The Youth Exchange “BEAT IT! with a Beat - Music vs COVID” was an incredible experience of life. Young people from 5 different countries had the opportunity to compose and play music together in the beautiful city of Zagreb.

The project lasted a total of 10 days, from 12 to 22 April 2023, days in which musical activities were alternated with the classic Erasmus+ project’s activities, like get to know yourself and other cultures better, and develop all the skills written in the YouthPass.

But the peculiarity is that each activity was connected to the Covid-19 topic, and how the youth experienced the lockdown and post-lockdown. Thanks to this theme we had the opportunity to discuss our emotions and we felt less alone.

The very special thing about this project is that all the participants were musicians, and this allowed us to build a deeper bond between us. As foreseen by the project’s schedule, the entire group has been splitted into bands and we found ourselves songwriting and composing songs in just 2 days, having to deal with people with different cultures and musical backgrounds. 

This was for sure the hardest part, but also the most beautiful and fun. Covid theme also helped us during the composition, it helped us bring out our emotions and find a shared point of view.

The most exciting moment of the project was the live concert, where we had the opportunity to perform and sing our songs in front of an audience, even online.

For some of us it was the first time on stage, but in general it will remain an unforgettable evening for all!

The days after the concert we recorded our songs in Glazbena kuća, the studio that hosted us for the entire duration of our musical creative process. Now that everything’s ready we just have to wait for our album to be released.

This project has been incredible, a real exchange of music, culture and lived experiences. We understood how music can be a tool with which to fight daily our discomforts, and also something that enable us to express ourselves.

This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication (communication) reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.