Events
Two great moments
They are Ugandans. Born in the north of the country, a region marked for decades by the murderous madness of a mystical guerrilla war, led by Joseph Kony and his Lord's Resistance Army, the LRA.
As a result of this warlike violence, children are left behind: abandoned by their fleeing families, former child soldiers, children born from rape, direct or indirect victims of this guerrilla war which ended in 2018...
60 young people, currently being cared for by a Ugandan NGO "Exile Uganda" . It is with this NGO that the association "Voix sans Frontières" has implemented a vocal resilience program.
For 5 years, French choir directors have been teaching the technique of a cappella singing to these young people. From this joint work, a choir was born. Just like the desire to show what they can do.
From June 29 to 5 July 2022
A tour in France, “The song of possibilities”
Singing, an intercultural tool / Ten young people have been selected for 2022. They are between 16 and 21 years old and have a strong desire to share their history, their joy, and their music with young French people.
A traveling concert in France, from East to West / The young Ugandans were welcomed by the Gospels Kids and the Main du Cœur association (in Strasbourg), by the children of Auteuil (in Colmar), by the School Orchestra (at the Massy Opera) and by the Rotary Club of Rennes with whom they shared rehearsals and concerts.
This intercultural exchange is the other essential point of this tour.
To make these meetings constructive, moments of exchange were on the program to share their music and discover each other's culture.
A big thank you to our partners
Without you, these photos would not have existed. Without you, these young Ugandans would not have experienced these great moments of joy, which are the concerts, the meetings and the sharing with other young people from a culture different from theirs! An initiatory journey for most of them, who discovered that changing the angle of one's perception means changing one's life. When at the end of their stay, we asked them what had surprised them the most, what was our astonishment! No... it was not the plane, which they had never taken before, nor the TGV, nor the metro... What disconcerted them the most, It’s the taste of water!
In each town, the taste of the water is different and has nothing to do with that brought from the well by Ugandan women. So let's hope that next year we can introduce them to water from other French regions!
Past events
The Kampala adventure
The children give a concert in Kampala in the presence of Eddy Kenzo
A concert, an event for these children who had never been to Kampala, the capital of Uganda!
Thanks to the French Ambassador, Madame Stéphanie Rivoal and the French school of Kampala, a concert was organized in the presence of the star of Ugandan origin Eddy Kenzo.
A moment of sharing and intense joy for these children and for the Voix sans Frontières team.
Between courses and workshops
LIRA • Rehabilitation Center / Continuation of internships with former “child soldiers” from the NGO “Children of Peace”.
BIDI-BIDI • South Sudanese refugee camp / Opening of a workshop in the Bidi-Bidi camp.
June 2019 • Concerts in the Bidi-Bidi and Lira camp.
Return to Uganda
After two years of interruption due to Covid, the children's joy at seeing us again and singing again with the choir directors of “Voix sans Frontières” The emotion was there!
After a week of rehearsals at an intense pace with
the children at LIRA, here they are ready to experience this great adventure.
D-Day. Up at the crack of dawn, they are all there, impatient, ready to board a bus for the first time in their lives! A festive, electrifying atmosphere. They sing until they collapse from exhaustion, and they sing again and again.
Arriving at night. We discovered their rooms in a university residence hall, generously provided by the Mayor of Kampala. A startling discovery: water gushing from the ceiling… a shower! A short night, then off to the concert venue. Eddy Kenzo, the Ugandan star, had come all the way from the United States. He made both his staff and all his equipment available to us.
Rehearsals.
The children put on their "stage costumes"—T-shirts and scarves in the colors of the Ugandan and French flags that we brought them. Everything is there, nothing is missing: a huge stage, tracks of spotlights, a sound system worthy of a star, and AN AUDIENCE! These children, initially outcasts of society, rejected, devalued, and despised, find themselves facing an audience that applauds them and begs for more. And then Eddy Kenzo arrives and gives them the spotlight. And they sing together. And they dance together. And they are happy together. The next day, thanks to the French Ambassador in Kampala, the delighted children have the opportunity to visit their country's Parliament. What a wealth of discoveries… the bus, the capital, rooms with bathrooms and " SHOWERS ," a captivated audience, applause, and RECOGNITION! A magnificent human adventure! That's it… resilience through collective singing.
We all wish this night wouldn't end...
