Benefit Concert for Ukrainian Youth
Sponsored by
Beneficiary
A joint report by Event Planning Director Jan-Philip Buecker and Founder & General Director Lena Kruse
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As we sit down to pen this report on the impact and also the meticulous planning that led to the charity concert at the Friedenskirche on September 9th, 2023, we are once again filled with a profound sense of gratitude towards the numerous music enthusiasts (visitors and performers alike).
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The German Umbrella Organization for Psychotherapy shared our belief in the aiding power of music and has funded this event. Each and every one of the new and familiar faces at the concert contributed to making it a huge success. To honor the supporters of our cause, we'd like to share our reflections.
Helpfulness may also have a fragile side to it, but the extreme opposite is what we witnessed on September 9th. Over 100 people came together to support inclusion and psychosocial support – a need that has not diminished in the slightest. We primarily intended to raise awareness about the importance of inclusion offerings similar to those that our own organization provides through its music inclusion project funded by the German Umbrella Organization of Psychotherapy.
But we truly underestimated the generosity and benevolence of our Hannover community, which donated over a thousand euros to Ukrainian youth in a single concert evening. These donations support our collaborating non-profit, ProZukunft e.V., which provides German language lessons to prepare students for their new school environment in Germany.
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Why does it matter to support inclusion for Ukrainian youth in Germany? How can the German courses from ProZukunft e.V. and the inclusive music groups organized by Ukraine Spectrum of Youth contribute to said cause? Our founder, performer, and moderator brought all the necessary words to the ears of the audience, yet without music to go with them, their impact would not have unfolded in the way it has.
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Members of the USOY Project Team after a successful evening (left to right):
Constantin Vatis, Julia Münther, Lena Kruse, Stefanie Liu, Jan-Philip Buecker, Robin Söhle
Lena Kruse (Piano, Moderator, 18)
Planning our charity event together as a team has been a memorable, sometimes challenging, but all the more insightful journey. On concert day, our permanent project team at Ukraine Spectrum of Youth expanded to nine helpers and a dozen musicians, all from various backgrounds, including Ukraine and Russia.
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The idea of hosting a charity concert was unsurprisingly fast to get to us – almost everyone in our organization has a history of performing music after all. The inviting atmosphere of the Friedenskirche offered us the perfect location: easily accessible, wonderful acoustics, and rooms exclusively for the performers.
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After setting up the location and artists weeks prior to the concert, all that was left was reaching out to the audience. Strategic planning and research led us to many kinds of advertisements. Designing and authoring flyers, posters, and social media posts, passing the printed materials down to many eager helpers in our community at school and around for distribution, as well as convincing the newspaper Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung (HAZ) and the TV/radio station h1 to advertise the event, proved to be successful when we quickly had to put up additional chairs in the venue as people kept pouring in.
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When selecting the artists, we kept the resulting musical program as diverse as possible in both instruments and music. It was a mix of piano, string instruments, and even vocal music. This careful design was an intense journey through time and through different lives; each new piece of music and each new musical personality or story added one more color that made the evening so unique, not only reportedly for many visitors but also for all the helping participants.
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The journey entailed everything from classical music to Ukrainian folk songs and a contemporary composition by cello and jazz performer Yuma Kruse (20). His piece, “Childish Dreams", noticeably captivated the whole audience with rich harmonies that reminded us of simpler times and what a privilege it is to just be a child.
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Being an organization that addresses the consequences of the Russian-Ukrainian war, we were happy to invite 18 year old vocalist Sofie Thomas, who offered to share a part of Ukrainian culture in the form of a mesmerizing, soul-touching performance of Чорнобривці - Chornobrivtsi (Marigold) and other famous Ukrainian folk songs.
Florian Albrecht (Piano, 20) & Yuma Kruse (Cello, 20)
Perry Kufferath (Piano, 18) & Sofie Thomas (Vocal, 18)
Looking back, the charity concert demonstrated the great power that is created when music meets community support and effective planning. All the funds we raised will have a meaningful impact on our Ukrainian friends and peers. This report serves as a comprehensive record and a testament to the potential for inevitable future endeavors.
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Ukraine Spectrum of Youth and ProZukunft e.V. extend their gratitude to everyone who showed their support! We look forward to reuniting with our supporters in the future.