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The Recycled Orchestra: making music on a landfill site
Meet some of the incredible youngsters from Paraguay experiencing the power of music in the Recycled Orchestra, playing on instruments made from rubbish. They're the stars of a new documentary film, Landfill Harmonic, which explores their extraordinary day-to-day lives.
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1. Cateura, Paraguay
Cateura, Paraguay, is a town built on a landfill site. Garbage collectors browse the rubbish for items they can sell, but now the Recycled Orchestra use materials they find to create their own instruments. Photo: Facebook
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2. Violins made of rubbish
The project started after a local music teacher, Favio Chavez, set up a programme to occupy the children in the town. There weren't enough instruments - until he was brought a violin, made from items taken from the landfill site. Photo: Facebook
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3. The Recycled Orchestra
After starting with just a few children and a small number of instruments, the group began to play larger instruments including cellos and drums. Photo: Facebook
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4. Preparing the instruments
Transforming trash into treasure in his workshop, Nicolas Gomez gets to work on new instruments for the group. Photo: Facebook
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5. The power of music
Music transforms these kids' lives, giving them something to focus on amid the poverty-stricken town, where drug usage is high and crime rates are soaring. Photo: Facebook
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6. Favio Chavez
"The world sends us garbage. We send back music." Inspirational words from the man behind the orchestral project, Favio Chavez, who first started making recycled instruments to help the local children in 2006. Photo: Facebook
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7. Creating a violin
It doesn't take much to transform a discarded metal box into a violin - just add a wooden bridge and some strings, and drill some sound holes, known as F holes. Photo: Facebook
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8. The Recycled Orchestra
Trumpets, guitars, clarinets, cellos - after attracting publicity from around the world, the orchestra continues to grow from strength to strength, amassing more instruments along the way. Photo: Facebook
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9. A recycled band
Performing on a double bass made from a discarded metal drum, a pipe that's been turned into a flute, and a recycled violin, a trio of performers rehearse. Photo: Facebook
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10. Landfill Harmonic
Two members of the film crew set up their shots as they create their Landfill Harmonic documentary, set for release in 2014. Photo: Facebook
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11. Donations from around the world
As news of the Landfill Harmonic film spreads far and wide, the performers are starting to receive donations of real instruments from generous musicians around the world. Here they are with their new gifts. Photo: Facebook
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12. The Recycled Orchestra perform
Music teacher Favio with a selection of his students, performing on their recycled instruments. Photo: Facebook
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13. A recycled clarinet
A young performer shows off his incredible recycled clarinet, complete with its multicoloured keys. Photo: Facebook
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14. Maria plays the violin
Maria shows off her violin skills thanks to her new recycled violin. Photo: Facebook
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15. Landfill Harmonic
Comparing and contrasting a 'real' trumpet received as a donation with one of the recycled trumpets created from the landfill site. Photo: Facebook
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16. Tania and her new violin
It might not look like a more conventional violin, but this recycled instrument is still a work of art.
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17. Practising at home
The young performers were originally given recycled violins to take home so they could practise in their own time, without the need to buy more expensive instruments. This is Ada, one of the children in the group, demonstrating her flawless technique on the violin. Photo: Facebook
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18. Giving young people a chance
"People realise that we shouldn't throw away trash carelessly," says Favio Chavez. "Well, we shouldn't throw away people, either." Photo: Facebook
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19. Recycled violin
Tania proudly shows off her recycled violin, transformed from the rubbish heap with the addition of a few strings and bits of wood. Photo: Facebook
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20. Nicolas Gomez
Nicolas Gomez, a garbage picker, shows off two of the instruments he made from the landfill site. He told the film makers creating the Landfill Harmonic documentary that he never imagined creating anything like this. Photo: Facebook
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21. Behind the scenes
Two of the film makers chat with orchestra members Ada and Marie during a break from rehearsals and shooting. Photo: Facebook
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22. Favio and Nicolas
Music teacher Favio and violin maker Nicolas show off some of their amazing creations. Photo: Facebook
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23. Different sized violins
Square, round, big, and small - they might all look different, but they sound surprisingly similar. Photo: Facebook
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24. Health emergency
Neil Barrett, Director of Photography for the Landfill Harmonic documentary, explores one of the polluted creeks that many families in the film live beside. Photo: Facebook
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25. Mauricio plays a recycled double bass
Performing on a double bass made from a discarded metal drum, Mauricio shows off his skills in the Recycled Orchestra. Picture: Facebook
