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OPUS I / UKRAINE 

2022: ONE YEAR OF LIFE-SAVING SERVICES

KENYA INTERNATIONAL CELLO FESTIVAL

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The Kenya International Cello Festival brings artists from across the world for one-of-a-kind performances in Kenya in May 2022.

 

Born out of a deep dedication to the students of Ghetto Classics in Korogocho, a youth education program in one of Africa's most impoverished communities, the festival's repertoire reflects the wide tapestry of voices interwoven within the multicultural fabric of the festival.

Throughout the week-long program, students benefit  from a series of masterclasses focused on the holistic development of an artist. 

 

Some courses include:

  • Sound from Breath

  • Listening as an Approach to Learning

  • Playing with Ease (Tension-Free)

  • Rhythm as Language and Gesture

  • Pedagogy for Teachers

  • The Art of Practice

  • It’s Electric! An Introduction to Electroacoustics

Visit www.kenyaninternationalcellofestival.com to learn more.

THE OPUS I NFT COLLECTION

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SOLD OUT

RHAPSODY 254: the first photography NFT collaboration between Opus 1 Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization transforming communities and combating global issues via the arts, and photographer Achilleas Manolis.

 

Inspired by music’s ability to draw light into the darkest of spaces, this nine piece collection offers an intimate view into the world of Ghetto Classics -- an arts education program focused on empowering Kenyan youth living in underserved, impoverished communities. 

 

Each piece in the RHAPSODY 254 collection represents an exclusive digital offering by limited quantity: only 10 mints will ever be issued per item. The collection is to be released weekly in sets of three beginning on Wednesday, February 16th, 2022 at noon EST on Opensea.io/collection/rhapsody254. Initial pricing will start at 0.02 ETH or approximately $60 USD. To reserve an item prior to its public release, you may do so via e-mail request to: contact@opus1foundation.org

 

100% of funds received from the RHAPSODY 254 collection will go towards the purchase and shipment of educational instruments & materials for the students of the Ghetto Classics program in Kenya via the Opus 1 Foundation. 

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CELLOS FOR A CAUSE LIVESTREAM

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 2ND, 2021 | 2 PM EST • 11 AM PST

Join some of the world’s preeminent cellists online as we support our Kenyan colleagues.

 

Meet our students from the Korogocho Slum in Nairobi while learning about the upcoming Kenya International Cello Festival.

 

Performances and discussions from these cellists and more!

 

All donations for Ghetto Classics students are tax-deductible via Opus 1 Foundation.

If you would like to donate towards Ghetto Classics & the Kenya International Cello Festival, click the 'donate' button above. For seat reservations, click to book via cellos4acause.org

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OPUS 1 X ACHILLEAS MANOLIS

AN EXCLUSIVE PHOTOGRAPHY COLLECTION
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In January 2018, Photographer ACHILLEAS MANOLIS accompanied the Opus 1 Foundation on a trip to Nairobi to capture their arts education project in Korogocho, one of the world's largest and most dangerous slums, with the Art of Music Foundation.

           It was in the darkness they discovered; art is the light of the soul.

The Kenya: Volume 1 collection is presented as a  selection of individual black & white prints and in its entirely as a limited edition hardcover book.

Visit SHOP to learn more.

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ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN COMPETITION

YOUNG ARCHITECTS SHARE THEIR VISION FOR THE REDEVELOPMENT OF ST. JOHN'S CENTRE & DANDORA LANDFILL
Led by Architects Without Borders (AUG) & Orchid Studio in Nairobi, young architectural students in Nairobi participated in a design competition and workshop centered around the redevelopment of St. John's Centre & Dandora Landfill in Korogocho. While all submissions were excellent, we'd like to congratulate Team Light on their innovative & highly-sustainable winning design.

The winning team's design will be incorporated into the master plan for the compound.
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KOROGOCHO • 2019

OPUS 1 FOUNDATION & ARCHITECTS WITHOUT BORDERS HEAD INTO THE DANDORA LANDFILL
How did this get here?  In June 2019, we embarked upon a special study trip with Architects Without Borders and Art of Music Kenya Foundation to answer just that: How did the Dandora Landfill come to be and how has it managed to dominate the lives of neighboring inhabitants along its borders. Officially shut down by the government due to overflow several years back, illegal dumping operations run by local cartels continue through to today. Workers and their families rely heavily upon daily scavenging activities, where their hopes of finding discarded items of value runs high, and the incentive of having merchandise for local street markets means the possibility of having just enough to support their needs... for that one day. 

Most who enter the dumpsite never leave it. With limited access to quality education and extreme poverty within local communities, there are few choices which lie outside that of a future of scavenging in the Dandora Landfill. It's a future we are looking to change, however. Our joint project with Art of Music Kenya, Architects Without Borders and UN Development -- The Mwanga Centre -- looks to provide residents of these impoverished communities with the knowledge, skills and tools to break the socioeconomic cycle of dumpsite dependency. For good.

 
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OPUS 1 X HUMMEL

OPUS 1 & CHANGING THE WORLD THROUGH BALLET
Opus 1 Ambassador & Officer, Holly Dorger Larsen, joins Hummel Sport for their #LoveAthlete  2019 campaign and shares below how she seeks to change the world through ballet.
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OPUS 1 X HÜBBERIET 2018

THE FOUNDATION PRESENTS ITS PROJECTS AT THE DANISH ROYAL THEATER IN COPENHAGEN

Opus 1 Founder, Christopher Coritsidis and Artist Ambassador, Holly Dorger, perform and present the foundation's mission on the Old Stage at the Royal Theater with host, Nikolaj Hübbe, Artistic Director of the Royal Danish Ballet during the 2018 Hübberiet Festival.

Opus 1 Grundlægger, Christopher Coritsidis og Artist Ambassador, Holly Dorger Larsen, var vært for en præsentation af projektet på Det Gamle Scene på Det Kongelige Teater med værten, Nikolaj Hübbe, kunstnerisk direktør for Royal Danish Ballet under Hübberiet Festival 2018.

KOROGOCHO • 2018

THE TEAM RETURNS TO KENYA FOR PROJECT DEVELOPMENT & A MASTERCLASS SERIES

Opus 1 returned to Kenya in January 2018 to begin working with the Art of Music Foundation on their joint venture, 'The Mwanga Centre', a four-point education compound within  in the informal settlement of Korogocho. The team held masterclasses for the young musicians & dancers of the Ghetto Classics program, surveyed land plots, and collected data via forums conducted in partnership with community leaders on the future centre.

We are sharing below a few moments captured on our trip by Photographer Achilleas Manolis.

GALA 2016•NAIROBI

AN EVENING OF MUSIC, DANCE & PHILANTHROPY AT KENYA'S NATIONAL THEATRE

In partnership with the Art of Music Foundation, the Opus 1 Foundation presents its first benefit gala event at Kenya's National Theatre in Nairobi on August 25th, 2016. Featuring the outstanding Artist Ambassadors of Opus 1's August Residency, Violinist Christopher CORITSIDIS & Pianist Jorge VILADOMS return in performance with international soprano, Anastasiya ROYTMAN, and Lázsló KUTI, Principal Clarinetist of the Munich Philharmonic. Principal Dancers of the Royal Danish Ballet, Ulrik BIRKKJÆR and Holly DORGER, perform together on this special evening of music, dance and charity. Scenography by Geoffroy DUVAL.

Proceeds of the 2016 Gala are to be donated to the Art of Music Foundation

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