Update
September Is Classical Music Month
An Investment In The Future
As schools throughout the nation are gearing up for the new year, more than
half the states in the U.S. have included the "Classical is Cool"study guide in
their music curricula.
Developed under the auspices of the Classical Music
Coalition, this guide was made available to school systems in 10 pilot cities in 1994,
with thousands of study guides having already been distributed by local, county, and state
school systems for use in grades 3 through 8.
The five major recording companies which distribute
Classical music in the United States-- Angel Records, Atlantic Classics (WEA), BMG
Classics, PolyGram Classics, and Sony Classical -- are funding the distribution of the
"Classical is Cool" cassettes, developed for teachers' use in conjunction with
the study guide. If any NARM member is aware of teachers who would like to utilize the
study guide and cassette in their classrooms, a limited supply is still available.
Music Educator Of The Year Award
Janet Sessions, last year's president of the Arizona Music
Educators Conference and perhaps more familiar to NARM's constituency as the author of the
"Classical is Cool" study guide, was last year's recipient of the Music Educator
of the Year Award. The selection was made by members of the Classical Music Coalition.
This year, the Coalition has expanded its view of the
award, and will be accepting nominations from two sources: communities are being
encouraged to select their local Music Educator of the Year and submit that person as a
nominee for the national award; and the state presidents of the fifty chapters of the
Music Educators National Conference are asked to submit a nominee from their states. A
blue ribbon panel, consisting of representatives of the educational, arts and business
organizations which comprise the Coalition, will make the final selection. The
presentation of the Music Educator of the Year Award will be made at the NARM Convention
in March, 1996, in Washington, DC. The recipient will receive $ 1,000 and an all-expense
paid trip to the Convention.
Local groups with active "September is Classical Music
Month" programs may wish to integrate the announcement of their local Music Educator
of the Year during one of their events. A form for submitting nominees for the award will
be included in the October issue of Sounding Board.
New York City Loves Classical Music Month
The Classical Music Month logo will be everywhere in
Manhattan in September. Broadway, from 59th Street to 116th Street, will be festooned with
Classical Music Month banners, courtesy of Time Out. Posters will be displayed at the
Tourist and Visitors Bureau at Columbus Circle, in the lobby of Carnegie Hall and at
Lincoln Center. Lincoln Center's magazine and newspaper advertising for its fall season
will feature the slogan: "Lincoln Center Celebrates September is Classical Music
Month." Every major retailer -- Coconuts, HMV, J&R Music World, Nobody Beats the
Wiz, and Tower Records --will feature Classical Music Month displays. Two major events
will highlight Classical Music Month in the Big Apple.
Stars Shine at Gracie Mansion
Hundreds of members of the Classical music community
received invitations from New York City's Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and his wife, Donna
Hanover Giuliani, to a Mayors for Music reception on September 14 at Gracie Mansion,
honoring Classical Music Month.
The Mayor, well-known for his love of opera, hosted a
similar event in 1994 at New York City Hall, at which Kurt Masur, Musical Director of the
New York philharmonic, spoke. Andre Previn is scheduled to address the gathering this
year. Performing will be Eugenia Zukerman and the Shang-Hi Quartet, as well as Chee Yun
and Aldra Eguchi, Denon Records artists who have been performing for schoolchildren all
across the nation.
Most exciting, in terms of the Classical Music Coalition's
campaign to bring Classical music to the classroom, is the performance of a group of
children from Manhattan's PS-IS 217 who are part of the Adopt-A-School Program, ajoint
project of Young Audiences New York and radio station WQXR.
Lincoln Center Event Offers Classical
Sampler
On Sunday afternoon, when Lincoln Center kicks off its
single ticket sales campaign for the Great Performance Series, Classical Music Coalition
members in New York City will man a booth distributing educational material as well as a
Classical sampler, Great Performers at Lincoln Center, produced by Atlantic
Classics and funded by Atlantic and Lincoln Center. The sampler carries the Classical
Music Month logo. Potential concertgoers who order tickets by phone will hear a
"September is Classical Music Month" message throughout the month.
National Public Radio Handbook Distributed
to Assist Local Efforts
National Public Radio, a founding member of the Classical
Music Coalition, has created a handbook of promotional material and ideas through which
stations and communities may participate in Classical Music Month. The handbook was
distributed to NPR's 600 stations throughout the country. Funded by a grant from the
Charles E. Culpepper Foundation, this outreach publication includes events proven
successful last year, a Classical music quiz tailored for station use, and lists of
organizations throughout the country which may be contacted to cooperate in local efforts.
In conjunction with Connecticut Public Radio, the National
Association of Music Merchants (retailers who sell musical instruments) released the Music
Education Project to 500 public stations throughout the country. The Project contains six
8-minute radio segments focusing on music education in the schools. Stations are being
encouraged to run the series as part of their Classical Music Month and "back to
school" programming.