From April 27 to May 1, students in the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra’s free Sympatico music education program participated in online workshops, created during the pandemic by Daniel Trahey, who is artistic director of the Baltimore Symphony’s OrchKids Program and has served as consultant to Sympatico since it launched in 2013. Upper-level students participated in a one-week pilot workshop via Zoom, and students from the Sympatico ensembles at John Adams Elementary School learned skills including body percussion, composition, and improvisation. Students learned how to create music at home; composed spoken-word rap works; created melodies and rhythms through improvisations; and shared creative ideas as solos with the group. In addition to music-making, the students learned mindfulness and participated in exercises to promote both mental and physical wellness. “We expect this pilot week to be a great success, and we’ve already planned two more week-long sessions with a larger group of students in mid-May,” said Alexandria Symphony Board President Melynda Wilcox. “I am very proud that we can provide these workshops during these challenging times.”
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