Overcoming language barriers with choral music
The EchangeChœurs exchange program brings Swiss children's and youth choirs together across language barriers. It is jointly launched by the Sophie and Karl Binding Foundation, Movetia, the National Agency for Exchange and Mobility and the Swiss Children's and Youth Choir Promotion Association SKJF.
Switzerland's cohesion across language borders cannot be taken for granted. The recent debates on foreign language teaching in some cantons show that communication across linguistic borders is always in need of new impetus.
The new exchange and support program EchangeChœurs enables children's and youth choirs from French-speaking and German-speaking Switzerland, for example, to find a partner choir in another language region. Exchange projects with choirs from Italian- or Romansh-speaking Switzerland are also supported. Movetia provides an online exchange platform for finding partners. The two choirs that have found each other then plan a joint concert (or several concerts).
The financial support per exchange project depends on the number of participants and ranges from 3,000 to 7,000 francs. EchangeChoeurs also offers tips on organizing the choir exchange and other assistance, such as a list of phrases in two languages such as "Faites attention à l'intonation"/"Mind the intonation".
Choirs are particularly suitable for language and cultural exchange because choral singing combines language and music as an art form. With a jointly developed program and concert, the participating children and young people can not only practice their language skills, but also get to know another choir and its musical profile. The joint expression of musical emotions has a unifying effect.
The three project partners complement each other perfectly to implement the project. The Sophie and Karl Binding Foundation, for which the cohesion of the language regions is a central funding theme, is responsible for financing the projects and the funding program as a whole and provides the project management. The SKJF association provides its network in the children's and youth choir scene as well as its expertise in terms of content, and Movetia, which also implements a "class exchange program" for the federal government, is responsible for matching the choirs and the initial assessment of the applications. An advisory board with experienced experts in youth choral music from all parts of the country supports the project.
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