Yele was founded by the Haitian-born, Grammy-Award winning musician and record producer Wyclef Jean. Yele Haiti is a grassroots movement which aims to raise global awareness for Haiti and transform the country through programmes in education, sports, the arts and environment. The new circa one thousand square-foot community music studio is a typical example of Yele Haiti's initiatives which embrace Wyclef Jean's passion for music and the country of his birth. The projects strive to renew hope and self-belief in forgotten neighbourhoods and to help Haiti's youthful population rebuild their nation.
The new music studio will be built in Cité Soleil and combine the recording of music and radio programming with vocational training, micro-enterprise opportunities and job creation for at-risk youth in that area. The studio is a joint venture between Yéle Haiti and two for-profit companies - Sak Pasé Records, Wyclef Jean's own record label, and Radio Boukman, a popular community radio station in Cité Soleil. The joint venture arrangement will ensure that the Yéle Music Studio will be entirely self-financing within 18 months, while at the same time remaining committed to using music and radio to promote development and social issues.
Lending his support to the project, Wyclef Jean commented: ‘Music is what I live, breathe and sleep. Where I come from, music is not just notes. It is a way of survival. That's how important the Yéle Music Studio is. Building this project in Cité Soleil is a matter of life and death'.
John McAslan said: ‘My ambition is that young architects from around the world will be inspired to create some fantastic designs for the music studio and by doing so, help build a better future for the young people of Cité Soleil'.
Following the conclusion of the competition, Yele Haiti intends to start work on the new music studio as soon as practicable. The winning student will be invited to collaborate on developing their design ideas with the Haitian-based executive architect responsible for realising and delivering the project.
Submissions are invited from architecture students in the UK and internationally who have not yet completed their RIBA Part 3 studies (or equivalent professional competence qualification in their country of study). Students studying for GCSE and A-levels (or international equivalent) in design-related subjects are also invited to enter. The Stage 1 entries will be assessed anonymously by a Jury Panel. The authors (between 5 and 10) of the proposals judged to have produced the best response to the Competition Brief, will be invited to develop a simple card model and present their ideas at an interview to be held in London. A Prize Fund of £1,000 will be available for the Jury Panel to apportion amongst the finalists at their discretion. Each interview attendee will be offered a reimbursement of expenses up to GB £150 as a contribution towards the cost of attending the interview (or facilitation of a video conference for overseas competitors). Should the Jury Panel feel that there is an outstanding scheme at Stage 1, the right will be reserved to announce a winner without recourse to a second stage.
For details of how to register for the Yele Recording Studio Competition and how to access the supporting information please visit http://architecture.com/competitions .
The deadline for receipt of Stage 1 design submissions is 2.00pm on Friday 12 March 2010.