Santa Barbara Symphony Children to Present Year's Final BRAVO! Concert

Local elementary students in grades four through six will present a free band and string concert at 6 pm on Monday, May 1, in the Marjorie Luke Theatre. The musicians are participants in BRAVO!, an afterschool program that provides hands-on instrument instruction to children ages 9 to 12. The Santa Barbara Symphony Music Education Center is partnering with the Santa Barbara Unified School District (SBUSD) to administer the program following its expansion last fall. The May 1 performance will be the final BRAVO! concert of the current school year.

The Marjorie Luke Theatre is located on the campus of Santa Barbara Junior High School, 721 E. Cota Street in Santa Barbara.

"This concert marks an important milestone - our first full school year under our new partnership with the SBUSD. I am very proud of our collaboration with district music teachers and all that we accomplish on behalf of children in our community," said Dr. Amy Williams, director of education and community engagement for the Santa Barbara Symphony.

BRAVO! participants take part in afterschool music classes twice a week at Santa Barbara Junior High School, and present a series of public concerts throughout the school year. In addition to the Santa Barbara Symphony, SBUSD, and the Incredible Children's Art Network, funding partners include Westmont College, the Mosher Foundation, and the Santa Barbara Bowl Foundation.

Related Santa Barbara Symphony Music Education Center initiatives include a Hope Elementary School District program for novice violin students ages 9 to 12, and a Goleta Union School District program that provides students in grades four through six with string instrument instruction (violin, viola, cello, and bass).

The Santa Barbara Symphony serves approximately 8,300 young people directly through its Music Education Center, whose programs also include the Music Van, Concerts for Young People, the Junior Orchestra, and the Santa Barbara Youth Symphony. In operation since 1978, the Santa Barbara Symphony Music Van visits third-grade classrooms in the greater Santa Barbara area between September and December, serving some 2,000 students in more than 40 schools each year. The program is the recipient of a California Teachers Association Gold Award for Outstanding Support of Public Education (2009) and a Sally Parker Education Gold Award from the League of American Orchestras (2007).

The Santa Barbara Symphony was founded in 1953 on the belief that a special city deserves a special orchestra. Consistently lauded for its unique ability to present brilliant concerts, engage the community, and deliver dynamic music education programs, the organization prizes both innovation and artistic excellence, and is widely recognized as one of the region's premier cultural institutions. Its award-winning Music Education Center serves more than 8,000 students throughout Santa Barbara County each year. Charismatic Israeli conductor Nir Kabaretti was appointed music and artistic director of the Santa Barbara Symphony in 2006. For additional information, visit www.thesymphony.org.

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