Building on the Démos-Mel project launched by the Philharmonie de Paris and rolled out in the Lille area by the Orchestre National de   Lille and the Métropole Européenne de Lille, OPUS Réseau Démos is an educational initiative centred on collective music-making and modelled on the symphony orchestra.

OPUS opens the world of classical music to children through its repertoire and range of instruments. The geographical areas selected to implement the project coincide with those qualifying for social and urban regeneration programmes. The focus of the project is therefore to provide access to music for seven to nine-year-olds living in disadvantaged areas.

This intensive work enables children to take part in regular and long-term music practice supported by an educational framework requiring diligence, rigour, concentration, and the capacity for expression, which will help them flourish within the group. Backed by experience acquired running the Démos-MEL project with the Orchestre National deLille from 2017 to 2022, OPUS is grounded in a working relationship between music teachers and social workers, which is fundamental to the project’s success.

In partnership with the Métropole Européenne de Lille and the Philharmonie de Paris, the Orchestre National de Lille pursues its musical and instrumental training projects with an exceptional opportunity for young musicians to gain orchestral experience, the Orchestre  Métropolitain des Jeunes (OMJ). Originating from Démos, the OMJ is a socio-cultural development programme involving 85 pupils from partner music schools, some of whom played in the Orchestre Démos-MEL from 2017 to 2022. The youth orchestra provides young people in the region with a wonderful opportunity to come together and rehearse symphonic works with renowned conductors.

Diversity in age, background, level, and repertoire is core to the OMJ, but also to the teaching methods used to attain its high musical standard. Such diversity is also reflected in the team of artistic coaches from the MEL’s partner towns, which includes dancers, choir masters, and students in conducting, who receive valuable training thanks to the project. Admission to the orchestra is free of charge and open to young musicians aged 10 to 17 in their 1^st  and 2^nd cycles at the project’s partner music schools. Orchestral courses take place during the school holidays and will end with a concert in the Nouveau Siècle’s Jean-Claude Casadesus Auditorium on 4 May at 5pm.