Campaigners hoping to bring the Sistema Scotland Big Noise orchestra to Dundee revealed they have managed to attract around £300,000 in funding towards the project.
Despite not yet knowing their funding target, or having identified the community in which the Sistema orchestra would be based, the campaign team say the funding pledges so far have been “fantastic”.
The news was announced at a meeting of the Optimistic Sound Campaign Team, which came together to fund-raise and continue the hopes of Dundee musician Michael Marra that the Sistema music tuition initiative could be brought to the city.
The team welcomed Nicola Killean, chief executive of Sistema Scotland, to the event at the Hannah Maclure Centre in Abertay Union, where the funding pledges were revealed for the first time.
Michael Marra’s nephew and Optimistic Sound Campaign organiser, also named Michael, said: “Nicola runs the Sistema project in Raploch and has been extremely impressed by our campaign and enthusiasm for Sistema in Dundee.
“We’ve got just under £300,000 of funding commitment for when this project goes ahead. That is a significant amount for the campaign to get things going in the process with the council to identify a community within Dundee that we can work with to develop the project.
“Working fully in consultation with the city council and the people involved, that process will be completed by the end of the year.
“By that time we would envisage that full costings and a deserving community will be identified for what is a five-year plan.
“Without detailed costings and without an identified community it will be focused on, to have that amount of money being committed already shows the level of support within the Dundee community to bring it to the city.”
Sistema Scotland is a charity set up in Venezuela in the belief that children can gain huge social benefits by playing in a symphony orchestra.
Sistema use music-making to foster confidence, teamwork, pride and aspiration in the children taking part and across their wider community.