MADRID鈥擟ristina Vazquez, a Roma teen who grew up in a Madrid shantytown, never imagined herself playing the violin.
But today she is first violinist in an inventive orchestra bringing together two dozen other disadvantaged youths, using instruments made from recycled materials.
Her violin is made from colorful soda cans, while a string bass has a skateboard for its body, and drums are made from plastic barrels.
The project, dubbed 鈥渕usi,鈥� aims to breathe new life into discarded junk while also benefiting youths from disadvantaged backgrounds.
鈥淚 am really happy, because it has changed my life a lot,鈥� said 18-year-old Vazquez, her eyes gleaming.
She hesitantly joined the orchestra at age 12 when it was part of the curriculum at her school in the southern district of Vallecas, one of Madrid鈥檚 poorest neighborhoods.
Way of life
Today she teaches younger members of the group.
鈥淭he orchestra has really opened me up to the world 鈥� I had never even gone to the center of Madrid,鈥� she said.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know if I will become a professional musician 鈥� but I want to keep giving classes to young children.
鈥淚t fills you with pride when a young girl comes up to you and says: 鈥榃hen I grow up I want to be like you.鈥欌��
Luis Miguel Munoz, 18, credits the orchestra with keeping him on the straight and narrow in a neighborhood like Vallecas, which has a high school dropout rate.
鈥淚nstead of meeting up with friends, I preferred to listen to music, play it, and little by little it became a way of life,鈥� he said.
Belonging to an orchestra is like 鈥渂eing in a family, and doing what pleases us most,鈥� said the bleach-blond Munoz, who sports a goatee.
Music 鈥渁llowed me to escape life鈥檚 problems,鈥� said Munoz, who sees himself becoming a professional flamenco percussionist.
The project is run by Spanish environmental group Ecoembes and is inspired by Paraguay鈥檚 Cateura orchestra, made up of musicians from a slum who play instruments made from materials found in a rubbish dump.
After Ecoembes invited the Cateura orchestra to perform in Madrid in 2014, the group decided to found its own similar ensemble that same year, said Victor Gil, the director of Music of Recycling.
鈥淲hy not here? We have social and economic problems,鈥� the Argentinian said.
The ensemble put on its first concert just four months later and 鈥渢he kids could not play more than four notes,鈥� said Gil, who plays the bass made from a skateboard.
Now after having performed in cities across Spain, 鈥渨e already have four boys studying in scholarships at music schools and public conservatories,鈥� he added.
Unfortunately, the pandemic has put a temporary halt to performances. A concert planned for last Thursday in Madrid was called off at the last minute because of soaring COVID-19 infections in Spain.
Meanwhile, more than 100 children are taking music classes from members of the orchestra as part of the project.
The instruments are created by luthier Fernando Soler, a third-generation instrument maker, from cans, wooden boxes, cutlery and parts of discarded instruments.聽鈥擜贵笔