Anna Turowska
Recently, I have watched Les Choristes, a film by Christophe Barratier. In summary, the film tells the story of a music teacher Clément Mathieu who is unemployed and takes a position as a supervisor in a boys' boarding school called Fond de l'Étang. When Mathieu faces the intolerant and highly repressive system of this establishment, he decides to give music lessons to the boys. This quickly changes their lives as well as their attitudes towards happiness. In the context of this issue’s title relating to happiness, I wanted to dedicate this article to the role of music in our daily joy and the healing power of music.
The children in this boarding school are unhappy; they often come from poor and complicated families or have simply lost their parents. When they find themselves in an institution that does not treat them as individuals with different stories, but rather as uneducated and uncultured beings who should be disciplined through inhumane means, no one can blame them for not being perfect. This is precisely what Clément Mathieu realizes upon arriving at the institution. Acknowledging this fact, he decides to start teaching choir classes to the boys. At first, they do not take him seriously, mocking what they call a "stupid" act. However, their attitude towards these classes quickly changes. The boys begin to look forward to and enjoy the lessons as they make them feel calm when they sing. The choir brings them together, connects them, and creates human relationships they have never known before. One of the most visible examples of this transformation in the film is the character of Pierre Morhange. Pierre is a rather quiet and shy child who is very unhappy. Thanks to Clément Mathieu and his constant support, Pierre slowly regains hope. Overall, the film represents the power that music has over us as humans. We often find ourselves in unimaginable situations where we see no way out of our despair. Music, whether played by us or simply listened to, sometimes has the power to pull us out of total hopelessness.
I deeply recommend that everyone watch this poignant film. Not only is the music extraordinary and touching, but the acting is also of very high quality, and the story itself is very important in the context of discussions about educational problems and how we might address them.
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