First presentation of SO DO and EL SISTEMA to the public, at the Culture Information Centre in Zagreb. This is where we announced the opening of the first SO DO Centre in Lekenik, in cooperation with the SOS Children Village. We invited everyone to spread a word about SO DO as well as to become active members and help and support our charity.

El Sistema Festival in Gothenburg, 17 – 21 April, featured a symposium “Sistema Europe” which was attended by representatives from Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Scotland, Sweden, Germany, England, Denmark and Croatia, with guests from the USA – Tricia Tunstall (author of the book on El Sistema) and Eric Booth (scholar, author of essays exploring the phenomenon of El Sistema success). We met the Swedish El Sistema teachers, visited some of their “nucleos”, participated in panel-discussions, heard about examples of good practice in other countries and attended the concerts in which children performed alongside the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra.

A short story of El Sistema and SO DO in the Croatian National Television programme “Croatia Live” (you can watch with English subtitles). tch with English subtitles).

We have established a cooperation agreement with “SOS Children’s Village Croatia” and visited their community in Lekenik, where we wish to start up the “SO DO Centre”.

The Music School in Tuzla gives full support and agrees to cooperate with SO DO music workshops. We were warmly greeted by the principals of both, the Elementary Music School and the Secondary Music School, Ms Slađana Dedić and Mr Zlatan Miujkić, together with the former music school principal, Mrs Nedžmija Omerčehajić, and they have all shown great interest for the SO DO project.