The National System of Youth and Children's Orchestras and Choirs of Venezuela (The System). In memory of José Antonio Abreu

Greetings steemians, today I'm going to talk to you about the System. It was founded by José Antonio Abreu in 1975 as a Social Action for Music. It was supported by a presidential decree for the compulsory formation of musical groups of schoolchildren. This project became internationally known in 1995, with the performance of the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center in Washintong. The outstanding artistic virtuosity has made the different Orchestras of the System perform at the United Nations, before Pope John Paul II. Some of the most prestigious conductors of the stature of Giuseppe Sinopoli, Daniel Barenboim, Sir Simon Rattle, Zubin Maht and Gustavo Dudamel (Venezuelan and current conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra) have conducted these Venezuelan musicians.

Also music figures like Bronislaw Gimpel, Placido Domingo, Mstislay Rostroppovich, Alicia de Larrocha, Montserrat, Pavarroti and others have shared stages with our young people and Venezuelan CHILDREN. They have been praised for the artistic quality of their music around the world. The awards the Orchestra System has received are countless:

UNESCO International Music Prize March 1993.

Gabriela Mistral Inter-American Prize for Culture in the Field of Science and the Musical Arts (OAS). March 1996.

UNESCO Artists for Peace Award given to each and every one of the young members of the National Youth Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela. May 1998.

Italia Nel Mondo Prize, awarded annually by the Italia Nel Mondo Foundation. 1998.

UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador. UNESCO appointed Master Abreu as a Goodwill Ambassador in recognition of his tireless work in promoting music as an instrument of human development. 1998.

Right livelihood Award The Right Livelihood Award. It was given to Dr. José Antonio Abreu". . . for achieving an unparalleled cultural renaissance and bringing the joy of music to countless disadvantaged children and communities". December 2001.

UNESCO Simón Bolívar Medal Awarded to the National System of Youth and Children's Orchestras of Venezuela. January 2001.

Doctorate Honoris Causa in the Mention Music Conservatory of New England Music, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America. July 2002.

Premio Música e Vita Prize awarded by the Italian organization Coordinamento Música to José Antonio Abreu for his active role in the promotion of music as an instrument of training and social organization. April 2002.

Special Recognition as a Social Entrepreneur The Schwab Foundation of Switzerland presented the award as a Social Entrepreneur to Abreu in recognition of his work on behalf of Latin American children and youth. 2002.

Honorary Member of the Merida Academy, Venezuela. 2002.

University Distinction Universidad de Los Andes, Merida, Venezuela. 2002.

UNICEF National Goodwill Ambassador The National System of Youth and Children's Orchestras of Venezuela. November 2004.

International Peace Prize for Arts and Culture from the World Culture Open Association (WCO) September 2004.

Order of Merit in First Class of the Federal Republic of Germany. May 2005.

Sony Broadcast and Professional of Latin America Sony Broadcast and Professional Latin America, gives the Youth Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela a recognition for its production of cultural programming in High Definition Video HDV format in the Republic of Venezuela. 2005.

GlobArt Award The GlobArt organization presented this award to Master Abreu for his exemplary service to humanity. November 2006.

UNICEF- Dalla parte dei bambini Award, the Italian Committee for UNICEF presented the UNICEF-Dalla Award to José Antonio Abreu. September 2006.

WQXR Gramophone Award 2007 Alexander Bernstein, son of Leonard Bernstein, presented the award to the Simón Bolívar Youth Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela. November 2007

Gold Medal of the Presidency of the Italian Senate Awarded to José Antonio Abreu. October 2007.

Don Juan de Borbón de la Música Award May 2007.

Q Award For the Harvard School of Public Health to raise awareness of leadership and work for children. November 2008.

Planeta Azul Ethecon Award, German foundation for ethics and economics, September 2008.

Honorary Member of the Beethoven-Haus Society. The Beethoven-Haus Society awarded this distinction to José Antonio Abreu as part of the Beethoven Festival 2008. This German society, founded in 1889, grants honorary membership to outstanding musicians in recognition of their work. September 2008.

Yehudi Menuhin Her Majesty Queen Sofia Award. June 2008.

Prince of Asturias Prize for the Arts. June 2008.

The New York City City City Council issued a proclamation in honor of Master Abreu for his outstanding contribution to the cultural life of the United States and for spreading harmony throughout the world. June 2008.

Honorary Member of the Royal Philharmonic Society. The Royal London Philharmonic Society awarded honorary membership to Maestro Abreu for embodying its primary goal of "creating a future for music". May 2008.

Great Ridge of the Order of the Rising Sun. The Order of the Rising Sun is the second most prestigious Japanese decoration and was created in 1875 by the Meiji Emperor of Japan. His Majesty Emperor Akihito presented this recognition to Dr. José Antonio Abreu for "promoting musical exchange and friendly relations between Japan and Venezuela". February 2008.

Glenn Gould Award. February 2008.

Puccini International Award, José Antonio Abreu was the winner of the Puccini International Award in its XXXVIII edition. February 2008

Honorary member of the Wiener Konzerthaus José Antonio Abreu was appointed honorary member of the Vienna Konzerthaus. October 2009.

Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur, José Antonio Abreu was appointed Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur October 2009.

Frederick Stock Award. The Institute for Learning, Access and Training of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. April 2009.

Bridge Builders Award, Maestro José Antonio Abreu received the Bridge Builders Award for transcending political and economic difficulties through the teaching of the performing arts to young people from the most disadvantaged sectors of Venezuela. April 2009.

Frankfurt Music Prize The Frankfurt Music Prize. March 2009.

TED Award. February 2009.

Echo Klassik Award. October 2011

Austrian Cross of Honour for Science and the Arts. July 2011.

Commander of the Order of the Lion of Finland. July 2011.

Hanz Lenz Medal, the Confederation of German Orchestra Federations (BDO), awarded the Hanz Lenz Medal to the creator of the National System of Youth and Children's Orchestras of Venezuela. 2011

City of Ravello Award for the social value of culture at the Oscar Niemeyer Auditorium in Ravello, Italy, Paolo Vuilleumier, Italy, 2012.

Honorary title. Institute of Education at the University of London Master José Abreu receives an honorary degree for his work with the innovative project El Sistema. June, 2012

Doctor honoris causa. Carleton University, Canada. March 2012.

Order City of Valencia in its first class La Alcaldía de Valencia, Carabobo state. 2012

Grand Order Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Colombia. 2012

Doctorate Honoris Causa from the Simon Rodriguez National Experimental University for having placed the name of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in the international arena. 2012.

Doctorate Honoris Causa in Music from Harvard University. 2013

Honorary Doctorate from the Cleveland Institute of Music On May 18, the Cleveland Institute of Music awarded José Antonio Abreu the title Honoris Causa. The award was given by Joel Smirnoff, president of the institute, who argued: "No other human being on the planet has managed to make the study and teaching of music the way of life for millions of children and young people, as José Antonio Abreu has done; that is why we consider him the most recent hero of culture in the world".

Grand Cross of the Cruzeiro del Sur National Order on April 10, 2013.

European Trebbia Prize 10 March 2013.

Cáritas in Veritate Award On March 15, 2013, the International Academy of Hagiography presented José Antonio Abreu with the Cáritas in Veritate Award in the national category, for the work done by this musician, composer and economist to rescue children, as founder of the National System of Youth and Children's Orchestras and Choirs of Venezuela.

Cortes de Cádiz Ibero-American Music Prize, 27 February 2013, Kingdom of Spain.

Order of Merit of Duarte, Sánchez and Mella, in the Grade of Knight. On February 7, 2013, during a ceremony held in the Ambassadors' Hall of the National Palace, Danilo Medina, President of the Dominican Republic.

Educator of the Year. Musical America Worldwide, USA. 2013

Honorary Doctorate in Social and Human Sciences University of Lille, France 2013.

Notre Dame Public Service Award in Latin America. 2013

Honorary Doctorate of Human Letters The Longy School of Music of Bard College. 2014
Recognition of Fortune magazine as a world leader The American magazine Fortune recognizes José Antonio Abreu as the 30th leader of the 50 most influential people in the world, after considering that during 39 years of uninterrupted work with El Sistema, he has inspired the creation of programs similar to Venezuelan in countless corners of the planet.

Abu Dhabi Festival Award His Excellency Sheikh Nahyan Mabarak Al Nahyan, sponsor and president of the Abu Dhabi Festival and Minister of Culture, Youth and Community Development of the United Arab Emirates, presented the Abu Dhabi Festival Award to José Antonio Abreu - in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the arts and culture - at a ceremony held during the historic debut of the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra in the United Arab Emirates on 27 January 2014.

More recently the French director Christophe Talmont declared himself in love with Venezuela and said: "I came twice as a guest of the French Alliance. I was very interested in the work and movement of El Sistema, because I saw the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra conducted by Gustavo Dudamel on tour in Europe. I was impressed with the way these young people played academic music. The energy I saw in them was refreshing. This director currently lives in Merida and when asked why he is not returning to France he replied: The answer is very easy. Because this land has a very special and very positive energy that we do not have in France. Everything is dramatic for us and here, in spite of everything, there is always a beautiful smile to give. This land is blessed, there is an exceptional natural wealth, a wealth of talents without limits and a desire to continue working to get ahead as the System does every day.

For this reason, more than 25 countries have reproduced the model used by Venezuela in El Sistema, which has allowed thousands of Venezuelan youth and children to be separated from drugs, violence and spiritual poverty caused by contemporary societies. Some of the most emblematic figures that were formed thanks to the system are:

Giancarlo Castro - Conductor and composer

Mariana Vega - Composer and Songwriter

Daniel De Sousa - Guitarist of La Vida Boheme

Yasmil Marrufo - Producer and Composer. (Born in my City, Santa Ana de Coro)

Alfredo Matheus -Recording engineer and singer-songwriter:

Nani Goncalves - Vocalist of Lefem

Diego Maldonado - Drummer

La Pía Páez - Pianist and singer

Ana Lucrecia García (Friend of childhood)

Gustavo Dudamel- Conductor and composer

If you are interested in learning more about The System: