Saturday (6/2) on the NPR blog Deceptive Cadence, Jeff Lunden writes, “What would it be like if you were 10 years old and composed a piece of music that was played by the New York Philharmonic? For a few New York City school kids, including one fifth-grader, it’s a dream come true, thanks to the orchestra’s Very Young Composers program. Composer Jon Deak, who played bass with the New York Philharmonic for more than 40 years, says the idea for Very Young Composers came when he and conductor Marin Alsop visited an elementary school in Brooklyn several years ago. … Each year, 72 lucky kids in six New York area schools participate in this free after-school program. … On a Tuesday afternoon in January, 12 kids have gathered in music teacher Paul Trust’s classroom at P.S. 39 in Park Slope, Brooklyn, to start their musical journey. Teaching artist and composer Daniel Felsenfeld begins by getting them in sync with the rhythms he’s clapping. Over the next 12 weeks, each of these kids will learn some of the rudimentary elements of composition. … Deak says the central idea of the Very Young Composers program is to tap into the kids’ creative spirit without getting in the way.”
Posted June 4, 2012
