GUS THE MUSICIAN HEDGEHOG

GUS was born from a simple yet profound desire: to create a living bridge between the Milan Symphony Orchestra and children, offering them a new way to experience classical music—not as spectators, but as companions.
Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano has always carried the name and spirit of Gustav Mahler in its DNA: the Orchestra's home, the Milan Auditorium, is located in Largo Mahler, and from that root we inherited an idea of ​​music that embraces life in its entirety, that speaks of emotion, thought, and transformation.
When we imagined GUS, we thought of Mahler and his vision, capable of combining wonder and depth. We were looking for a character who could embody our idea of ​​music as a living experience, one that both shapes and accompanies. GUS is the symbol of this journey, a companion who invites children to grow together with music. To bring the character to life, we engaged two extraordinary artists: Valeria Petrone, an illustrator renowned for her essential and rhythmic visual language, gave shape and color to the character; Elisabetta Garilli, a musician, author, and music education expert, interpreted his voice and rhythm. Valeria's illustrations blend immediacy and depth, while Elisabetta, with her experience in popularizing music for children, transformed Gus into a sound story of empathy and freedom.

Gus is a hedgehog. But not just any hedgehog.
He's a musical hedgehog who has chosen music as the language of the heart : to speak to the world, to be heard, to understand and be understood.
With his wand—which isn't used to direct, but to "play and make play"— he collects sounds, transforms them, and weaves them together, building small bridges between emotions and listening .
His mane of quills changes shape and color according to his feelings: soft when he's calm, prickly when he's afraid, fiery when he's overwhelmed by enthusiasm.
Shy and highly sensitive, but also curious and courageous, Gus invites us to look within ourselves through musical play, to discover that every emotion can become sound and that every sound can bring us closer to others .

" For Gus, I imagined an iconic conductor and composer, wearing an elegant black suit and Mahler-inspired details, such as elliptical glasses and a bow tie: a sort of "uniform" that defines his visual identity. I chose a simple palette to make him clear and versatile. Gus is a shy hedgehog, highly sensitive yet curious. He has a visually striking feature: his mane of quills, an extension of his emotions, capable of becoming soft, prickly, or fiery, like the emotions that flow through him  ".

Valeria Petrone Illustrator

" I listen, I create, I transform, I include, I play ": these are the key words Elisabetta Garilli uses to describe Gus.
With her work as a musician, author, and educator, Garilli has given voice and rhythm to the project, imagining music as a language of the soul, an exercise in empathy and freedom.
Gus reminds us that every sound can become an encounter, every difference can become harmony. He is a character who carries with him the echo of Mahler's legacy and translates it into the language of the present: that of children, dreams, and imagination.
As Elisabetta Garilli says: "A hedgehog is a hedgehog. Gus is Gus."
And it is in his uniqueness that we recognize the uniqueness of every child.