In the teeming rain, sitting in a makeshift grandstand in a field at the edge of the Raploch estate in Stirling, I was privileged to witness an extraordinary event. It made such an impact that every minute of it has stayed with me ever since.
I was not watching a sporting moment or a piece of theatre, or even an uplifting speech. I was watching young children and their families indulge in undiluted joy and uninterrupted pleasure, all bursting wide with deep, deep pride.
It was June 21 2012 and this was a performance of the original Big Noise Orchestra created by Sistema Scotland, the same organisation that developed Big Noise Douglas in Dundee.
It was the opening performance of the London 2012 festival, a summer of events to coincide with the Olympic Games.
The concert was being broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and was being performed in front of a live audience of 8,000.
And all this in the Raploch, a far cry from La Scala or the Royal Albert Hall.
But what made it really special was that the Big Noise children were performing with the musicians of Venezuela’s Simon Bolivar Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Gustavo Dudamel.
The dashing young conductor with the rock star looks from the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra is a product of the original El Sistema project that has helped thousands of street kids in Venezuela.
The members of the symphony orchestra had all once been living in challenging social and economic circumstances, like the children from Stirling.
And now they toured the world with their inspirational music.
Sistema Scotland proved its worth to the world
They might have been the special guests in Raploch that night, but the stars were the local youngsters.
They trudged their way to the stage with violins and brass instruments tucked under their arms as their families turned from the queue for the burger stalls to hurl cheers of encouragement.
After some encouraging smiles and soft words from Dudamel, the Big Noise launched into Rondeau from Purcell’s Abdelazer, also known as the opening theme of Britten’s The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra.
What drifted across the arena was not music of the highest quality. There were missed notes, stray blows of instruments and a variety of time signatures employed throughout.
It was recognisable, if tortured, music.
And it was one of the most inspirational things I have ever seen.
As the piece went on it got better and more in time and in tune.
The children’s shoulders lifted. They looked to the audience with smiles in their eyes.
Their bows sawed away with more gusto and their cheeks puffed out as the trombones and trumpets blew with growing passion.
At the end of the piece there was an eruption of noise as the crowd rose to its feet and cheered, hollered, clapped and whooped
Brollies were abandoned in the pouring rain as family members hugged and celebrated.
It was a triumph.
The Bolivar Orchestra would go on to play a full programme to an extraordinary level of musicianship that night. Dudamel dazzled with his flamboyant conducting.
But as everyone knew, the highlight of the night had already happened.
The value of Sistema to Scotland was shown to the world that night. And its place in the social make-up of our country’s most challenged communities was sealed.
Sistema Scotland is changing lives in Dundee too
Anyone who thinks that the performance that night – or that anything that Big Noise Douglas has done, or will do, in Dundee – is about music is misguided.
Sistema is about community, support and inspiration. It is about perseverance and pride.
It encapsulates compassion and chutzpah and it makes a big noise for all those connected to it.
That is why the project in Dundee cannot be allowed to be diluted or, God forbid, closed.
It needs to be secure for the long term and promises to the children of Claypotts Castle and St Pius Primary Schools kept.
Those who step up to take the hard decisions at Dundee City Council have the worst jobs in the world right now. Who would be a councillor?
Nonetheless, whether it is by the will of politicians or the philanthropy of others, Sistema must not just survive but thrive.
🎉 Here's what celebrating 13 years of #BigNoiseRaploch sounds like!
All year the children & young people of Raploch have worked hard on learning, creating and practicing at Big Noise. We're delighted that we're now able to enjoy playing together again in the #Stirling sunshine. pic.twitter.com/XMImiYgjuk
— Sistema Scotland (@sistemascotland) July 22, 2021
Those who take the decisions to make the cuts or write the cheques have a duty to understand what Sistema is all about.
To think that its diluted provision can be supplemented by existing regional music tuition programmes is to miss the point of Sistema by a country mile.
Teaching children to play musical instruments is just the start.
The world needs to hear music like this.
Not for its quality but for its impact.
For its power to influence change across communities and for all those Raploch youngsters who enthralled the world in the summer rain.
Richard Neville is a director of Neville Robertson Communications in Dundee and a former editor of The Courier.
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