FALL 2009
A special thank you to...
for their generous grant, which was desperately
needed and came at the perfect time!
As many of you know, funding for the arts
has dried up... You may have read this - the PA senate came up with a bill proposing
to cut all arts funding for PA state programs.
How nice of them to think of us.... 
(They also want to cut the funding for the
autism program they JUST STARTED THIS YEAR,
but that's another gripe for another day).
Now, we hear that the Philadelphia Free Library
will close many of their branches, including
the main library on Logan Circle, if the
budget isn't passed by the beginning of October.
But I digress...
SO...because of this, we are going to expand
our focus a bit more.
What seems to be "hot" right now
for funding are the Latino community, and
the special needs community, both of which
are growing rapidly in Chester County. We
have been very active in providing instruments
to students in schools with a large Hispanic
population, but I would like to kick the
Special Needs program into gear. So please
keep checking back!
Our main problem with working within the
Hispanic community has, of course, been the
language barrier. Students move, parents
do not know how or forget to contact us when
they do, and sometimes they don't even tell
the schools. We are working on an application
and a contract in Spanish - recipients would
be provided with and expected to sign both.
This should make it easier for the teachers
to explain it to the parents, and also for
the parents to understand what is expected
of them and their child.
Good Reasons to Stick With Your Instrument:
1) High school musicians get more scholarships than those who participate solely in sports, because they get more all-around or academic
scholarships in addition to those for music.
It's true!
Why? In addition to the cultural and artistic
value, you also have physical involvement.
Practicing your instrument regularly is also
a form of responsibility and commitment which
shows them a sense of discipline and personal
development! And music students have better
test scores.
2) Parents know where their kids are at night
(band practice!)
3) The social benefits! You already have
a group of kids to hang out with. You can
move to an entirely new location (including
as an adult) and find a community orchestra
or band, and meet people with common interests!
4) There are many health benefits from playing music.
5) It's FUN. ALL music is fun.
Instrumental Solutions believes you should
get to keep your instrument if you graduate
and are still playing. Playing an instrument
is not the same as singing in a choir - your
instrument is, in a a very real sense, a
part of you, it is personal on a different
level and for us to take it back would be
like taking your "baby!"
I always tell my students that they don't
have to major in music. What is important
is that you benefit from your experience
- you develop an appreciation or a love for
music, and you don't just drop it after you
graduate. Music is always a part of you once
you've taken part yourself! And then you
pass that on to your children....
To That End...
Shameless Plug. :)
Or - want to play in my clarinet choir? Email me.
