Ron Davis Alvarez: New life through music “We all need to learn from each other. We are an orchestra for everyone.” Alvarez grew up in the favelas of Caracas, Venezuela. At 10, he joined El Sistema, a globally acclaimed program providing free classical music training to children from under-resourced communities. “I fell in love with music from my first class,” he said. By 14, he was teaching classes; by 16, he was conducting. Eventually, Alvarez worked for El Sistema to help spread their innovative teaching methods worldwide. It was this work that led him to first visit Sweden in 2015. Alvarez was in Stockholm just as unprecedented numbers of refugees were arriving in the country, most from Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan. He was struck by their plight and wanted to help. After moving to Gothenburg the following year, he created a music group for refugees and started with 13 students. He knew playing…
