Cateura: "Recycled" Music

You must watch this amazing video...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mq0D5kq9ePE

 

Cateura, Paraguay is a "city" built on top of a landfill that receives 1,500 solid tons of garbage each day. Many residents work as recyclers and dig through the rubbish in search of sellable goods.  Yet, in this city which is one of the poorest in the world...there is hope.  Paraguay's National Orchestra director, Luis Szarán and music teacher, Favio Chávez have taken recycled instruments and created The Recycled Orchestra, an entire orchestra made from trash.

"I came here once and saw a woman holding a newborn child with one hand and picking up rubbish with the other, and told myself this could not go on, this is how everything started," recalls Szaran.

 

 

 Szarán and Chávez formed the Sonidos de la Tierra (Sounds of the Land) six years ago to bring classical and folk music (and hope) to some of the poorest children in Latin America (who live on much less than $2/ day).

 

"Music has changed my life, I feel completely different."

                                                           -Israel (age 11)

 

 

"Before I used to feel depressed all the time, now I have hope."    

                                                                    -Maria del Carmen (age 19)

 

 



 

Fogs says..."We in the United States are so fortunate and blessed...

yet I feel I have much to learn from the children of Cateura."