German composer and pianist Ludwig Van Beethoven said, ‘To play a wrong note
is insignificant; to play without passion is inexcusable’. The children between
the ages 5 to 17 years that are learning music through the Child’s Play (India)
Foundation are quick learners and full of passion to play music. They have been
undergoing training since the foundation was formed by physician and musician
Dr Luis Dias in 2009 and they have grown together in music as a family. Now
joined by their music teachers and other music students, they will be
performing at ‘Let the Children Play’, an annual Monsoon Concert, on September
23, 2017, at 6pm at Menezes Braganza Hall, Panjim.
These children are musically advanced and
will be playing works by Bach, Handel, Mozart and others. Lwsi Jones-Angove,
Anuj Almeida, Chernol and Chrissele Mendonca teach the violin, Leo Velho
teaches the cello and Susan Badyari teaches the flute. Child’s Play (India)
Foundation is currently active in three schools – Auxilium School, Caranzalem,
Santa Cruz School, Santa Cruz and Hamara School in Panjim.
Dr Luis Dias, Project Director, Child’s
Play (India) Foundation, has a beautiful way of explaining to the child how to
handle the instrument, the musical notes and even pack their instruments to
take back home. His aim is to raise the level of music in Goa and reach out to
children who would not have the opportunity to learn music. He knows each child
by their name and what they are studying.
“When I founded Child’s Play (India)
Foundation I wanted to teach music to the disadvantaged children, for whose
parents, music would be a luxury. Right now, we have more than 60 children who
are learning to play the violin, viola, cello, recorder, flute, clarinet, piano
and perform in a choir. The earlier the children join for the classes, the more
time we get to train them; it is great to start early,” says Dr Luis.
The are two concerts a year – the monsoon
concert and the Christmas concert. These boost the confidence of the children
and eradicate stage fright. Interestingly, the children who are learning music
have also shown an improvement in their academic studies. “Just as children
take to a language, the same way they learn music. It is important to start
from the grassroots level and train these children who would otherwise not get
the opportunity,” explains Dr Luis.
The concert will include ‘Largo’ from New
World Symphony by Antonín Dvořák, ‘Caprice’ by CW Von Glück, ‘Little Waltzing’
by Schubert, ‘The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba’ by George Frideric Handel,
‘Apollo Suite’ by Merle Isaacs with Prelude, Waltz, Scherzo and Dance, Gavotte
1 and 2 by Johann Sebastian Bach, duos and solo pieces played by the children,
‘The Harmonious Blacksmith’ by George Frideric Handel will be performed by
music teachers Ravi and Anuj Almeida and the last piece will be Praeludium and
Allegro by Kreisler.
Pedro Serra e Silva is part of the Lisbon Youth Symphony
Orchestra String Quartet. He is currently training the children in cello in
Goa. “It is different to explain to children the importance of music and the
musical instrument. They have to care for their instruments very well. They
have to love it, not like their toys, as they break them sometimes, but as
their mother whom they would wholeheartedly love,” explains Pedro.
The children are excited about their stage performance and have
been practising rigorously, eager to put their months of learning into one
performance. These children can be supported and encouraged by buying the
donation passes which are available at Furtados music stores and attending the
concert.
Child’s
Play (India) Foundation presents ‘Let the Children Play’, an annual Monsoon
Concert, on September 23, 2017 at 6pm at Menezes Braganza Hall, Panjim
