Article by Elin Bergdal (JaSeSoi).
International Music Village is a pedagogical intensive training course for all people using music in their work. The first Music Village (then called World Village), organized by JaSeSoi ry, took place in Finland in 1998. Since then, the course has offered a place for countless teachers from around the world to connect with colleagues and develop as pedagogues in the peaceful surroundings of Finnish nature. During the years, we’ve had the joy of inviting inspiring presenters from both Finland and abroad, e.g., Soili Perkiö (FIN), Elisa Seppänen (FIN), Polo Vallejo (SPA), Christa Coogan (GER), Jackeline Rago (VEN), and Raúl Cabrera Hernández (CUB).
The course has traveled to different parts of Finland and visited our neighbours in the south in 2019, when the course was held in Mooste, Estonia, in collaboration with the Estonian Orff Schulwerk Association.
During the Orff level courses in Finland 2022, a discussion arose between members of HOSU (Croatian Orff Schulwerk Association), Orff Catalunya (Catalonian Orff Schulwerk Association) and JaSeSoi (Finnish Orff Schulwerk Association). How could we develop the course? How do we make it accessible to as many people as possible? And so a group of friends started a three-year international collaboration project between three Orff Associations. In August 2022, an establishing meeting was held in Vinkovec, Croatia, where the guidelines for the project were drawn.
Our goals are:
● To make the course even more international by bringing it to different environments and cultures
● To allow greater accessibility to participants from different countries with different socio-economic realities
● To offer high-level training, integrating the richness that each territory can bring to the itinerant project
● Deepen the collaboration between our three associations
An international team was formed, consisting of two members of each association.
2023 IMV (International Music Village) was held in Ruokolahti, Finland, with ManMan Mui (Hong Kong) and Petri Kauppinen (FIN) as main presenters. The participants got acquainted with taiko drumming and Finnish folk dances during the day and the concept “sauna and lake” during the evenings.
This summer, the course traveled to Croatia. The small village of Vinkovec received visitors from all edges of the world, from Australia in the west to the USA in the east. Senem Krispler (TUR) shared songs and dances from Turkey, and Lela Kaplowitz (CRO) guided us to deepen our relationship with our voices.
Next summer, the International Music Village will be held for the 25th time, and you are all welcome to come celebrate with us in Catalunya from July 22–27!
Information regarding the course: internationalmusicvillage@gmail.com
