Violin lessons could lower crime

A COUNCIL is set to give neds' children violin lessons in an attempt to divert them from a life of crime.

It is hoped that classical music will keep children away from a life of crime It is hoped that classical music will keep children away from a life of crime

Stirling Council and the Scottish Arts Council hope that teaching classical music to youngsters in the city's Raploch district - one of the most crime-ridden in Scotland - will encourage social inclusion.

They have selected the area, in the shadow of Stirling Castle, for a pilot scheme based on one that has bred stars in the slums of Caracas, capital of Venezuela.

"El Sistema" began on the streets of Venezuela 32 years ago with 11 children.

Now a quarter of a million students take part in the programme, and it has been widely hailed as one of the most successful music education schemes in the world.

It gives children free access to thousands of musical instruments, and has established a network of youth orchestras at a variety of age levels.

In Venezuela - a country with a population of 22million - 75 percent of people live below the poverty line.

Raploch - population 3800 - was chosen as the Scottish pilot area for the scheme after discussions between Stirling Council and the Scottish Arts Council (SAC).

It became infamous in the 1990s as the haunt of crime clan matriach Big Mags Haney - currently serving 12 years in nearby Cornton Vale Prison for her part in the family drug dealing business.

Once known as a "Higher-free zone", Raploch was at one point so crime-infested that traffic lights in the area had to be replaced with mini-roundabouts because local youths kept smashing the lenses and stealing the bulbs.

The streets where Mags's gang patrolled have since been bulldozed, and millions of pounds are being spent on a massive re-build.

Certain families have been rehoused to schemes in former mining villages surrounding Stirling, prompting claims that Stirling Council has been indulging in a taxpayer-funded version of ethnic cleansing.

Organisers of El Sistema hope that, as well as fostering musical talent, the music project will "encourage discipline and instil a sense of achievement in children from poor backgrounds" in the Raploch.

The initiative will offer instruments, scholarships, and free transport for youngsters performing in concerts.

It will be headed by Richard Holloway, the controversial former Episcopal bishop of Edinburgh and interim Chairman of Creative Scotland.

A DVD of the project as it operates in Venezula is being shown to Raploch residents in a bid to identify children and their families who would be interested in taking part.

Children will receive music tuition five days a week after school, in a performing arts studio based in a new primary school/community education campus currently under construction.

In a report going before tomorrow's meeting of Stirling Council, Susan Carragher the Labour-controlled authority's head of culture, said: "Raploch was suggested as a suitable pilot given the nature of the regeneration in this community.

"The initiative is delivered through orchestral playing of classical music, and has the capacity to change the learning and lives of those who participate in it.

"Piloting this initiative in Stirling would provide opportunity for those participants and the wider community of Raploch and support regeneration.

"It is envisaged that if Raploch becomes the Scottish pilot the initiative will roll out to other communities across Scotland."

The initiative has already won the support of members of the political and arts worlds, and the pilot project is expected to last five years.

Linda Fabiani, Scotland's culture minister, described it as an "exciting project."

If approved as expected by Stirling Council, the pilot will launch on August 17th to coincide with a performance in Edinburgh by the Caracas-based Simon Bolivar National Youth Orchestra.

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