The Film

One cannot only hear with one’s ears. Some people feel the sounds with their skin or with their hearts because their sense of hearing doesn’t function. In the Venezuelan city of Barquisimeto, deaf children not only learn how to play instruments, but also how to sing in sign language. Most of the pupils come from poor surroundings and are educated to be musicians within the scope of a social project.
The fact that the children do not hear voices is only one of the many handicaps when one lives at the edge of society. However, at the music school they discover a world that is open to each one of them.
The film observes the everyday lives and development of its protagonists in a precise and intimate way. Music as the way out and as a chance for those who practice it.
There is 10-year-old Anibal from Maracy, who, according to his father, is the “best trumpeter” in all of Venezuela and for whom music has become a vitally important anchor in life.
Likewise for Leonardo, a coffee farmer from the mountains near the city of Barquismeto: Far from any type of civilization, his Andean harp offers him the only possibility to lend intensive expressions to his feelings.
Then we come full circle with Luis Alfredo: Raised in the slums of Caracas, he has already made a breakthrough and can earn money from his music, lead an independent life and support his family. Luis tours with the National Youth Orchestra all over the whole world.