Engaging the Community

In response to Yvonne’s question about my Day 1 post:

The NAC Orchestra’s “Reconnexions” program – as we like to call it – incorporates several components. For each tour, we offer up to 90 education events that include masterclasses, sectional rehearsals, student matinees featuring local artists, and Music Connections projects based on our composer teacher resource kits that link elementary schools together through broadband video connections. Claire Speed, our Education Director (on leave for 06-07), works almost full-time building relationships with all our partners the entire year leading up to our tour. She will have at least one and sometimes two pre-tour visits (one with an NAC musician) before the Orchestra arrives to assess the community’s needs and resources. And she will usually organize a few broadband video-conferences where students can meet our Music Director Pinchas Zukerman and some musicians from our orchestra. These steps are essential to building a strong foundation upon which to base our programs for our partners and their communities as well as post-tour planning.

After the tour, we maintain these relationships by offering broadband video masterclasses with our NAC musicians from our Hexagon studio in Ottawa to promising young artists we’ve met on tour. Broadband masterclasses are a brilliant way, Yvonne, of staying connected with those you’ve met on tour. It is also a wonderful way to bring teachers together to discuss how symphony orchestras can help their music education programs.

We also maintain our relationships by inviting promising young artists to our NAC Summer Music Institute where we can usually provide free tuition and access to outstanding international faculty. Many young artists whom we’ve met on tour will return annually. We also look for ways to feature the exceptional young artists in our local programming with the orchestra.

Of course, there is nothing better than going back to the community and having that face-to-face interaction. Funding permitted, we will send NAC musicians back into communities (often one to two years after a tour) to offer masterclasses, recitals, and school visits.

Hope this answers your questions. I’d love to hear more about your residency programs.