"Project CompArte takes the

Arts to Poor Children-

When music changes soccer for
violins- Two US cellists are part of
an important cultural work"
By Luis Fernando Quintanilla
La Industria-Trujillo, September 2008

Something is changing in El Porvenir. Now,

in some corners of this heavily populated
district, in place of traditional games of
fulbito (soccer played on a court), children
come together to play violin, treating it as if it were a small party. The motive? The results of
an innovative new project called “Comp-Arte Peru” that well-known Trujillo violinist, Ronald
Serrano Moreno directs.

“The idea,” says Serrano Moreno, “is to give children and youth with little economic resources
the opportunity to accomplish their goals through music. Obtaining that kind of discipline, that
confidence in the work they put into music can then be applied to other aspects of their daily
lives as well.

The results are easy to see. Not only have the children accomplished learning a musical
instrument, but now they also look at the future with much more optimism. “The purpose of the
project is to stimulate and motivate the lower class children using music. They come
underprivileged, they don’t have many toys or games, but through music, we hope to help
them set higher standards and reach their goals” explains Serrano Moreno.

However, the motivation does not stop there as the most outstanding students of the project
advance to be a part of the Teófilo Álvarez Dávila Youth Orchestra (Orquesta Infantil Juvenil
Teófilo Álvarez Dávila), a group that has already given commended musical concerts around
Trujillo.

For Love of the Arts

The project has even pulled in two young volunteers from the United States who have been
working in our city (Trujillo) for over a year- Gillian Baikie and Rachel Jurkowski.
Gillian Baikie is a cellist who graduated from the school of Education (correction: School of
Interior Design) at Anderson University of South Carolina. Before living here, she had already
visited Trujillo and had seen the condition of some parts of Trujillo and wasn’t shocked by the
poverty of the area. Her only problem upon arrival was in fact the language barrier, a
stumbling block that she has overcome, as she is already speaking like a “Trujillana.”

Gillian teaches cello to the children and youth in El Porvenir and is happier for the experience
she has had. “It’s been great, a child gains confidence and then that ability in music serves as
way for him or her to set goals for his or her life, a way to grow as a person,” says Baikie.
Above all, she takes pride in seeing the progress of her pupils. To watch them as they are
able to play beautiful notes on their instruments and to see the smiles on their faces. “They
want to play, they love it and that love is contagious,” recounts Baikie, “I remember one
Saturday, some girls from the neighborhood found out about our project and came by because
they wanted to part of our group. The kids in the project are an example for the other
children.”

Miss Baikie came to Peru with Peru Mission (Misión Reformada en Perú) and now, in spite of
the meager state of the area, wants to stay another year and continue working with the
children of lower income families. It has been here in Trujillo that she has made many friends
who have helped in everything, even in procuring a cello for her to continue practicing her
passion.

“This project gives children the opportunity to rise to greater heights, to appreciate music more,
to discover talents and to be an example for the other kids,” she said convinced.

Likewise, her compatriot, Rachel Jurkowksi, who graduated from the University of Notre Dame
in Indiana with a degree in Music and Philosophy, came to Trujillo with the intention of doing
volunteer work.

“Ronald told me about the project and I told him ‘Sure, let’s go see,’ reflects Jurkowski.

The beginning, as with everything, was difficult. Jurkowski was quiet, shy and the economic
disparity was an obstacle for her assimilation in Trujillo and with the children. However, with
time, she and her students began learning. “They loosened up a lot,” she says, “Now they
laugh, converse, and there is a connection between them that allows them to learn more
quickly.”

In fact, the majority of the children in the same position have a common, passionate desire to
learn more and more about music.

“These children work so much harder because it is all they have; and for that, they dedicate
themselves wholeheartedly to practicing,” concluded Rachel.