A major donation reaps major rewards

Our first major project is already underway. We have committed £35,000 (US$70,000) in the first two years including start-up costs of £21,000 (US$42,000) for staff training and the renovation of a hut to create a music room. We have pledged a further £10,000 (US$20,000) a year for three years after which the project becomes relatively inexpensive to run making it eminently sustainable.
 
The school, founded in 1999, has about 450 children enrolled as pupils. Aged between 12 and 19, they come from the poorest section of the community. A high proportion have lost parents and other family members to AIDS, some come from single parent families, others are refugees from the Northern Conflict, a regional war that has rumbled on for over a decade.
 
Although the school has some day pupils most are boarders, many of whom live at the school all year round. As well as offering a sound education the school aims to provide a stable, secure environment in which the children can develop into adults who will contribute to their community. The school receives no direct state funding but relies on donations, bartering and a small amount from fees from the few parents who can afford to pay.

Refurbishing and equipping a new music room

Setting up a project is usually the first, and biggest, hurdle so our start-up funding enabled the school to pay for the refurbishment of a dilapidated hut. Four rooms have been knocked into one and the school now has a rehearsal studio and appropriate storage space. We also provided a piano, three keyboards, 13 guitars, 70 recorders, drums, several endingidis (traditional Ugandan one-string fiddles) and books.

Tuition for up to 70 children

We are funding a choral training programme, the Tender Talents Chorus, involving up to 70 children who will receive vocal coaching, instrumental tuition on piano, recorder and guitar, and learn music theory. The Kampala Music School, a few miles away, is supplying the teaching staff.
 
The project aims to reinforce positive attitudes. Members of the choir work in a disciplined manner and punctuality and concentration are stressed as an important element in the group’s ethos. The medium of choral singing is particularly effective at motivating positive social behaviour. Any child not contributing in a constructive way spoils the experience not only for the group but for themselves as well – the feedback loop is immediate and obvious. On the other hand, children discover that by asserting themselves in a way appropriate to the needs of the ensemble, they can still express themselves at the same time as benefiting the group as a whole.
 
Putting on performances

The choir will perform a wide variety of music so as to develop an appreciation and enjoyment of other cultures.
 
Public performances are an important part of the project’s work. For many of the children, the experience of performing is a first step away from the margins of society towards a future where they have a contribution to make. We also believe that it represents an opportunity for their audiences to see the children as an asset rather than as a problem.
 
Their first public performance was a concert for Mrs Kohler, First Lady of the German Republic, during her visit to Uganda in February 2008.
 
David Juritz visited the school during his busking tour.