The Orquestra dos Navegadores (ON) emerged as a response to the need identified by Oeiras Town Council and CLS to develop a social inclusion project through art, specifically music. Its aim is to promote social inclusion and access to musical culture, safeguarding the development and integration of children and young people from vulnerable backgrounds, through innovative and creative pedagogical initiatives.

The classes are part of a free, open enrollment programme. Every week, around 80 children from Bairro dos Navegadores and Agrupamento de Escolas Aquilino Ribeiro in Porto Salvo take part in activities developed in their own schools, as well as in various internships organised at OCP’s headquarters in Algés.

The workshops are divided into various stages – body awareness, ensemble and tutti rehearsals, choir and music theory – and therefore promote the development of musical skills, access to music and art, as well as establishing links with admirable musicians and composers. It is through the Orquestra dos Navegadores that these children find a free environment to express their creativity and develop individual and social skills.