Emma Willard student helps orchestra cash in
$25 Ggrant to help programs in Troy, Schenectady
ALBANY, N.Y. » A student at Emma Willard School who is also a violinist with the Empire State Youth Orchestra worked with leaders of that nonprofit organization to successfully secure a $25,000 grant to expand a successful music program in Schenectady schools and an innovative music project she created at the Hope 7 Community Center in Troy.
Ava Doyle, a senior at Emma Willard School who lives in Slingerlands, found out about the 3M grant through a neighbor who attended an instrument drive at her home over the summer. Doyle approached Becky Calos, executive director of orchestra, about the grant, and they teamed up to secure the funding, which will be shared between the the Creating Harmony, Inspiring Musical Excellence (CHIME) program in Schenectady and her Hope 7 program.
“The grant award of $25,000 will allow us not only to provide the needed instruments, stands and music to support the work being done at Hope 7, but comes at a crucial time in CHIME’s expansion in Schenectady,” Calos explained. “This season, we are nearly doubling the number of students in CHIME and opening two new sites. The funds allow us to purchase the necessary stands and equipment needed for the new sites as well as to provide higher quality instruments for our more advanced CHIME musicians.”
CHIME provides young musicians in the Schenectady City School District an experience beyond traditional school music instruction. When the orchestra launched CHIME in Schenectady in 2015, Doyle was interested in becoming a mentor, but because Emma Willard is some distance from Schenectady, she was unable to participate. Unfazed, though, she initiated an independent music project in the spirit of CHIME at Hope 7, a community center within walking distance of Emma Willard. By the 201617 school year, Doyle had been joined by a few classmates and was providing weekly string lessons to 12 children.
“We are so proud of Ava for her work with younger musicians,” said Helen Cha-Pyo, the orchestra’s music director. “At ESYO, we strive to inspire each of our students to not only be great musicians, but to be fantastic citizens in their own communities. Ava is not only giving back to others, but she is truly shaping lives through music.”
ESYO was able to secure rental instruments for her at a reduced cost through a partnership with John Keal Music Co., but more instruments were needed to help improve Doyle’s program.
“My students have often been required to share violins,” Doyle said, “and not only is this not practical when they try to practice, but it is also a little heart-
breaking for the children who want their own instrument. This grant will allow me to provide a perfectly sized violin to every burgeoning musician who wants one, and they will finally get to fully experience an uninhibited connection with their instrument.”
Doyle visits Hope 7 once a week with classmates who share a love of music. They teach a group of younger students for 45 minutes, followed by older, more advanced students. They go over scales, note reading and pitch training and then work on individual pieces.
ESYO plans to bring the CHIME program in Troy in 2018 and will integrate the students from Hope 7.
“We have experienced remarkable success with CHIME in Schenectady and have already seen over a dozen students successfully audition into ESYO’s performing ensembles,” Calos explained. “We are excited to bring this incredible program to Troy and broaden access to instrumental music training to more students throughout the Capital Region.”
In addition to the 3M grant, the orchestra recently secured $ 40,000 in annual general operating support through the New York State Council of the Arts for the next three years, beginning in January 2018.