As part of the celebrations of International Children’s Day 2026, Labeamus: the Music Teaching and Learning Laboratory of the University of Aveiro and INET-md, is promoting a series of community-oriented laboratories throughout the month of June, including activities such as musical instrument workshops, sound experimentation and listening sessions, as well as demonstrations and hands-on exploration of instruments.
Conceived as spaces for musical discovery, these laboratories aim to bring children, families, and the wider community closer to participatory and sensory musical experiences, fostering sonic awareness, creativity, and contact with different ways of making and thinking about sound and music.
The activities will be led by faculty members and researchers from DeCA/UA and INET-md, together with students from the curricular units Instrument Teaching Laboratory and Group Music Practices Teaching of the Master’s Degree in Music Education at the University of Aveiro. These participants will develop pedagogical and artistic proposals aimed at different age groups and levels of musical experience.
Free of charge upon registration, the programme seeks to affirm Labeamus as a space for pedagogical experimentation, participatory artistic experiences, and connection between university and community.
The programme includes different thematic laboratories dedicated to the creation, experimentation, and discovery of sound and music:
Musical Zoo Strings Lab
June 9 | 6 pm – 7:30 pm | Violin, viola, and cello students
A laboratory for beginner string students, where musical learning is guided by imagination and a playful approach. Through a sound journey inspired by the world of animals, participants explore their instruments, discover different ways of producing sound, and experiment with simple musical ideas in an accessible and creative way. A practical and interactive experience that develops initial technical foundations, encourages group listening, and fosters the joy of making music together from the very first contact.
“Eco-Listening” Lab
June 11 | | 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm | Families – adults and children aged 6 to 12
This laboratory invites families — adults and children — to inhabit the place of the other, of the non-human, of the untranslatable, through a displaced and attentive form of listening that seeks to open pathways to new auditory perspectives and invisible sonic dimensions. During the session, participants invent and explore expanded listening devices built from simple materials such as cardboard and natural elements collected by the participants themselves. Starting from the idea of another kind of listening — that of trees, stones, winds, and many other presences surrounding us — the laboratory seeks to listen beyond the landscape, recognizing that it also listens, resonates, and returns echoes and silences to us.
Clarinet Sound and Improvisation Lab
June 16 | 6 pm – 7:30 pm | Clarinet students of all levels
A laboratory aimed at beginner clarinet students, where learning is guided by active listening, experimentation, and musical discovery. Throughout the session, participants will explore improvisation, instrumental technique development, and dynamic control through images and playful exercises. Musical games will also be included, encouraging active listening, coordination, and group musical interaction.
Instrument Discovery Lab
June 18 | 6 pm – 7:30 pm | Families – adults and children aged 3 and above
An interactive activity dedicated to the discovery and exploration of different musical instruments, giving children and families the opportunity to closely experience the functioning, sounds, characteristics, and expressive possibilities of each instrument through demonstrations, experimentation, and direct contact with musicians.
Body Percussion Lab
June 24 | 6:30 pm – 7:30 pm | Families – adults and children aged 6 and above
In this laboratory, participants will explore the body itself through rhythmic games designed to entertain both children and adults. In this dynamic encounter, participants will journey together through rhythm and movement, culminating in a final collective performance: a body percussion orchestra where family interaction and music-making become the main protagonists
Sound Spectra Lab
June 25 | 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm | Wind instrument students aged 10 to 15
In this laboratory, wind instrument students will have the opportunity to experiment with different sonic and expressive possibilities through the combination of their instruments with auxiliary resources, namely electronic media. The use of these resources will allow participants to create diverse musical environments, explore new sound textures, and develop their musical creativity, encouraging them to discover new forms of interaction and communication through their own instruments.
All activities are free of charge upon prior registration and subject to participant limits. Sessions will take place at DeCA – Department of Communication and Art of the University of Aveiro.
All activities are free of charge, subject to prior registration, and are limited to a certain number of participants.
Organizing Committee
Clarissa Foletto (INET-md/UA)
Andreia Parente (INET-md/UA)
Pedagogical Coordination
Clarissa Foletto (INET-md/UA)
Laboratory Instructors
- Alejandrina Ruiz
- Alexandra Rodrigues
Ana Luísa Veloso (INET-md/UA)
- Beatriz Cunha
- Catarina Querido
Clarissa Foletto (INET-md/UA)
- Eduardo Pereira
- Francisca Ferreira
- Francisco Lourenço
- João Borges
- Marisa Carvalho
Marisa Ponce de León (INET-md/UA)
- Marta Torres
- Matilde Cardoso
- Rafael Moreira
- Rodrigo Pinho
More information inet-comunicacao@ua.pt or clarissafoletto@ua.pt