lower ends of the income spectrum, will now be able to map their dreams through their musical instruments.

On May 27, members of the Orchestra of Dreams will perform at Marronnier Park along Daehangno Street in northern Seoul, a neighborhood home to many small theaters.



The show is part of a series of events in honor of the 2015 International Arts Education Week from May 26 through 30. In 2011, UNESCO designated the fourth week of May to the event, with the goal of giving more music and art opportunities to children who have less access to them.

Marking its fourth run this year, children from six neighborhoods of Seoul and Gyeonggi-do (Gyeonggi Province) will come to the stage. First, they will start with some trumpet pieces, and then they will present the non-verbal dance and drumming show, “Nanta.”

The children's orchestra will continue to play songs familiar to the public, including pieces from well-known musicals like “Les Miserable” and “Mamma Mia!” and also from the animated film “Howl’s Moving Castle.”

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism established the Orchestra of Dreams in 2010 with the goal of giving disadvantaged children more opportunities to have access to music and art activities and to narrowing society's "cultural gap."

Since its launch, the orchestra has grown over the years to include as many as 2,000 students from across the nation.

In February 2012, the orchestra signed an agreement with the Venezuela-based Simon Bolivar Music Foundation. It has since cooperated with other organizations that offer Venezuela’s publicly financed music education program, known as “El Sistema,” the base educational system from which the orchestra was modeled.

By Sohn JiAe
Korea.net Staff Writer
jiae5853@korea.kr