Community Music Program for Vietnamese Youth

This July, I was fortunate to be able to spend my third summer volunteering with Rock Paper Scissors Children’s Fund in Vietnam.  I was really looking forward to seeing everyone again, especially the music students. The day after we arrived in the town of Cam Duc, all of the music students came to our hotel to meet with the volunteers, old and new, and to play their instruments for us. We were immediately impressed with the progress they had made since we saw them last summer, thanking them and the wonderful teachers who work with them all through the year.

Our goal for the month of July was to work with the students on some fun music and put on a concert for the community at the end of the month. At this point, I was missing my colleagues, Laurette and Hannah, who had been there the past 2 summers. (Laurette is a Suzuki violin teacher, and fellow orchestra director, and Hannah is a violin teacher and instrument repair technician extraordinaire.) I am a cellist, and not an expert on the violin, but fortunately, we had Sophie and Nicole, both college violinists, and Elissa, a high school Junior violinist and budding instrument repair technician, as well as Phoebe, who plays cello and is a junior in high school. So we had enough teachers on hand to split the students into sections, and learn some orchestra music and help them to play in small ensembles as well.

Each of our volunteer violin teachers worked with a group of students, helping them learn their orchestra music. It was challenging sometimes - trying to communicate in a different language through a student translator, with a group of students who are doing something entirely new to them!  But they were intrepid and dedicated teachers. If any of them become music educators like me, they will already have had their trial by fire.

Needless to say, we were all very happy when Susan, another volunteer musician, arrived in Cam Duc.  She is a professional violist in the Boston Pops Orchestra, and could not come until after their 4th of July concert. She brought great energy and expertise to our little group, as well as some fun music for the kids to play. Susan is an amazing musician and teacher. She worked with our local Vietnamese violin teachers, as well as the younger students, sharing her knowledge and her love with them.

I had chosen 3 orchestra pieces for the whole group to play together. So we had 3 different violin sections and a cello section, all playing different parts. They learned their parts in their small groups, and at the end of every day we tried putting them together. At first it is challenging to play your part when others are  playing something different, but that is the beauty of an orchestra; you learn how your part fits with the rest of the group, and you experience the thrill of hearing all the parts together. 

After 4 weeks, the group sounded great all together! In addition, each student also played in a small group- a duet, trio or quartet, where they learned to play their own part independently.  We had an amazing final concert and art exhibit for families and friends at the end of the month.

We hope that the small Rock-Paper-Scissors Orchestra continues to play for the community in the coming year, and that more young people in the town will be able to join the program.  Thanks to all of the donors who make this possible!

Rozanne

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Dear Friends,

In the summer of 2016 Lex Majoros, a young cellist at Moses Brown School in Providence Rhode Island and the RI Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, joined the Rock-Paper-Scissors team on our annual trip to Vietnam. Lex, an incredible talent, worked exclusively with one of our newest cello students named Linh, a painfully shy young boy. The two work closely together for a month, and what resulted was a profound transformation for both.    

This past March, Lex shared his experience with Arete, the Moses Brown School monthly newsletter, and we would like to share that with you all.  Your continued support is evidence of your belief in the power of music education and the belief in our program.  Please share this story with your family, friends and coworkers, and always remember, without this support, none of this would be possible.  

Take care,

Patrick O'Brien

Rock, Paper, Scissors, Go

Vietnamese travels thanks to Owen Award

 Art makes the world a better place, we know, but how does music, poetry, or painting help people in extreme poverty? A cellist, actor, and dancer, Lex Majoros ’17 faced this question last summer, on an arts-service trip to Vietnam made possible by an Owen Award.

 Lex was invited to join a group of the Rock-Paper-Scissors Children’s Fund, a Rhode Island-based nonprofit that serves poor, rural Vietnamese children through art and music programs. The team – music teachers, a violinist and repair technician, photographers, yoga instructors, and five high school artists and musicians, including Lex and classmate Sabine Angier ’17 – embarked on the 30-hour journey to Ho Chi Minh City, and on to the village of Cam Duc.

 Music and art lessons were held at the community center. “I began teaching cello to a 12-year-old boy,” Lex says. “Linh was self-conscious about his speech impediment, so we were equally awkward in trying to communicate through our translator. The language barrier pushed us to connect physically and audibly: mimicry, facial expressions, and opinionated grunts on my part. We got a lot done!” Some afternoons were spent with children in nearby villages, painting, dancing, and performing. He reflects, “It was wonderful, but I wondered, did these kids really need something as ephemeral as music or art when they lacked basic necessities?”

 In the city of Hue, the group visited an orphanage. “As soon as there was music, kids ran to show off some crazy dance moves,” Lex laughs. “There was nothing formal about it – dancers jumped in and out of the fray as they pleased – but it was pure joy. Art fosters not only joy, but compassion, a sense of community. This brief experience reminded me why I love what I do, and how grateful I was to be involved with Rock-Paper-Scissors.”

 At the final concert, Lex’s student played four pieces with some young violinists. “Linh played perfectly and hugged his friends after they bowed,” he recalls. “Once too embarrassed to speak, he was engaged with the group. His uneasiness was gone, and what was left was familial sense of belonging. It was hard to leave them the next day. Among the rewards of the experience was the opportunity to question and personally clarify the value of the arts. I’d like to thank Rob Owen for making this adventure possible.”

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