“It’s an idea that he had been floating around for years, but it has finally come to fruition,” writes Bill Brownstein in Thursday’s (12/1) Montreal Gazette (Canada). “Montreal Symphony Orchestra conductor and music director Kent Nagano, with partners from the Pointe-de-l’Île school board and l’Université de Montréal, officially unveiled on Wednesday La musique aux enfants, an ambitious and intensive music program for pre-kindergarten and kindergarten children at École St-Rémi in Montreal North…. While all 161 pre-kindergarten and kindergarten children at the school are to be given music lessons every week, a core group of 16 will be receiving three hours of lessons in piano, violin and rhythm and choral singing daily and a second group of 16 will be getting more general music instruction for an hour and a half daily. The program began to be implemented in October. It’s a three-year pilot project, with l’Université de Montréal doing an academic study of the program and publishing results. ‘The idea is really to unlock what is the potential that lies within classical music and that is really available for everyone,’ said Nagano.”
Posted December 2, 2016
Pictured: Kent Nagano holds up a drawing presented by students at École St-Remi in Montreal North. Photo by John Kenney
