The musicians Jan Heinke (left) and Mathis Stendike see themselves as “facilitators” who bring the world of music closer to children and young people.
–
Schall & BauchOrchester
In the “Schall & BauchOrchester” children and young people come together who would presumably never get to know each other without the project funded by “Kultur macht stark”. The music educators Mathis Stendike and Jan Heinke make music with 30 students aged eight to 14 years. Half of them visit the “Johann-Heinrich Pestalozzi” learning support center and the other half the “Terra Nova Campus – the Discovery School”, a support center for children and young people with physical and mental disabilities. Other alliance partners are the Chemnitz City Music School, where the organizational strands come together, and the Sächsische Mozart-Gesellschaft e. V., which makes its network available and ensures a short connection, for example when the “Schall & BauchOrchester” takes part in music events
Reduce skepticism and prejudice
After the summer vacation of 2019, the formation of the “Schall & BauchOrchester” started. At first the music teachers worked alone with the respective groups from the two support centers. Over the months, the two groups were then merged into one in order to prepare a joint performance. For Mathis Stendike and Jan Heinke it was exciting to watch how the groups grew together. “They come from different worlds,” describes Mathis Stendike. “Although the two schools are only 500 meters apart, they couldn’t be more different: The participants with disabilities from the Terra Nova Campus are very well supported. The children and adolescents from the learning support school are very much on their own, receive little support from their parents and are not perceived as in need of support in everyday life. Both groups have a lot to give each other – after they have succeeded in breaking down skepticism and prejudice. “
Your own body becomes an instrument
Breaking down skepticism and prejudices – this is achieved playfully through music, it builds bridges between different living environments. The passionate musicians Mathis Stendike and Jan Heinke open up a musical universe for the participants by teaching them the variety of instruments. Horn player Mathis Stendike was a member of the ensemble of the Erzgebirge Philharmonic before he preferred to work as a freelance musician a few years ago. Saxophonist Jan Heinke is also a freelance musician. With devotion he develops new instruments, among other things he invented the steel cello. The “Schall & BauchOrchester” also builds instruments. For drums, kits are sometimes used. “They have the advantage that you need more than two hands for this, and teamwork comes naturally,” explains Mathis Stendike. Otherwise, natural materials are also collected: stones, nuts and cones, for example, are great rattles.
The groups are composed differently in each school year and the two musicians vary their work with the children and young people depending on the needs of the participants. But they always let tones sound, rhythms are tried out and, above all, your own body always becomes an instrument. Breathing and speaking techniques allow participants to get to know their own body better. Through singing and body percussion – the sound generation with your own body with the help of hands, feet, fingers and mouth – you will discover the joy of music. “The students are motivated and challenged: to improvise and try things out, to act in a targeted manner,” says Mathis Stendike.