00:00Lagos, Nigeria. The first meeting between six young musicians from Germany, six from Nigeria and the Nigerian Bantu Band.
00:11They take part in this year's campus project from Beethovenfest, Deutsche Welle and the German National Youth Orchestra.
00:18Afrobeat meets classical music, Africa Europe and the past the present. They are all ready to make harmony.
00:25I'm Mary from Lagos. I'm Louis. I'm 20 and I'm currently studying clarinet in Lubeck.
00:32To loosen up, a song from singer-songwriter Adi Bantu. He leads the campus, a song about broken dreams in Nigeria.
00:44People in Europe usually don't know all that much about Africa. I thought this would be a great chance to learn new things.
00:54Like many in her homeland, Mary started her musical career in church and later studied violin.
01:03We love music in our family, but it's not allowed to be studied as a career. I stick to my music.
01:12It wasn't really easy, but now it's easy and it's accepted.
01:19The programme includes folk and political songs alongside a piece from Beethoven, of course, his Egmont Overture.
01:26The group slowly becomes one.
01:30After a demanding rehearsal, time to relax on the beach at Victoria Island.
01:35Discovering other cultures across borders, that has been the core idea of the campus project since 2001.
01:42The next day is busy with preparations for their first public performance in the renowned Jay Randall Cultural Centre in the heart of Lagos.
01:56Visitors from Germany and Nigeria come together here.
02:00It's the high point and conclusion of an intense week of rehearsals in Nigeria.
02:12The concert is a hit with the audience and the excitement is palpable among members of the campus project.
02:19Amazing. Like I got to play with German musicians. It was great.
02:25It was a Nigerian dream. That's it.
02:28It's time for goodbyes in Lagos, but they will see one another again at the Beethoven Fest concert in Bonn.
02:35The campus, a bridge between cultures also in 2025.
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