Music and education on my mind

The New York Pops (the symphony orchestra that plays music from the Great American Songbook at Carnegie Hall) is hosting their Annual Gala on Monday, April 27th. Proceeds from the 26^th Birthday Gala support The New York Pops and its education programs and free Summermusic concerts throughout New York City.

Broadway star, Idina Menzel will be among those performing, and the new musical director of the New York Pops, Steven Reineke, will be conducting.

I mention this event because music and education has been on my mind today. At lunch I was discussing with college students the broad changes in education that have taken place since the 80s (when I was in high school! gulp! am I that old??). I wistfully recalled how we took music and art education for granted, how my piano teacher onve explained how subdividing a beat was something taught in elementary school. Over time those early lessons progressed to instrumental playing, choral singing and musical theatre. Since then, so much has changed in schools: less music and art, less recess, more homework, more stress. My peer Harold just got nominated for a Pulitzer in Music. Obviously, something was okay about our more carefree art-filled schooldays...

I majored in music in college, and the result was that I learned more about artistic form and funtion that I might otherwise have studying theatre alone. But would I had my school system been different? We can easily forget how far back the early influence goes.

Since then, non-profits arts organizations have -- at least partly -- come to the rescue by sending professional artists to the schools or inviting students to the theatre or concert hall, often for free. For many arts organizations, such efforts are a bit beyond their scope: even when the NEA provides seed money for such efforts (as it did with my touring production of Midsummer in Western North Carolina a couple years ago), the woefully underfunded agency doesn't always provide continuing support (and sometimes for bizzare bureaucratic reasons).

Coincidentally, it came to my attention today that one organization that does ALOT for education is the New York Pops orchestra. Since serendipity is sometimes everything, I'm sharing info about the above-mentioned Annual Gala concert and fundraiser and what NYPops do for kids. Here's some info I found:

"The NYPops' Free Education programs are called Kids in the Balcony and Salute to Music. The Kids in the Balcony program offers NYC children free tickets for all New York Pops concerts at Carnegie Hall (through their schools, community centers or clubs) including the annual Birthday Gala where more than 830 children fill the Carnegie Hall balcony.

Other school programs are Musical Mentors, Create a Symphony, and RHYTHM, RHYME, AND RAP.

The New York Pops Education Programs serve thousands of children every year. Since the inception of the first education programs in 1990, more than 18,500 children have been touched by the magic of music. The New York Pops Education Programs both build audiences and train musicians for the future. Working with the New York City Public Schools and youth organizations, The New York Pops provides children with free music lessons, free admission to rehearsals and concerts, and free classroom programs designed to spark the creative potential within every child."

So, if you are in the NYC area and want more info, click on one of the links above...

Or go to the GALA (and see below for a 20% discount code!!!):

New York Pops “26^th Birthday Gala”
Date: Monday, April 27, 2009
Time / Place: 7:00 PM at Carnegie Hall
Prices: Tickets available from $55 - $85 (get a 20% discount by entering the code PLAY7861, see link below)

Broadway star, Idina Menzel will be among those performing and the new musical director of the New York Pops, Steven Reineke, will be conducting.

For more information on the event and to attend the Black Tie Dinner / Dance to follow at The Pierre: www.nypops.org/html/annual_gala.php

The Online Auction launches Monday, April 20 on CharityBuzz.com:
www.charitybuzz.com/area.do?id=915

To purchase tickets: http://www.carnegiehall.org/article/box_office/events/evt_11841.html?selecteddate=04272009 (get a 20% discount by entering the code PLAY7861)