A 10-day youth exchange bringing together 42 young people from 7 countries to explore emotions, build intercultural connection, and create original music – culminating in a public festival co-organised entirely by the participants.
About this project
Song of the Soul was an Erasmus+ KA1 youth exchange by Association Creatosphere, bringing together 42 young people aged 18–30 from Bulgaria, the Netherlands, Latvia, Czechia, Poland, Spain, and Lithuania for ten intensive days in Stolat Camp, Stolat Village, Bulgaria. Designing this project, we noticed one thing: many young people across Europe have limited access to spaces for emotional exploration, authentic self-expression, and intercultural connection. So we decided to create one.
The project was built around the conviction that music – as humanity’s oldest language, predating speech – is a unique pathway into emotions that words often cannot reach. Our young people used practices like vocalization, harmonization, songwriting, improvisation, and composition to connect with themselves and each other, culminating in a public music festival co-created and co-organized entirely by the young people themselves. Toni Lyubenova was the project writer and co-facilitator, bringing her background in theatre, music, non-formal education, and NVC practice to design and deliver part of the exchange programme.
What we delivered
One project, several layers
01
Co-facilitation and co-design of the 10 day youth exchange in Stolat, Bulgaria together with program lead Kris Filipiuk
02
Project writing of the full proposal
03
Created the project report documenting learning outcomes, participant experience, and impact data
04
Co-facilitated the exchange, guiding sessions on emotional expression, NVC, listening, group dynamics, and creative music-making
05
Supported participants in co-organizing the Stolat Music Open Day for the local community
Methods used
The exchange used experiential learning as its core framework – participants moved through doing, reflecting, and sharing in continuous cycles. Sessions were designed to create a safe, inclusive container for emotional exploration before building toward collaborative creation and public performance.
Toni contributed expertise in facilitation, theatre-based methodologies, and group dynamics – adapting techniques from NVC, soundscapes, Foley art, and embodied practice for a multilingual, multicultural group of young people with varying musical experience.
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Music
Experiential learning
Nonviolent communication (NVC)
Storytelling through music
Festival facilitation
Improvisation and Foley art
Participants’ voice
What our young people said
Participating in the ‘Song of the Soul’ project was an experience unlike any other. I honestly believe I’ve never been part of a better-organized project, and I doubt I ever will again. The facilitation was simply perfect. Kris, Toni, and Vera created an incredible program with functional rules that felt both firm and deeply kind and respectful. Toni has a profound knowledge of Nonviolent Communication and a brilliant way of sharing it. Kris is a true master of everything music-related, and Vera is a ‘superwoman’ who can handle any creative form while coordinating everything flawlessly. The environment they built allowed for genuine connection and growth. I am beyond grateful for their work and for the way they lead. This project has impacted me so deeply that I will be drawing strength and inspiration from these ten days for the rest of my life. Thank you for such an unforgettable journey.
Šárka Havránková, Czech Republic
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Project partners
Bulgaria – Creatosphere
Lithuania – Kartu Projektai
Netherlands – Wake Foundation Poland
Poland – SuperYouth
Italy – Associazione Parco Culturale Alta Langa
Latvia – KALM International Trainings
Spain – ONE Sun, Czech Republic – YOUnique
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Project Team
The project was managed by Vera Nedelcheva, facilitated by Kris Filipiuk as lead programme designer and Toni O. Lyubenova as co-facilitator, and supported logistically by Ivaylo Petrov. Documented by photographer and PR Eve Enfer and food by Nadezhda and Gavriil Nikolovi.
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Deliverables
- Facilitation
- 1 public music festival co-organized and performed by participants for the Stolat community
- Project writing
- A youth work handbook on music-based community building produced and shared openly
- 6+ original multilingual songs co-created and professionally recorded during the exchange. The songs were recorded professionally by Kris Filipiuk and Mihail Penkov from Studio Trepet.
Looking to bring music practices in education to your own community or organisation?
Feel free to reach out and let’s create together!