Newtown Friends Of Music Has Received A

Meserve Grant For School Outreach Programs

Ellen K. Parrella, the president of Newtown Friends of Music (NFoM), has announced that The Albert Wadsworth & Helen Clark Meserve Memorial Fund has awarded a grant in the amount of $3,810 to support the two school outreach programs planned by NFoM for 2004.

The first of these programs will take place in February, when the music students at Newtown High School will participate in an instructional session discussing the composers Beethoven, Hindemith and Mendelssohn; attend, free-of-charge, the concert performed by The Pacifica Quartet on Sunday, February 22, at Edmond Town Hall; and then attend a morning-long workshop with the artists of The Pacifica Quartet on Monday, February 23, at the high school. The workshop will involve three groups: the Symphonic Orchestra; the String Ensemble; and the Chamber Group.

Michelle Hiscavich, the director of music for the Newtown School System, was instrumental in arranging for the students to be available at these times. She expressed her appreciation that Newtown Friends of Music continues to provide Newtown students with the extraordinary opportunity to interact with and learn from world-class musicians.

“I feel very strongly that these school outreach programs are an invaluable addition to the school curriculum and make a lasting impact on the students,” said Ms Hiscavich.

The second school outreach program in 2004 will take place in April and will be for students of Reed Intermediate School. At that time students in Mardi Smith’s classes will study the composers Beethoven, Brouwer and Dvorak, learn about string quartets, and become educated in decorum at classical music concerts; attend the concert by The Cavani String Quartet on Sunday, April 25, as guests of Newtown Friends of Music; and then) interact with the artists in a workshop the following day.

Ms Smith said recently she feels “elated that [her] students will have the opportunity to learn from world renowned musicians and that it will make an unforgettable impression on the young music students and encourage their talents and widen their horizons.”

Newtown Friends of Music have presented classical music concerts for over 25 years and have offered two school outreach programs every year for the past three years. The opportunity has rotated among all the grades of music students in Newtown.

Almost all of the costs have been borne by Newtown Friends of Music with additional funding from a grant by Connecticut Commission on the Arts and through a fundraiser concert in December 2001.

Launched in 2000 in conjunction with NFoM’s 2000-01 season, the collaboration between the music organization and the music department of Newtown’s public schools system allows secondary level students to preview and prepare for master classes based on intersections of the school curriculum and the music being performed in NFoM-sponsored concerts.

In past seasons Newtown students have had the opportunity to learn from and work with The Alexander String Quartet, The American Brass Quintet, The Ying Quartet, and the violinist Judith Ingolfsson and the accompanist (and Ms Ingolfsson’s husband) Ronald Sat, among others.

The recent award represents the first award given by The Albert Wadsworth & Helen Clark Meserve Memorial Fund to NFoM. The memorial fund was established in 1983. It is a legacy of the late Mr and Mrs Albert W. Meserve, with a mission to support a wide range of public, charitable and educational projects and organizations that have an impact on the greater Danbury area.

Newtown Friends of Music received its grant based on a number of pertinent factors:  A project aimed at identifiable recipients and with measurable benefits and which strengthens an organization’s capacity to provide services, among others.

For details on the concerts being sponsored by Newtown Friends of Music in February and April, both of which are open to the public, call 426-6470 or visit www.NewtownFriendsOfMusic.org.

NFoM is also sponsoring a concert by the pianist Melvin Chen on March 21.

The website also offers photos of past concerts, critical reviews, and photographs of past school outreach programs.