About

This blog represents an attempt to share the philosophy, organization and teaching techniques of the Favela Brass project, a free music school for 30 children in one of Rio de Janeiro’s many favelas (shanty towns). To call it the Favela Brass Method is perhaps misleading, as to a large extent it is actually a collection of ideas, both original and borrowed (with source credited), aimed at getting children hooked on live music. All teaching techniques have been extensively tested in the classroom and found to work in practice.

The underlying purpose of both the Favela Brass project and this method is to promote rhythmic, acoustic live music as a central part of popular culture through music education. On arriving in Rio de Janeiro in 2008 I encountered a city where live music still binds together the fabric of social life, but which lacks an effective system of instrumental music education for children. Many other countries face the opposite problem: lots of highly educated musicians, but lacking a vibrant local rhythmic live music tradition for them to plug into.

The Favela Brass Method represents the sum of my suggestions for working on both sides of this equation through an approach to music education that focuses on getting children playing and enjoying live music as quickly as possible, providing them with an apprenticeship in existing rhythmic live music traditions and equipping them with the vital mastery of the technical and theoretic aspects of making music.

If the ideas presented here come from a variety of sources, the opinions expressed are exclusively my own, and although the Favela Brass Method is a convenient term (the proof of the pudding, in terms of this way of teaching, is in the Favela Brass project), my views are in no way representative of those of all of the volunteers, professionals and partners associated with the Favela Brass project.

I believe strongly that music education has to change, and this weighs heavily enough with me for me to express ideas here that I am fully aware won’t please everyone. For me, great acoustic live music is one of the main reasons to get up in the morning, so the current situation is serious enough for me not to worry too much about stating some uncomfortable truths and risking ruffling a few feathers.

That said, the intention of this blog is not to provoke unduly, but to promote an alternative vision of music education in the hope that it resonates with at least some readers out there in the world wide super web. The blog format was chosen to reflect the fact that it is an incomplete work in progress, and also to invite reader interaction.

The decision to share the method reflects a strategic choice: rather than scaling up the Favela Brass project, I would prefer to keep it relatively small and focused, but to share our teaching model in the hope that our example may influence, or who knows even inspire, others. If anyone out there finds the the content interesting or useful, I would be delighted to hear from you.

Big hugs from Brazil,

Tom Ashe

Founder,

Favela Brass