During the break they stop him in the corridors to talk to him about music. «Prof, yesterday I made a crazy mix!». Or: «Do you know that they gave me a console for Christmas?». Luca Piazza he smiles as he tells it. He teaches German at the Iqbal Masih Institute, a middle school in Malnate, in the province of Varese. In his free time, however, he DJs (his stage name, strictly in German, is Herr LucaPlatz DJ).
Since last November, every Tuesday afternoon, a classroom in the school is transformed into a small music laboratory. Instead of notebooks there are mixers, headphones and bases to synchronize. Twenty-four students are taking part in what is considered the first DJ course hosted within an Italian public school.
THE STRENGTH OF PASSION
The idea came from Piazza himself. «I personally attended a course with Master Max, who is the professional DJ who gives lessons to the kids today», he says. «At a certain point it came naturally to me to think: why not bring this experience into school?». The proposal was immediately welcomed with enthusiasm. Also because, the teacher says amusedly, the school director himself had a past as a DJ. «When he heard about the project he absolutely wanted to approve it».
Thus, almost for fun, the console really entered the classroom. The course takes place outside of school hours and will end at the end of May. Then, on June 8th, the last day of school, the most awaited moment will arrive: a real final DJ set in the school courtyardduring which all the children will be able to perform in front of their classmates and families.
MUCH MORE THAN A LABORATORY
«Our goal is certainly to teach mixing and raise awareness of the world of DJing», he explains, «but also to give birth to a new passion». Behind the project, however, there is something deeper than a simple creative laboratory. «In this school we organize lots of extra activities for the kids because the idea is to give them something to do, take them off the streets,” he says. Malnate, explains the teacher, is a complex realitywith “special situations” and delicate school users. For this reason, over the years the institute has chosen to invest heavily in alternative paths and innovative laboratories.
A SCHOOL THAT EXPERIMENTS
The school, in fact, offers various specific courses and activities: there is the musical course with orchestra and instrument, the linguistic course with additional hours dedicated to foreign languages, and even a technological course where students learn to fly drones. Electronic music has also entered this mosaic of experiences. «Many think that disco is necessarily something negative», says Piazza. «We also want to convey the idea that it can be a place to have fun responsibly». And he deliberately uses a strong term: “It’s not necessarily a Mephistophelian environment.” According to the professor, in fact, the course allows children to approach that world with awareness, transforming music into a space for aggregation and not just passive consumption.
“The kids made new friends,” he says. And he adds: «There are even those who have put themselves on the line as vocalists for the final party». Some students have started learning the stage names of their classmates, others try to improvise stage animations, some practice at home every day… The enthusiasm, moreover, was immediate. “The kids are super excited,” he repeats several times during the conversation. And the enthusiasm also involved the families. “Parents are delighted when they see their children become passionate about something different.”
Some students have asked for a console as a Christmas or birthday gift. Others stop the professor during breaks to tell him about experiments done at home. «When they tell me “Prof, yesterday I tried this mix” or they make me feel the things they prepare, then I understand that the lesson really worked».
A MALE HOBBY?
Students from different classes participate in the laboratory, not just the students to whom Piazza teaches German. And if the majority of members are male, some signs of change are already starting to be seen. Out of twenty-four participants, there are only four girls. «Many still think that being a DJ is a man’s world», observes the professor. “But that’s absolutely not the case.” To demonstrate this, he cites some examples of very young female DJs already present on the international scene. And something seems to be moving among his students too. «Several girls have already asked me if we will do the course again next year. They told me: “This time we’ll sign up too”».
Piazza, however, is keen to clarify that the center of the project is not the technique. Certain, during the lessons the kids really learn to use a console, synchronize the pieces and build a mix. But the point, for him, is above all another. «Music can be a means of integration and culture», he says. «It serves to bring people together». For this reason he himself, while leaving the technical part to Master Max DJ, continues to participate in the lessons as support. Sometimes he shows the kids some of his personal mixes, other times he helps them better understand how the console works. But above all, observe their reactions: “When I see that they continue to talk about it even outside of the course, when I see them happy, then I understand that something important is happening.”
MUSIC THAT UNITES
Malnate’s experience, meanwhile, is starting to go beyond the confines of the school. On 7 June Luca Piazza will participate in the “Seminare Idee” Festival in Prato, where will hold a free workshop dedicated to children aged 11 to 14. The title chosen is already a small manifesto: “Put your hands on music”. And he says: «I will show how a console works and then I will let the kids try it themselves. DJing is a world that many still know little about. Instead, it’s nice to be able to touch it first hand.”
