El Sistema USA, which supports a nationwide alliance of El Sistema-inspired organizations in the United States, is inviting all who have personal memories of José Antonio Abreu to submit them to an online memorial to the late founder of the influential Venezuelan El Sistema music-education program. Abreu passed away on Saturday, March 24 in Caracas at the age of 78, after battling illness for several years. The invitation from El Sistema USA states, “Abreu’s legacy of the power of music for social change lives on in the two million children, teachers, staff, and volunteers supporting the Sistema movement worldwide, and in the 160 El Sistema-inspired programs in the United States, serving 20,000 students nationally. Maestro Abreu’s impact in our country has been enormous, from the TED Prize creation of 50 Sistema Fellows to carry on the work of El Sistema in the United States, to the many alumni musicians and teachers now living and working in El Sistema USA programs all over the country.” Click here to reach the online memorial.
Posted March 29, 2018
