Growing Musical Talent in Global Conflict Zones

Many charities and NGOs work to bring music to children in schools, some through funding music lessons, others by hosting performances and workshops. This is very valuable. We know that arts education is key for children’s social and educational development. But what about those in underserved communities, whether in or out of school or upon leaving? That’s where Delia Arts Foundation comes in. 

In conflict zones or in marginalised communities, opportunities for creative careers are a lot fewer than in more stable economies. People have to deal with social and economic uncertainties, as well as with the constant dangers posed by living in these areas. So, while they may have been a talented student in school, once they leave they have no opportunity to make a career out of it. But Delia Arts Foundation recognised this gap. They work from Algeria to Palestine, Brazil to Democratic Republic of the Congo, providing training and opportunities for talented musicians to be heard by a broader audience and turn their passion into a career. This is not a top-down approach either. If a group of people tell them they want to learn music production, Delia Arts provides that. If they want guitar lessons, they provide. It's all based on direct input and feedback on the ground. 

Of course, with the ubiquitousness of social media, you might think how hard is it to get seen? You could sing or play an instrument, record it on your phone and put it on TikTok, right? A few thousand views and you might start to create a name for yourself. But these opportunities are not accessible to everyone. Whether due to language barriers or a technical skill gap, people in certain areas are less likely to succeed through these methods. So Delia Arts acts as a community, organising participation in competitions and performances for talented artists, plus boosting social media exposure to an international audience ensuring that these creative voices are heard.

Addressing the need for a consistent practice space, Delia Arts launched two centres for co-creation and music exchange. These spaces include practice and rehearsal rooms, with basic gear and acoustics for individual and band training, as well as personal digital workstations for pre- and post-production and a well equipped recording studio. They are also used to host events and performances for the general public. The first opened in Gaza, Palestine in 2020 and the second in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of Congo in 2022. Sadly, the Gazan centre was destroyed during the current genocide, but Delia Arts Foundation have worked quickly to create fifteen shelters for artists and their families in the Mawasi desert of Rafah. Built in collaboration with Al Kamandjati and the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music, these private properties shelter artists and their families who have lost their homes and encourage them to keep playing music through programs created inside and outside the shelters.

Another strand of Delia Arts Foundation is Creative Corners. Creative Corners draws on Dr. Suggata Mitra’s ‘Hole in the Wall’ initiative which saw him place a computer in a slum area in India with no instructions or fanfare. Very quickly residents of the slum, particularly children, learnt how to use the computer. Taking this as their foundation, Creative Corners have created innovative stations that are placed in schools, community centres and clinics within the areas they work. These stations provide access to a wide range of software and instructional material on Music Creation, Notation, Production, Performance, and parallel artistic fields such as Animation, Video Editing, and Graphics. By leaving the children to experiment on their own, it increases their curiosity and creativity and means the stations can be rolled out at a much larger scale than if they needed to be manned by a teacher or instructor. The Delia Arts Foundation will then respond to the needs of the children who use these stations and develop their interest by involving them in their core programmes.

These Creative Corners stations are aimed at children aged 5 to 18 and have already seen great success. In 2022, 18 mobile stations were delivered to cultural organisations around the world to countries such as Uganda, Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria, Mali, Rwanda, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. Today, more than 40 schools across the world have these stations, with more planned for installation before the end of the year.

It is incredibly uplifting to see such great work being done in the field of music education and career advancement. We know that music initiatives help build bridges and create communities and we’re really excited to listen to the newest up-and-coming artists to come through the Delia Arts Foundation.