About the Music-in-the-Schools Program
Music-in-the-Schools, (MIS) a comprehensive and interactive music education program, is the result of Music Director Barry Jekowsky's devotion to making music joyous and accessible to young people, as well as his strong belief in "The Mozart Effect" - the theory that listening to and playing classical music improves a child's ability to learn other disciplines, including science, math and language. As the only program of its kind in Contra Costa County, Music-in-the-Schools helps fill a critical gap in the school curriculum.
Each school MIS visits benefits from the extended presence of professional musicians over a four- to five-month period. The children, divided into two age groups, receive in-depth lesson, each focusing on a different family of orchestral instruments.
The California Symphony's Operations and Education Director coordinates the MIS program, while volunteers from the California Symphony Alliance act as docents and assist with programs logistics at each school.
Kindergartners and First Graders: A music specialist and a musician from the Symphony visit groups of kindergartners and first-grade students three times over the course of the school year. Sessions highlight strings, winds and percussion. Children learn to recognize patterns, play music games, and exercise to different rhythms. They are introduced to the different instruments of the orchestra and the ways in which sound is produced. All participating kindergarten and first-grade students receive an educational activity book (also available in English/Spanish).
Second through Fifth Graders: Ensembles of Symphony musicians visit groups of second- to fifth-grade students four times during the school year; sessions highlight strings, winds, percussion, and brass. The musicians offer mini concerts and lecture-demonstrations that employ an interactive approach to learning about instruments, music and music-making. A study guide is distributed to these older students, as well as to their teachers and parents.
The California Symphony is serving more than 3,500 Contra Costa County school children through Music-in-the-Schools in 2008-2009. There will be 70 site visits with up to 170 presentations. Since it began in 1992, the program has introduced the orchestra to nearly 55,000 students in 75 schools.