Orchestrating dreams, nurturing talents
In the heart of Brazil's northeastern hinterland, 50 girls are learning violin, viola, and cello — writing an unprecedented chapter in the history of education in Brazil.
Students, teachers, instruments, and the orchestra born in Brazil's northeastern hinterland — in under two minutes.
Students, teachers, and the music that transforms — straight from the Seridó.
My race: an emotional journey
Violin, viola, cello: discipline for the future
Violin: a passion that spreads positivity
A project that transforms lives: music at school
A project teacher: my journey
Music: transforming children and Brazil
girls in the String Orchestra
children reached
concerts in 2024–2025
year the project began
The name is no accident. "Brazilian Shift" is a cello technique invented by the maestro Aldo Parisot, born in Rio Grande do Norte — an innovation that transformed how the instrument is played around the world.
Just as the technique transformed the cello, the Institute uses music to transform lives. Not merely teaching notes: awakening talents, strengthening values, and expanding horizons in the heart of northeastern Brazil.
"Just as the technique transformed the way the instrument is played, our mission is to transform lives through music."
Aldo Parisot (1918–2018) was born in Natal, Rio Grande do Norte. He became the longest-serving faculty member in the history of Yale University and a professor at the Juilliard School. His students hold positions in the world's leading orchestras and universities.
The Parisot family supports the project that bears his name — bringing back to Rio Grande do Norte the center of musical excellence he always dreamed of building in his homeland.
Founder and Mentor of the Aldo Parisot Project · Cultural Advisor to the Institute
Cellist and professor at the UFRN School of Music (EMUFRN), Fabio Presgrave is the visionary behind the Aldo Parisot Project. He conceived the initiative to bring string instrument education to the interior of Rio Grande do Norte, bridging the academic excellence of UFRN with the communities of the Seridó region.
As Associate Director of EMUFRN, Presgrave oversees the academic dimension of the project, ensuring the pedagogical rigor that shapes not only musicians, but citizens. The focus on female leadership and alignment with UN SDG 5 is central to his vision.
"The project aims not only to emphasize music, but the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, especially SDG 5 — Gender Equality." Fabio Presgrave, founder of the Aldo Parisot Project
Instituto Brazilian Shift is led by professionals committed to social transformation through music.
President
Vice President and Secretary General
Cultural Advisor
Compliance Advisor
International Advisor
Advisor
Advisor
Fiscal Advisor
The first-ever violin, viola, and cello education program in the cities of Caicó and Currais Novos, in the Seridó region.
The Aldo Parisot Project is Instituto Brazilian Shift's inaugural initiative. It offers free instruction in violin, viola, and cello to 50 girls aged 10 to 15, selected from public schools in Caicó and Currais Novos — in the Seridó region of Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil.
In four years of activity, the project has introduced string instruments to more than a thousand public school children and formed the Orquestra de Cordas Aldo Parisot (Aldo Parisot String Orchestra) — the first all-female string orchestra in the Seridó.
Artistic coordination: Marina Barnabé.
Music that multiplies — public school teachers participate in training programs that extend the reach of music education beyond the project.
"The voice that leads"
"The bridge between treble and bass"
"The instrument that gave the Institute its name"
Where we work — Seridó Region, RN, Brazil
The Orquestra de Cordas Aldo Parisot — Meninas de Caicó (Aldo Parisot String Orchestra — Girls of Caicó) is composed exclusively of the project's students. In 2024 and 2025, the orchestra gave 17 performances across 7 cities in Rio Grande do Norte.
The orchestra opened the 2025 Pedagogical Conference (Jornada Pedagógica) in Caicó before municipal authorities, performed alongside singer Marina Elali, and took part in the Gira Mundo Concert in partnership with the Sibelius Academy of Finland.
"There are no limits to what we, as women, can achieve." @orquestraaldoparisotFollow the orchestra
In June 2024, partners and supporters of the Institute gathered in Brasília for a benefit recital — bringing the music of the girls from Caicó to the heart of Brazil's federal capital.
© Caio Marins / Instituto Brazilian Shift
Classes continue in full swing in Caicó and Currais Novos. New girls are joining. The orchestra rehearses. The Seridó has music.
17 concerts. 7 cities. An orchestra of girls.
A groundbreaking partnership between EMUFRN and Finland's Sibelius Academy, at the Praça da Catedral de Santana in Caicó.
Singer Marina Elali, herself from Rio Grande do Norte, shared the stage with the girls from Caicó at the II Circuito Sabores da Serra.
The orchestra's first performance in the state capital, at the Onofre Lopes Auditorium of the UFRN School of Music.
Concert at the Symphonic Festival (Festival Sinfônico)
Auditório Municipal de Jucurutu, Jucurutu/RN
Concert at the Symphonic Festival (Festival Sinfônico)
Auditório da UERN, Pau dos Ferros/RN
Concert at the Symphonic Festival (Festival Sinfônico)
Colégio Municipal Padre Osvaldo, Luís Gomes/RN
Opening of the 2025 Pedagogical Conference (Jornada Pedagógica)
Auditório CERES/UFRN, Caicó/RN
Gira Mundo Concert — EMUFRN + Sibelius Academy
Praça da Catedral de Santana, Caicó/RN
Opening of the Festa de Nossa Senhora de Fátima
Igreja de Nossa Senhora de Fátima, Caicó/RN
II Gastronomic and Musical Festival Sabores da Serra (II Circuito Gastronômico e Musical Sabores da Serra)
Igreja de São João Batista, Cerro Corá/RN
Marina Elali and the Aldo Parisot Orchestra
Palco do Circuito Gastronômico, Cerro Corá/RN
Seridó Seminar on Integral Education (Seminário Seridoense de Educação Integral)
Auditório CERES/UFRN, Caicó/RN
Pavilhão de Santana — Parisot Quartet (Quarteto Parisot)
Palco Cultural, Caicó/RN
Opening of the 1st Lions District Council (1º Conselho Distrital Lions)
Auditório CERES/UFRN, Caicó/RN
Orquestra de Cordas Aldo Parisot Concert
Auditório Onofre Lopes, EMUFRN/UFRN, Natal/RN
IV Scientific and Cultural Exhibition (IV Exposição Científica e Cultural)
Escola Municipal Hermann Gmeiner, Caicó/RN
Closing of the Festa de São Miguel Arcanjo
Igreja de São Miguel Arcanjo, Caicó/RN
I Music on Campus (I Música no Campus)
Praça do CERES/UFRN, Caicó/RN
Educational Concert (Concerto Didático)
Escola Estadual Edmundo Kagerer, Caicó/RN
IV Opening of ESEPAC
Faculdade Católica Santa Teresinha, Caicó/RN
The Aldo Parisot Project is aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Free music education as a tool for holistic development.
Female leadership in the hinterland — 50 girls are the pioneers.
Access to classical music where it had never reached before.
Every instrument in the hands of a girl from the Seridó arrived there because someone believed. Every class, every rehearsal, every concert is sustained by a network of people and institutions who understand the transformative power of music. This is the story of those who make the project possible.
In 2022, the law firm BTW Madruga Advocacia, based in Brasília, donated the first set of 52 instruments — violins, violas, and cellos — to the Aldo Parisot Project. It was the gesture that made everything possible. For the first time, girls from public schools in Caicó and Currais Novos could hold a bow and feel the vibration of a string.
The UFRN School of Music (EMUFRN), under the coordination of Fabio Presgrave, provided the project with its pedagogical backbone. UFRN, through its CERES campus (Center for Higher Education of the Seridó) in Caicó, offered space and infrastructure. Funpec enabled the administrative management. The Programa Sinos, by FUNARTE and UFRJ, and IFRN joined forces. The City of Caicó, through SEMECE, provided student transportation and ensured integration with the municipal public schools.
In April 2025, the Sibelius Academy of Finland, in partnership with the Elsa Brule Centre for Global Music, crossed the Atlantic to perform alongside the girls from Caicó — at the Gira Mundo Concert, in the Praça da Catedral de Santana. The project born in the interior of Rio Grande do Norte now has bridges to Europe.
B Hotel Brasília
EMUFRN
Ava Gestão
TIES Group
Access to classical music as an instrument of development and equal opportunity.
Artistic and pedagogical quality in every project, fostering dedication and continuous learning.
Music as a catalyst for personal and collective change, strengthening dreams and futures.
Spreading and honoring Brazil's identities and cultural heritage.
Bringing together people, institutions, and companies in a solidarity network for education and culture.
Valuing every child for their unique potential, fostering belonging and dignity.
Violins, violas, and cellos reaching hands that have never played them.
I want to donate instrumentsScholarships, transportation, teaching materials, teacher training.
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