2nd Semester, 3rd Blog: Education

The “lucro” in privates Universities and schools, the low quality of education on public schools, the high breach between paid and non paid schools and many others topics related to education in Chile are discussing now by politics and experts.

Education is a polemic theme because in dictatorship the policies about education was changed radically, for example the University of Chile was free for all but between 1973 and 1988 this situation changed and now is a paid institution. So, these days a lot of political parties, social organizations, student’s federations and others are fighting for the free-pay of education on Universities and schools.

In December 2012, the then Education Minister Harald Beyer, decided to close the Universidad del Mar because it have not controls that would ensure a minimum quality at all campus and careers. The legislation, which was approved by the Comptroller, the campus continued not enrolling new students, but was required to complete the process of study of former students. Today this university is open, but his close has been programmed to 2016.

After the change of command of the new president government has intensified its work to implement this reform and an end to the irregularities in education. Personally I think the problem is in some state funding to educational institutions, if the teachers were improved wages, schools they had better infrastructure and universities did not have to self-finance the quality would be better but it is very difficult to make so many changes in so little time, which is why we will be future professionals who must work to remove all barriers that separate us from a good education and I hope that in a decade or two the new education be a reality and not a dream that we should still fight.

The Internet: Good or Evil?

Internet is a useful tool to work and study, nowadays you can find all types of information totally free and just a second of searching on web. The new generations of students (specially the teenagers between 12 and 15) can’t imagine do home works just with books and encyclopedias, they really need internet to search and download material to study and work… but internet isn’t really “safe” how it look…

So, what it’s wrong with internet for teenagers (and all of us)?

1. Distractions.

Internet allows a lot of distractions, especially to children’s between 12 and 15… Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube and others are “free time” web pages; on there you can chat with friends, see funny videos, photos and loss a lot of useful time.

2. It’s addictive.

The news smartphones brings you the possibility to stay connected all day, it means –for example- have a conversation by chat in the middle of a class. It’s difficult the relationship between teenagers and smartphones because the internet it’s addictive and looks like a door of exit of social time with parents, with other people, of important classes and –in some cases- parties with friends.

3. XXX.

Pornography is in every place of internet and his access is free. This exposition to adult content changes the sexual view to the other sex, creates a false expectative about sexual relations and in some extreme cases causes psicologic trauma.

This easy access to the information is an evil or good tool for our day life if we know or don’t know how to use it. It’s a work for parents educate about the benefits and risks of the internet to teenagers and maybe a work of all the community because all of us uses internet and remember this points is necessary once in a while.  

2nd Semester, 1st Blog: The best holiday I’ve ever had

The best holiday I’ve ever had was be on Winter of 2012… I traveled to Buenos Aires, Argentina.

I traveled to this city to play on a Classical Guitar concert so I arrived three days before to sightseeing the city. On those days I went to La Boca neighborhood, a really famous place for his tango shows, colorful houses and grills restaurants. I walked for Caminito, Plaza de Mayo, Puerto Madero –A beautiful port with museums ships-, and San Telmo, a bohemian neighborhood.

I have a lot of good memories of those holydays, one of the most funniest are maybe the airport strike… When I was on Santiago’s airport a worker says me “The Buenos Aires airport was on strike so I you will need take other Airbus”. This Airbus arrived at other airport at 32 kilometers of Buenos Aires…

So, when I arrived to there a worker of this airport says me “The highway is blocked by strikers so you will have to wait maybe three of four in order to the policeman liberate the road of the barricades… Oh! What a bad luck! Finally I waited just an hour, I took a bus to the downtown and I came to the Hotel without other problems.

This travel out of Chile was the second on my life and the first to play a solo recital. This was in a quaint museum with a very nice public ¡They congratulate me a lot!. 

The return to Chile was nice but I was a little bit sad… I played a good concert, I met new people, new places, new food, a new big city, a different culture... All the memories are really good so I’m waiting with enthusiasm the opportunity to come back to continue sightseeing the enormous city of Buenos Aires.

Blog 10th: Evaluation of my English Blogging Experience

This isn't my first time writing a blog. In the past I wrote little stories on a blog called "Té de orquesta". All my writings are fiction histories about people who live in Santiago. So, later three or four publications I leave this blog around 2006...

Back to write a blog is a great experience, this blog -Absolutely on English- was be a challenge for me because give form at your thinking in this language isn't a regular practice for me.

Later nine blogs I sense my English is better. Write about my favorite piece of technology or how to be a public administrator are really different topics with a lot of different vocabulary what you need to know and apply it.

I'm sure in the future I will need to write some essay or document completely in English, write -for example- on a new arts research magazine. For this reason -and others- learn to write on English is really important and nesesary... But, English isn't the olny necessary language for me, German (maybe) is than or more important because I'm plannyng to go to study at Switzerland (!) In that country they speak arroung four languages: Genman, French, Italien and Romansch, a traditional subfamily of the Romance languages.
So, I just have 25, maybe on 25 years more I will speak this and others languages! (or not?)

Blog 9: How to be the best public administrator

To be a good public administrator, in my opinion, is basically be a good profesional. In this situation the motivation and caring are fundamental. The skills, hard study, comprimose and love moves you to the profesional sucessfull and then to the social contruction.
This country has been made by us, we need to serve to others to construct the civilization what we want. To this propose, the public administrators have a fundamental rol because the public policies study and apply the strategies to make this country better.
A real problem regarding this point is the corruption, too many presidents, ministers, and governors are faumous for the fraedulent stealing of state's money destroying the social peace and the social confidence to the goverment.

Other problem is the old policies form the dictatorship. The private emprices absorving the (i) ecomony, (ii) the public education and, in some cases, (iii) the justice; Needs a real and radical change to the old policies and, inclusive, the constitution.
In conclusion, a good public administrator needs to combat this (and others) problems, working for his country with dedication, honesty, love and hope to construct the real "Garden of Eden", the country what all of us, the citicents, want.

Blog 8: My favourite wild animal

My favourite wild animal is the Condor.
The condor it's a bird with falcons characteristics: Is a really big animal, lives in high places like mountains, and is a animal in danger of extinction.
The Condor is familiar to all the Chileans because is one of the emblem animals with the Huemúl.
On my past vacations in Osorno I and my friends go to walk at the forest, in there we found a beautifull waterfall (maybe with 50 meters of high) and we climb it. At the top we see all the forest, the Llanquihue Lake and the border of the lake and, fortunately, Condors flying arround. That was a great experience for us and specially for me because travel to the south isn't easy for me and also see this beautiful animal... wow! a really nice adventure!

In Chile we have a famous comic called "Condorito", it's a Condor! and he lives en Pelotillehue, place of his anecdotes. Pepo, his creator, uses this animal because he thinks the Condor is the most representative animal of this country.

Blog 7: Lang Lang

Musical interpretation is a really hard area of the music studies. In particular, piano studies take around fourteen years of studies in a conservatory.

Bach, Mozart, Beethoven and Lizt are maybe the most important composers for this instrument. They music are not easy to play, you need days, months and years of practice to play just the rhythms and notes…

Lang Lang is a 31 year old pianist. He comes from China and is one of the most famous pianists (living) in the world. His interpretations are full of energy, passion and grace… Lang Lang is the perfect musician with supernatural skills.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKILwVH_MdM

When I listen for first time the music of Lang Lang I was not surprised, but, when I see his version of Tchaikovsky’s 1^st piano concerto I understand why he is a really talented music star.

A funny fact is his recent participation with Metallica (yeah! the trash metal band) at the Grammy awards… A friend told me “that was ridiculous”, but I think “It’s great! I hope to play my classical guitar with Metallica!”

Blog 6: My favourite movie

My favourite movie is the Star Wars III: The empire Strikes Back

I see this movie when I was a child, the special effects an the ligth sables fights made me crazy, I just loved this movie! Later to see this movie my mom bought me a video game for nintendo of this movie and in there I can understand better the argument of the movie.

I think this is a one of the most important movies of the Starwars saga because is in this film when LKuke Skywalker beggins is trainning like a Jedi to figth the dark side... It's memorable the moment whrn Darck Vader says to him "I'm your father" ¡It's a classic line of the cinema!

Throgth the time I understand the sense of justice inneded in this movie, the heroism of the diferent characters and the importance of this movie to the history of the cienema... Other think what I like of this movie is the music, John Williams it's an amazing composer! his teacher was be Mario Castelnuovo Tedesco, an Italian composer what I know very well because the last year I played a music work of him.

5th blog: The Annual Running of the UChile

This picture was taken on October 27th, 2013. It shows the begining of the annual running of the University of Chile in conmemoration of the 171th anniversary of this institution.
This race was started in Pio Nono, in the front of Laws faculty and the competition has been divided in two categories: 10 Kilometers (people with red number in the shirt) and 5 kilometers (people with green numbers on shirt)... If you look with atention, in the middle of the photo you will see a guy with a white/black cap and number 847 on his shirt... That is me!

The annual running of the university is one of the many activities in celebration of the anniversary: Music shows, concerts with the OSCH (Symphonic Orchestra of the University of Chile), parties, ceremonies with contests and awards to the professors, etc...
I like so much running and sports in general, so, I hope to keep running and practicing sports in different activities of the University like the TIF (Faculty Tournaments), the JOE (Annual student's olimpic games) and others.

4th Blog: "Career related blog" - Musical analisys

One of the most interesting courses in my carrer is musical analysis. It basically consists of knowing how music works. I studied analysis for the first time three years ago, and now I am an assistant teacher in this area.

I discovered, through time, a natural skill to teach and for this reason I would like to be a professor in a music conservatory.

But, musical analysis isn't the only course in which I have some skills... In music interpretation too.

I wish to study a Master's degree in Basel - Switzerland with Pablo Marquez, an Argentinian classical guitarrist. This Master course consists in studying music of the XX century and lots of musical styles like dodecaphony or free atonality, for example.

Maybe in the future I will teach these two study areas of music -analysis and interpretation- but I've a lot of interests like conducting and composing.

2nd Blog: New academic semester

This is my 5th year of studies at arts faculty in University of Chile. In this semester my courses are "Guitar V" and "Chamber music", also I have languages studies like "English III" in INAP and "German", this last one in laws faculty.

This semester I want to do many things like play a solo Classical Guitar concert in Laws Faculty and write a article to the Chilean music review.

Also I plan to participate in extracurricular activities like the "TIF" - Inter-faculty sports tournaments- with the swimming arts team, or participate in "Misión País"  -voluntary works in poor zones of the country-.

Well, this is just the begining of the year and I've a lot of energy to do all what I want to do! so... Let's work!

1st Blog: Autobiography

My name is Gonzalo López, I was born in Santiago - Chile in September 17, 1988.
When I was 9 I took my first Guitar class at school, and now I study Classical Guitar at the University of Chile.
My hobbies are sports like swimming and running, and I practice them about 10 years ago.

My parents aren't from Santiago, my dad is from Mininco which is around 2 hours from Los Ángeles in the south; and my mom is from Rancagua, maybe one and a half hours from Santiago. Every year I travel to Mininco on holidays or in the middle of the year just to relax because it's a beautiful place and I hope some day to move there to live and work on my own farm.

14th April - 2014

3rd Blog: My favourite technology

My favourite piece of technology.

My favourite piece of technology is the radio. The radio is a receptor of electromagnetical waves, in a complicated process the radio can transform these waves into sounds and reproduce them as news, music, interview programs and other media.

In this photo you can see an old radio, really different from my new mp3 and portable radio.

I used to have my first radio when I was a child and now I have a little portable radio and mp3 player to use all day in every place that I want.

I like the radio because you can listen a lot of music and programs totally free, although not always the reception is good and the sound isn't good. I can't live without the radio and his interesting content.

April 10th - 2014