NCCO Education Programs
The New Century Chamber Orchestra has offered intimate classroom performances by string quartets to third, fourth and fifth grade students in the Bay Area for over ten years, covering California state arts standards in schools that cannot otherwise afford to offer arts education. These classroom concerts and discussions have given hundreds of students an invaluable introduction to classical music.
Three years ago, New Century began to bring violin lessons to two Marin County elementary schools where music is not part of the curriculum, one serving students from Marin City and the other students from San Rafael’s Canal district. Students take lessons in small groups of 3 or 4, which encourages cooperation, camaraderie and healthy competition. Teachers and students have a good working rapport, and the students show great enthusiasm for learning the violin. They have also been proud to present what they have learned at performances at school assemblies and parent nights this year.
The students succeed at the same level as their suburban peers, thanks to the experience gained in their violin lessons. The six students from San Pedro that advanced to Davidson Middle School in September all continue to play the violin in Davidson’s junior string orchestra. One of the former New Century students now serves as the concertmaster, leading the ensemble. “It was great to see him so confident and helping his fellow students,” says Education and Operations Coordinator Margaret Coote, who recently visited Davidson.
Students are not the only ones New Century serves; parents enjoy the performances and there is a budding excitement about the schools’ cultural activities. The Healthy Start survey at San Pedro School asked parents to choose a service they thought was most important for the school and/or their family. Eighty-three percent of families listed more enrichment activities, and “music performances” was the top request for new kinds of school activities. Parent responses were enthusiastic: “The one best thing about San Pedro is the musical instruction.”
As our program grows, your support is especially important. $250 underwrites bus transportation for students to attend a New Century Chamber Orchestra concert, $500 underwrites a new student violin, and $1,000 underwrites a classroom visit from New Century's string quartet.
For more information about the program, please contact Margaret Coote, Education and Operations Coordinator, at 415.357.1111, ext. 303, or mcoote@ncco.org. To contribute directly to the Education program, please contact Rachel Rossos, Director of Development and Marketing, at 415.357.1111, ext. 305, or rrossos@ncco.org.
This activity is funded in part by the California Arts Council, a state agency, and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency, as well as the Marin Community Foundation, The San Francisco Foundation, the Nina P. Brandt Fund, The Kimball Foundation, and Autodesk, Inc.
Your support is welcomed. Please click here to make a tax-deductible donation in support of our education programs or click here to contact New Century for further information.