The Music Alive Program has been one of the NAC’s most far-reaching education initiatives. It connects teaching artists with children and youth in rural, Indigenous and underserved communities in Nunavut, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Atlantic Canada.
About 300 events take place every year, in partnership with artists and organizations from each region. Activities include school performances, workshops, music camps, mentoring and showcasing young artists, resource creation, teacher support, and the donation of instruments.
“I am not an experienced band teacher, and the teaching artists were very supportive,” said Glenda Lee, a teacher at Humboldt Collegiate Institute in Saskatchewan, after a band intensive last year. “The students were shocked – and so was I! – about how well they could play after the encouragement they got.”
A highlight for 2019–2020 is an Indigenous-artist led songwriting project for incarcerated women in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia in partnership with the Elizabeth Fry Society. The final work will be orchestrated and presented in concert by Symphony New Brunswick.
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The Music Alive Program is made possible by the generous support of National Partner, the Azrieli Foundation.
