This project is framed inside a cooperation that has taken place between both schools, Gymnázium Jihlava and IES Valle del Arlanza, for 5 years without interruption. After starting contact through a Bilateral Comenius Project in 2009, it was followed by a Comenius Students Mobility for two school years, with very successful results. Due to these good results, both schools have decided to keep on cooperating with a wider project. This project will be around two of the most emblematic musicians in the surroundings of the schools: Gustav Mahler and Antonio de Cabezón. With them, it is intended to make participants and general audience aware of the importance of music in general, and of both musicians in particular. In a general way, we intend to reach some very ambitious goals: preparing music performances, recording of performances, preparing simultaneous cultural activities to the concerts which widen the importance of both musicians, publishing materials and improving linguistic competences in Czech, Spanish and English. This will motivate the musical link of two countries and towns which, aparently, have no common nexus, but with a similar procedure, which strengthens the idea of European citizenship. Some way or other, all the students and teachers of both schools will take part in the project. Nevertheless, in a direct way, we can say that there will be 6 teachers in charge, 12 students who will take part in a long-term mobility (3 months) and 40 students who will join a short-term mobility (8 days). These will be the ones who will directly work on the topic of the project and the ones who will be responsible for its development and dissemination. A big number of activities will be programmed to get the objectives of the project, such as concerts in the school and also open to the general public, exhibitions of educational materials related with both musicians, delivering of DVDs with the performed activities, publishing of leaflets and posters, collaboration with local and regional museums about the musicians, visits to different museums related with music in general and with both musicians in particular. The methodology to be used will be, mainly, participative. Our intention is to make the students the main actors of the project, and they will develop, study, exhibit and disseminate the materials. Teachers will be the students' coordinators and guides, and the general audience will also benefit from the final results. There will also be a systematic and regular evaluation of the development of the project, to modify or correct those aspects which don't work correctly. As final results, on the material side, we will get diverse educational disseminating material based on the lives and work of Gustav Mahler and Antonio de Cabezón, which can be used both by the participating schools and for other schools or local and regional institutions. On the personal side, both students, teachers and people in general are intended to appreciate music and, specially, the work of these two musicians. So, our students will get a better musical training, taste for art and music and the habit of group-work.
The project has been created due to four years lasting successful cooperation with the school in Lerma (Spain). Both schools ended bilateral project Comenius – Projects of School’s Partnership in 2011. The main speaking language was English and the topic: CS-wec – Czechspain: walking towards European citizenship. Within the next cooperation at project Comenius – IMP in 2012-2014 we used Spanish as the main language. Accepting Challenge 2014 within Erasmus+, KA2, was an occasion for continuing at cooperation for coordinators of both schools. We used our gained experiences in the new project and kept on organizing long-term study mobilities of pupils. Then we used gained grant resources to work on a common topic – music. Students of Gymnázium Jihlava acquainted Spanish audience with Czech music, the personality of Gustav Mahler and songs, dances and costumes of Horácko region during short-term exchanges of pupils. Spanish students introduced to us the personality of a renaissance composer and organist Antonio de Cabezón, who comes from the region of Burgos, and then some typical regional music, costumes and dances. Transnational project meetings of involved teachers were focused on preparing all planned activities and musical appearances and also disseminate knowledge about project Erasmus+ and activities of involved schools. An important objective was also to improve language competences of all involved students and teachers. Two schools joined this project - Gymnázium Jihlava, Jihlava, Czech Republic, and IES Valle del Arlanza, Lerma, Spain. Gymnázium Jihlava, is situated in the city of Jihlava, capital of Vysočina Region and has been established for one hundred years. Almost 800 students study in four-, six-, eight-year and special four-year sport study programs these days. English language is compulsory for every student. Each student must also choose a second foreign language (German, Spanish, French or Russian). Students can also choose from a wide range of optional subjects. All study programs are finished with a maturita-exam, where students pass through exams in several subjects. After grammar school, students usually continue to university. The school also has its own choir called Hudební sdružení Gymnázia Jihlava, which was founded in 1997. The choir has about 40 members between 12-19 years of age nowadays. Students from this choir took part in Erasmus+ together with other students, who study Spanish language. IES Valle del Arlanza is located in Lerma, province of Burgos, region of Castille and León. This school has got less than 300 students between 12-18 years old. The study is divided in two parts: obligatory high school education for students between 12 and 16. This part is obligatory for everyone and then it is possible to continue with two years of voluntary studies which end with a final exam. The education plan consists of obligatory subjects (Spanish, Mathematics, Science, History, English) and a few different optional subjects from which every student makes his own education plan. According to this subjects the student continues in studying at university or a vocational school. In the Erasmus+ program students 15-18 years old took part. The project has implemented the following activities: Long-term study mobility of pupils - a three-month stay in a host family, learning at the partner school, improving language skills, opportunity to learn life and study in a foreign country, participation in the the project topic - presentation about music, country, culture, customs etc. for students from the host school, moderating of concerts, common performances and workshops with students of both schools, participation in extracurricular activities, a visit of places that are connected with the topic of the project, interpreting during the common activities. Short-term exchanges of pupils and accompanying persons - work on the project topic, presentations, performances, workshops, a visit of places that are connected with the topic of the project, improving language skills. Transnational project meetings -preparation of activities for the short-term exchanges of pupils and accompanying persons, spreading awareness about the project Erasmus + and about activities of involved schools. Results and effect of project: - Logo and website, channel on YouTube - Posters and programs for concerts - Presentations about G. Mahler and A. de Cabezón - DVD from the concerts in Lerma and Jihlava - Worksheets for workshop about G. Mahler in Muzeum of Vysočina region - Banners of A. de Cabezón´s life and work, Spanish Empire and Spanish Baroque Culture - Art face of Smetana´s Vltava (common workshops) - Portraits of A. de Cabezón made during the concerts and presentations in Jihlava - Common musical performance and workshops - Double DVD from both concerts - Photobook - Document Europass-mobility for students integrated in Long-term study mobility - Improvement of language competence and knowledge on IT