![An amazing story about an orchestra in the unlikeliest of places:
Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the third-largest city in Africa. Almost ten million people live here and they number among the poorest inhabitants on this planet.
Kinshasa is the home of Central Africa’s one and only symphony orchestra. Most members of the orchestra are self-taught amateurs. Even for those fortunate enough to have vocational qualifications and a more or less regular job, everyday life in this megacity is a battle for survival. For many the working day begins at 6 a.m., earlier still for those who cannot afford public transport and have to walk miles to get to work. But the rehearsals go on until well into the night – and there are rehearsals almost every day.
Kinshasa Symphony is a study of people in one of the world’s most chaotic cities doing their best to maintain one of the most complex systems of joint human endeavour: a symphony orchestra. The film is about the Congo, the people in Kinshasa and the power of music.
Watch the trailer →
I wonder if all of us involved with orchestras in this country are as deeply grateful for what we have as we might be.
[via kateoplis and kateoplis]](http://www.tumblr.com/photo/1280/jasonweinberger/1210230625/1/tumblr_l9dd674FTn1qzprlb)
An amazing story about an orchestra in the unlikeliest of places:
Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the third-largest city in Africa. Almost ten million people live here and they number among the poorest inhabitants on this planet.
Kinshasa is the home of Central Africa’s one and only symphony orchestra. Most members of the orchestra are self-taught amateurs. Even for those fortunate enough to have vocational qualifications and a more or less regular job, everyday life in this megacity is a battle for survival. For many the working day begins at 6 a.m., earlier still for those who cannot afford public transport and have to walk miles to get to work. But the rehearsals go on until well into the night – and there are rehearsals almost every day.
Kinshasa Symphony is a study of people in one of the world’s most chaotic cities doing their best to maintain one of the most complex systems of joint human endeavour: a symphony orchestra. The film is about the Congo, the people in Kinshasa and the power of music.
I wonder if all of us involved with orchestras in this country are as deeply grateful for what we have as we might be.
