Mookho B. Rankhala, 30, a talented violist and music teacher, has come a long way. Her journey has been one of growth and inspiration, driven by a dream not just to succeed but to create opportunities for others. As she prepares to graduate, her ambitions extend beyond her own achievements; she envisions a pathway for children from underprivileged backgrounds to receive an excellent music education, just as she has.

In a world where many children face daunting socio-economic challenges, the chance to realize their full potential often feels out of reach. Yet, amidst these challenges, music has the power to change lives—bridging gaps, breaking down barriers, and opening doors to a brighter future. This is the mission of Superar.

In 2020, the Hilti Foundation initiated the Academy for Impact through Music (AIM) based on the experience of more than 15 years of engagement in the field of Music for Social Change. The establishment of AIM is a response to the great potential of the field to enable transformational learning. With the Firebird Fellowship, AIM offers pioneering training for teachers from social music programs around the world, recognizing their vital role in the empowerment of young people.

Like in many other developing countries, children and young people from South African’s Townships lack opportunities to develop their full potential. Music can make a difference. By making music collectively young people develop competencies and key life skills that can open the way to a self-determined future.

Imagine knowing from a very young age that music is your life. You dream of becoming a professional musician and enchanting audiences on the world’s leading stages. But there’s a catch: You live in one of Lima’s poorest neighborhoods, where money is scarce, and opportunities are few. This is the story of Athzel, a young Peruvian,

Young musicians from Iberacademy Medellín understand excellence not only as a leitmotif in music, but as something that determines their entire work in and through music. This attitude corresponds almost ideally to the approach of the Alban Berg Ensemble Wien, which cultivates a highly innovative character in its concert programs and their presentation - always connected to the past and devoted to the new. Therefore, the ensemble has invited students from Iberacademy to participate in its new concert cycle at the Josephinum Vienna.

The objective in our focus area, Music for Social Change, is to empower young people through music to make conscious choices for life. We are concentrating on three initiatives: supporting grassroot programs, building bridges between music programs and the established music world, and the Academy for Impact through Music (AIM).

Regular collaboration with international musicians and orchestras is a key element of the Iberacademy curriculum. At the end of January, the Iberacademy Orchestra Medellín embarked on its next concert tour to Europe. The young musicians will perform at the first music festival of the year, the renowned "Mozartwoche Salzburg”, before traveling on to Feldkirch.

This was a dream coming true for the talented young musicians of the Sinfonía por el Perú Youth Orchestra when they crossed the ocean this late summer: Performing together with world-renowned tenor and founder of Sinfonía por el Perú, Juan Diego Flórez, at three of the most prestigious and important classical music venues.

In August 2022, the Academy for Impact through Music (AIM) gathered 40 students, the so called “Firebirds” for the immersive part of their Fellowship journey. Although the second cohort, this residency was the first of its kind, notably including 40 Firebird Young Leaders aged 13-17. This was no normal ‘orchestral music camp’ - teachers from music for social change programs came from Brazil, the Canary Islands, Colombia, Peru, Portugal, Spain, Uganda and the USA, along with young musicians, music program leaders, expert faculty and staff in Lisbon for over 3 weeks to experiment with transformational teaching and learning approaches.

It is almost a tradition when musicians from the Iberacademy Medellín and their young colleagues from the Stella Privathochschule Feldkirch form the "Pforte Kammerochester Plus" every spring and fall. As part of the chamber music program "Musik in der Pforte", the orchestra will be dedicated to contemporary music as well as the compositions of the great masters, in October 2022 Mozart and Beethoven. In the best chamber music tradition, the ensemble is led by the concertmaster.

Salzburg – Gstaad – Lucerne. These are the places where the Youth Orchestra Sinfonía por el Perú will give concerts during the last days of August and the first days of September. They will perform together with the world-famous tenor Juan Diego Flórez, who founded the social music program in Peru in 2011, and the Spanish conductor Roberto González-Monjas.

To travel abroad and perform at major international festivals is the dream of many young musicians. This dream is now becoming reality for the Youth Orchestra of Sinfonía por el Perú, which is touring Europe for the first time with its founder, the Peruvian tenor Juan Diego Flórez.

“Side-by-side for a better future” is the motto under which the Academia Filarmónica Iberoamericana, or Iberacademy for short, based in Medellín, Colombia, is embarking on its second tour of Europe. The young musicians of the Iberacademy Orchestra will play impressive programs under the direction of Iberacademy founder Alejandro Posada and Roberto Gonzales-Mónjas, principal conductor of the Musikkollegium Winterthur, Switzerland.

After two years of intensive preparation, the Hilti Foundation has now established the Academy for Impact through Music (AIM) as an independent legal entity and non-profit foundation. Together, they are committed to drive positive systemic change in the Music for Social Change sector to enable young people to reach their full potential in life.

July is a member of the National Youth Choir in Sinfonía por el Perú. For her, being part of the program has opened a completely new world. Not only did she discover a talent she didn’t know she had, but she has also found her favorite way to express herself and her feelings through music.

Due to the pandemic, many programs in the field of music for social change had to adapt their ways of collaboration.

In this episode of In this Case we listen to Christine Rhomberg (Hilti Foundation), Gerald Wirth (Vienna Boys’ Choir) and Fiona Cunningham (AIM - Academy for Impact through Music) talking about the music programs the Hilti Foundation helps to fund and develop internationally.

Far beyond music education, the programs funded by the Hilti Foundation, aim to empower children and young people to overcome barriers and to grow personally.

The idea of music for social change was born in Venezuela in the 1970s and has since spread globally and inspired other programs.

The Hilti Foundation is aware of the allegations of sexual abuse against one of its projects, El Sistema Venezuela. The Hilti Foundation strongly condemns all acts of violence and abuse. We stand in solidarity with every victim of abuse, and we take survivors’ accusations seriously.