Crescendo Academy of Music provides outreach music programs to a variety of schools to ensure that all children can get involved in the world of music. Through collaboration with local groups and support provided by generous donors, Crescendo continues to share musical experiences.
To reach our most vulnerable children, Crescendo Academy of Music brings Marvelous Music to preschool programs that serve children in challenged situations. Marvelous Music is a dynamic collaboration between Crescendo Academy of Music and the Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra designed to bring music and movement activities into preschool classrooms throughout Kalamazoo County. The program provides weekly music classes with a Specialist trained in the Music Together® early childhood methodology, storybook presentations by professional musicians and a narrator, and engaging materials that go home with students to reinforce learning. The Music Together classes also model high quality music education tools for preschool teaching artists to use in other ways in the classroom. The program especially targets preschool students from at-risk households, helping to build and strengthen active participation, focus, expression, teamwork, musical aptitude, and pre-reading skills.
Marvelous Music is offered in partnership with 36 preschool classrooms in Kalamazoo County schools and community institutions serving 4 year old children, including KRESA’s Head Start and Great Start Readiness Programs, Kalamazoo Public Schools’ Pre-Kindergarten Early Education Program (PEEP), Portage Public Schools’ Great Start Readiness Program, Comstock Schools’ Great Start Readiness, Comstock Community Learning Center, and in KRESA’s Great Start Program. This program serves over 600 students from low-income families.
Major support for this collaborative program has been provided by: The Harold and Grace Upjohn Foundation, the Kalamazoo Community Foundation, PNC Foundation Grants for Great Hours, Irving S. Gilmore Foundation, Dr. William H. and Melinda L. Scott , and the Diane S. Robertson Foundation; with additional support from Robert and Judith Whaley, and with String Lessons in memory of Dorothy M. Iversen Farrell.
This zero-hour string class is for students in grades 3-5 from Indian Lake, Sunset Lake, or Tobey Elementary who wish to learn how to play the violin, viola, or cello in a group setting. Class meets twice a week before school at a central location. Crescendo provides an instructor for this class, while Vicksburg Community Schools assist with transportation of students from the class location to their home elementary schools.
Crescendo provides coaches for ensembles and sectional rehearsals for students at Loy Norrix High School and Maple Street Magnet School for the Arts, part of the Kalamazoo Public School district.
