GLE Music: Artists in Residence Radford University Percussion Ensemble

Four years ago, Gilbert Linkous Elementary and Harding Avenue Elementary applied for and received a $10,000 grant from the New River Valley Friends of the Roanoke Symphony for an Artists In Residence Program. Through this program, we have been able to offer our students an intensive music proram in which they have been able to work with professional musicians to learn about instruments of the orchestra. Students in second grade are followed through to fifth grade where they work with the musicians for a week each year, during their music period, to learn about the four families of orchestral instruments (strings, woodwinds, brass, and percussion). At the end of the week, students perform with the musicians in a program for the school. In addition, the musicians play for thirty minutes in the morning as students are arriving at school. This program has been very successful. For example, a student who had been very withdrawn came out of his shell and talked constantly with the musicians. Other students are taking music lessons as a result of this program. This is the last year of our four year grant. The Radford University Percussion Ensemble has been working with our fifth grade students. The Ensemble, along with students, gave a concert on Monday April 15, 2002. The Radford University Percussion Ensemble engaged our students in the exploration of keyboard percussion instruments, timpani, snare and bass drums, small accessory percussion equipment, latin percussion and other ethnic instruments (including a complete set of African Djembe drums), and inbstruments used in more pop-oriented performances. They also wove the study of musical instruments, especially those of other cultures, into other classroom activities in the daily curriculum, including social studies, geography, math, sciences, and reading and writing.

Gilbert Linkous Elementary        GLE Creativity

Last modified on May 9, 2002.