Mil Pássaros was a co-production by CMT and Casa das Artes in Vila Nova de Famalicão. Following on from the Opus Tutti and GermInArte projects, it offered a set of related ideas that combined creative production with community engagement and training.
Seeking to raise awareness of environmental issues and the need to take care of each other and the planet, Mil Pássaros is a global project about issues that know no borders and which need to be addressed from early childhood onwards. It develops extensive music and art experiences with the whole community, seeking to enable a dialogue between families and establish an educational foundation for long-term action. The constellation stems from the foundational piece Orizuro, expanding its conceptual, musical and creative material into a broader set of initiatives.
“Orizuro” is the name of a bird. Or rather, of an origami shape that represents a bird. In traditional Japanese culture, the orizuru is a symbol of happiness and in the second half or the twentieth century, after the Hiroshima bomb, it started to embody the desire for peace. It is becoming increasingly important to draw attention to the need to save the world in which we live: there are many ways to do so.
Learning to look and listen poetically is one of those ways and is something that can be encouraged from the earliest age. The idea of “attunement” has been present in a significant way in CMT’s work, where the term refers to the quest, through creative experience, for a better attunement between people and the environment. These are the “birds” that Orizuro aims to reveal or create. All birds, real or imaginary, from stories poetry, music.
In a full implementation of the Mil Pássaros constellation, the work begins with a training initiative that explores a set of ideas and materials relating to sound and vision. The trainers are invited to develop their work with children and their families, from each participating school, through the creation of an installation. This installation creates the scene of “a nest” where birds are born — birds from each child’s imagination, guided by their parents and teachers. In this way, professionals and parents are invited to actively contribute to the art-education purpose of this project, preparing for the arrival of the satellite project PaPI – Opus 8, a solo performance that travels around different schools. The project culminates with a set of activities that take place in a cultural space. These are: the construction of Inúmera Mão (Countless Hands), a global installation made up of contributions collected from different schools; the performance of the foundational Orizuro piece, with three performers; and a conference-performance entitled A Conferência dos Pássaros (Conference of the Birds), which also acts as a community meeting and reflection space.
More details about the Contellation on the Production Notes.
