Paul Nnaoji and Michelle Golden are students from the global entertainment and music business graduate program at Berklee’s Valencia campus.
Almost ten months ago, over 150 students from 35 different countries, came together to attend various Master’s programs at Berklee College of Music, Valencia campus. We didn’t know what to expect — some of us were fresh out of college, while others had a few years of experience under our belts. But we came to Valencia, Spain — from various parts of the world — to explore our passion within the music industry. As the spring semester comes to a close, we sit here and write filled with more knowledge, experience, and guidance as to what comes next. In the spirit of this year’s TEDxBerkleeValencia event, which took place on April 25, 2015 at L’Oceanogràfic themed Changing Currents, the idea of change is one that every student at Berklee is rather familiar with, and one that we all faced head on when we came to Spain in August.
Thirteen speakers came together from all over the world for one afternoon to speak on what changing currents means to them for the second edition of TEDxBerkleeValencia. The mission of TED is to share ideas worth spreading. Each speaker — whether it was internationally-renowned body activist and model Ashley Graham speaking about the power of loving yourself, to Hannah Fraser, ocean activist and freelance mermaid from Australia speaking on how she’s turned her underwater childhood fantasy into reality, to Berklee Valencia Master’s student, Alán Hensley speaking on the importance of encouraging children to embrace adversity as assets, each speaker shared something so invaluable with an awed audience.
Inspiring talks poured forth one after another. Carmen Pellicer Iborra spoke on the changes needed in the education systems of the world. Damian Draghici recounted his life story as an aspiring musician turned elected official; and each story left the audience with a sense that situations of perceived difficulty existed only to be surmounted.
In today’s world, change is inevitable. The industry we’ve decided to pursue in some capacity, is one that is ever-changing. How can we embrace this volatility? What changes do we want to see? How do these fluctuations interact with one another? How can we make good change — in a world that faces so much adversity?
Our answer: by embracing it.
As the second edition of TEDxBerkleeValencia draws to a close, we are once again reminded of the power of the convergence of ideas, and its ability to affect meaningful change. We witnessed Nicolas Schipper, a Music Business Master student seamlessly blend his talents on the bagpipes with Kareem Clarke an MTI student with the scratch skills of a budding master. The synergy was a reminder of the power of diversity, and the unique felicity that can be achieved when differing peoples come together united by a desire to create, unrestrained by the fear of the unknown. Changing currents is all about going into the untread waters armed with one thing. Passion. That passion was evident at the second installment of TEDxBerkleeValencia. We are all thrilled to have been apart of something so special.
- Embracing Change in a Changing World - May 15, 2015
- AM Agency X Le Musee Passager - April 28, 2015
- Music Business Seminar – Leo Nascimento: Brazil Music Market Ambassador - March 13, 2015
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