Resonating Exile

<< Background >>“Resonating Exile” project was created to help young classical musicians from Latvia, Estonia, Germany and Austria by simulating a real-life professional orchestra environment while also providing in-depth context about the pieces they’re playing - here it was about the composer E. W. Korngold and his life in exile. Preparing an orchestra concert in a week with international young musicians, some of whom had never played together before, improved their artistic development, cooperation skills, level of adaption and gave them a glimpse on how their future as professional musicians may look like. The foreground vision is to supply the European classical music labor market with more well-rounded musicians that are not only technically bright, but also cooperative team-players who are insightful about the pieces they’re playing.<< Objectives >>“Resonating Exile” connected German, Austrian, Latvian and Estonian music institutions with a goal of bringing awareness to the lives of exiled and displaced people through music. 85 young classical musicians formed a high-quality international symphony orchestra, performed concerts at the host cities of Rostock and Neubrandenburg and learned to attach a deeper meaning to music through international cooperation.<< Implementation >>The main activity of the project was a high-quality orchestra concert in Rostock and Neubrandenburg. In order to achieve that, students were selected through applications and practice beforehand, rehearsals with European teachers were held, and lectures and discussions were presented about the composer E. W. Korngold who used music to heal from being exiled.<< Results >>Practically, the result of the project were both concerts - in Rostock and Neubrandenburg which received praise and standing ovations from the viewers and industry professionals. However, the process of preparing the program also translated in several long-term results for the students - after the project, the participants became more well-rounded musicians who are more competitive in the artists' labor market because their key competences, social skills, international network, learning methods and knowledge about European culture and composer history - Korngold's life in exile - had improved. This was confirmed by the self-assessment feedback questionnaires given to project participants.