All media c/o of Side by Side
All change
This year's Side by Side broke new ground in a somewhat different fashion to previous years. Where past Side by Side camps have pre-eminently caught the eye with their numerical superlatives, this year, the team found themselves unexpectedly piloting a new approach.
Adapting to the difficult circumstances with which we are all now so familiar, Side by Side 2020 reduced physical attendance to a core team of locally-based, socially-distancing participants and opened itself up to an even wider audience than seen in the past via a digital incarnation of the programme.
While the visual pomp of the massed rows of young musicians in Gothenburg's Scandinavium was, therefore, not repeated, we were instead treated to a perhaps even more innovative, and certainly more international, camp than seen in previous years.
Watch Shaka's video postcard from Nairobi, Kenya
Side by Side: Digital not only managed to put together a platform capable of hosting a remarkable 700+ participants in the shortest of time frames, it also managed to reach out worldwide. While Side by Side has always been keen to encourage international participation, this year's camp arguably gained more reach than ever before, welcoming young musicians from more than 30 different countries, including many outside of Europe and plenty of those represented by Sistema Europe programmes across the continent.
Retaining all of the key ingredients that have made the analogue camps such a great success, the digital Side by Side also brought new elements into the mix, providing, amongst others, glimpses into participants' lives, inspirational guest concerts, musical programming exercises, social inclusion seminars, yoga, salsa & danceoke workshops, fantasy instrument building and numerous creative challenges.
See some of the fantasy instruments created
(within the welcome to day four video, with video postcards & challenge responses from day three)
And, while physical interaction had to be kept to a minimum, social interaction wasn't to fall short, with an integrated chat function ensuring that many aspects of the vibrant, multilingual, peer assistance-based exchanges that exemplify international Sistema events remained.
More than 2,000 participant videos sent in
Similarly, while the numbers on stage were necessarily somewhat smaller than in previous years, the numbers surrounding the performances and teaching material flowing through Side by Sides's swiftly-constructed media servers certainly bore comparison. Side by Side itself created 130 films and short clips in cooperation with educators and musicians from around the world and an impressive 2,000+ videos were then sent in by participants.
The highlight of the camp was undoubtedly the festival concert, whose own highlight was the digital concert of an adapted version of The Lion King's Circle of Life. Produced in record time, this concert included a massive amount of clips from the camp's young participants and was a fantastic example of the inclusive, international spirit of Sistema, drawing in both viewers and musicians from across the world.
Watch the live digital concert!
Click here to watch the whole festival concert with the preamble
With such a huge amount of material being sent in in such a short amount of time, not all the clips were able to be processed in time to be included in the live Circle of Life premiere on the 16th June, but a special, extended, director's cut, edition is in production as we speak and this will endeavour to include everyone who took part. So, follow Side by Side on Facebook to ensure you don't miss the video's publication!
How did Side by Side: Digital come about and what can we expect from Side by Side going forwards?
Side by Side: Digital was, like so many of our new online ventures, a child of its time. 2020 started with the team planning for a physically-attended camp in Gothenburg with some 2,500 participants. Yet, gradually, the realisation hit home that there would be considerable restrictions on the number of children that could be involved and that many would not even be able to get to Gothenburg in the first place.
As the situation developed, the camp's organisers were suddenly faced with a big decision at the start of April: shall we postpone the camp or can we find an alternative way of putting it on that ensures the continued good health of all our participants?
Looking back in conversation with the Swedish publication, it-pedagogen, Terese Mörtvik recently reflected upon both the uncertainty of that period and the team's own sense of clarity regarding how to proceed:
We had no idea how things would look in June regarding restrictions and the spread of the disease, but, at the same time, we knew how many participants were looking forward to the camp. A digital solution of some kind felt like the only reasonable alternative.
Side by Side Communicator, Terese Mörtvik
Luckily, the organising team at the GSO (Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra) had already gained plenty of experience of putting on digital live events and had been wanting to expand its approach to Side by Side for some time. Thus, it wasn't long before planning began and a clear idea was formulated about the way forwards.
In the last weeks of April, students were consulted, external experts at &friends and Midnight Machine were brought on board to brainstorm possibilities and, soon, a platform started to emerge that could look to replicate some of the atmosphere and energy of the analogue Side by Side learning environment.
A glimpse of the many activities available on day threeSee the different activities on day three
Put your cursor over the image to activate itTap on the image to activate it
Thanks to a design sprint methodology, prior digital production experience and a dedicated team, the Side by Side: Digital platform was ultimately created in just a few weeks, but it will be around for much longer and will remain online over the rest of the summer holidays before then returning in a new guise in 2021. Therefore, if you registered for this year's digital camp, be sure to use the rest of August to log back in and take advantage of some of the many features that you might have missed over the course of the actual camp's intensive long weekend.
Following the summer, the platform will then be reviewed and enhanced on the basis of participants' feedback, as Side by Side aspire to host a dual digital/non-digital camp in Gothenburg's 400th anniversary year in 2021.
So, practise both your instruments and your camera skills as at least part of this year's digital Side by Side is here to stay!
Want to find out more about Side by Side and the teams that made Side by Side: Digital possible?
Below you can find links to Side by Side's online platforms as well as to the IT and design companies involved in making the digital platform such a success. Click on the relevant icons to keep up-to-date with Side by Side activities or if you are, for example, planning a new digital adventure of your own:
Side by Side by El Sistema Sweden
https://www.sidebysidegoteborg.com/sidebysidegoteborg.com
https://www.instagram.com/sidebysidebyelsistema/instagram.com/sidebysidebyelsistema
https://www.facebook.com/sidebysidebyelsistema/facebook.com/sidebysidebyelsistema
https://www.youtube.com/channel/sidebysidegoteborgyoutube.com/sidebysidegoteborg
&friends
https://andfriends.se/andfriends.se
Midnight Machines
https://midnightmachines.io/midnightmachines.io