Three recent graduates of the Curtis Institute of Music are working at Philadelphia schools and community centers as part of Curtis’s Community Artist Fellowship program. Nozomi Imamura (trumpet, class of 2015) is teaching music and working with ensembles at South Philadelphia High School. Imamura will also teach composition and songwriting to high school students at a learning center in North Philadelphia as part of Curtis’s partnership with Project HOME, which provides services for people experiencing homelessness. Seula Lee (violin, class of 2018) teaches group violin classes at an elementary school in North Philadelphia and works with students at a preparatory college to reintroduce a string program to elementary-level students. Nicholas DiBerardino (composition, class of 2018) is creating a children’s opera in collaboration a college-prep school to be premiered as part of Curtis’s Family Concert series. DiBerardino will perform and give workshops at Penn Memory Center and assist in research about the effects of songwriting and composition on the quality of life in patients and caregivers. Imamura’s, Lee’s, and DiBerardino’s fellowships build on existing partnerships or extend work they began as students. The Community Artist Fellowship is part of Curtis’ artist-citizen curriculum, which includes a social-entrepreneur course and community artist program.
Posted November 2, 2018
