Changing lives

When 28-year-old Gustavo Dudamel ascended the podium at the Hollywood Bowl for his inaugural concert as conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, he immediately captivated the hearts of his audience and the minds of critics. Here, the young maestro's story becomes the entry point to an equally captivating subject: El Sistema, the Venezuelan music education program that took Dudamel from child violinist to conductor extraordinaire. The story of El Sistema begins with a remarkable visionary: Venezuelan musician and economist José Antonio Abreu, who understood that music can transform the lives of children in poverty. Beginning with eleven music students in an abandoned garage, Abreu created a nationwide miracle, putting instruments into the hands of hundreds of thousands of underprivileged children and bringing hope and meaning to countless young people, families, and communities throughout his country. Combining firsthand interviews with compelling stories, Tricia Tunstall illuminates the development of El Sistema's unique model. As she describes the recent explosion of El Sistema-inspired programs around the world, it becomes apparent that this is not just a program, it's a movement. El Sistema is an effective model for social and educational reform in the United States and beyonf. No matter where it takes root, the goal of El Sistema is unwavering: to rescue children from the depredations of poverty through music.--From publisher description.

Beyond its central premise, the book can be read through the connected lenses of Nonfiction. Those themes offer useful points of attention as the characters, ideas, or world develop, especially where the book complicates the expectations of its primary category.