Child band hits high notes with instruments made from garbage

Their music is not rubbish, but their instruments are. Ten primary school pupils are striking a chord with their talent and ingenuity. In a group appropriately named Recycle Band, they make melodies from discarded garbage. Based in Xiamen of East China's Fujian province, the band is establishing a name for itself and has been invited to perform at a major national event: the Midi Kids Band Competition-for children from 6 to 17 years old-to be held in September and October in Beijing this year.

The annual event is organized by Beijing Midi School of Music, one of the first contemporary music schools in China.

The young members of the Recycle Band have known each other since kindergarten while living with their families in the faculty dormitory of Xiamen University.

Adults helped realize the children's dreams. Chen Yixin, a die-hard music lover, guided them to establish the band, in which his 8-year-old son, Chen Muyuan, plays percussion.

And now for the rubbish that gave the band its beat. Back in 2017, a corner of the lawn near the dormitory building was piled high with trash-paper, cardboard, plastic and other junk that had been discarded by families redecorating their homes.

Gao Ye, a student of contemporary art at the university, along with Chen Yixin noticed the mess and decided to decorate the lawn with items made from the garbage.

The triangular lawn, less than five square meters, soon became a popular spot for the children living on campus. College students too appreciated it. It became a favored spot to socialize and soon films were being screened there and other activities were held.

Gao, who is good with his hands, turned some of the garbage into musical instruments and showed the inquisitive children how to make percussion instruments out of bottles and boxes.

"These kids were so happy that they could help make these instruments, and they began to hit them with little sticks, so we thought why not form a band," recalls Chen.

"The children are all neighbors and friends, and they love to play music together," says Chen, whose grandfather was a teacher at the university and he himself runs a local hostel.

The children were then divided into three groups based on the sound they made from the "musical instruments". This in turn attracted more attention and soon music majors from the college, including a violin player, lent their expertise. The children simply loved playing music together, as Chen observed.