The first three days of this week were spent with my colleagues Shin-young Kwon, Sarah Roth, Trevor Fitzpatrick, and Jason Schooler, playing Kinderkonzerts in three different area elementary schools: Lents Elementary in outer SE Portland, Penisula Elementary in North Portland, and Lincoln Street School in Hillsboro. We played three 30 minute concerts at each school, and got to reach hundreds of kids between kindergarten and grade two. There were also a few home-schooled neighborhood kids who were brought in by their parents to see the programs as well. During the rest of the season the other sections of the orchestra (brass, woodwind, and percussion) will revisit the same schools, giving these young children an introduction to the instruments of the orchestra, and hopefully instilling in them the germ of a seed of curiosity about making music and learning an instrument. It truly is building the future.
4 replies on “building the future”
Charles, those are great photos of a great group of musicians! I felt like I was there. Of course, given how early you had to be there the morning after our Monday night concert, I’m glad I wasn’t. ;>)
Charles. This is great! Thanks for giving us an idea of what this program looks like.
I was lucky enough to attend one of these on Wednesday. It was wonderful. The narrator and the musicians were great with the kids, who were obviously having a blast. I was proud of the Oregon Symphony and the educational programs you provide.
Charles: These photos show so much of the 3 days of Kinderkonzerts last week. All that is missing are the sounds of the String Quintet’s expert playing and hamming it up, our narrator Amy’s witty repartee and K-2 crowd managing magic, singing “If You’re Happy and You Know It” in english and spanish, and the gleeful applause by all. It was great fun and much appreciated by all. Did I mention Jason’s “Heavenly Donuts” and Charles’ coffee treat on the final day?
Monica Hayes ~ OR Symphony Education & Community Engagement