Provide Music Classes for Students in Harlem

After a successful start to the 2012-13 academic year, selected students from Opus 118's four performance ensembles in our After-School Program played at Symphony Space following a screening of the 1995 documentary Small Wonders, which tells the story of Opus 118's founding. Other students performed for family members, friends, and their teachers in the first Recital Hour concerts of the year. These performances are valuable opportunities for our students to learn performance skills and to receive verbal and written feedback from faculty members on their progress.

This fall, Opus 118 Harlem School of Music was also featured in the New York Daily News because of our strategic partnership with a leading arts institution in New York City, Kaufman Center. Both organizations have joined around a common goal of providing affordable, high-quality music education to students of all ages. Under this agreement, Opus 118 remains an independent entity from Kaufman Center and continues to serve the East Harlem community. This partnership gives Opus 118 much-needed administrative support, allowing us to devote more resources to delivering the programs our students and their families rely on.

We have also seen early support of this partnership from many individuals and foundations, including a $55,000 pledge in matching funds from the New York Merger, Acquisition and Collaboration Fund. New or increased donations made before December 31, 2012 will be eligible for a dollar-for-dollar match from NYMAC. Any gift you make at this time will help continue the lessons and performance opportunities offered in our After-School Program to students that might not otherwise have access to music education. Thank you for your past support and we look forward to keeping in touch.

• New York Daily News article (PDF)
  

After a successful End-of-Year Concert (see photo) and summer, Opus 118 is gearing up for another exciting year! After-School Program classes officially begin on October 1st and as we begin the 2012-13 school year, we are thrilled to continue to share space with one of our longtime In-School Program partners in East Harlem. This current location allows us to continue to operate in the community we serve, while we look for a new permanent home. 

Our After-School Program offers affordable high-quality music instruction for students of all ages. Opus 118's expert bilingual faculty provides private, partner, and group lessons for the following instruments: violin, viola, cello, guitar, and piano. Students have the opportunity to participate in one of four auditioned ensembles, all of which regularly give back to the community through performances at local events, cultural institutions, and hospitals. Our youngest students (ages 2 to 5) learn through interactive, improvisational music-making in our Music Within classes. The curriculum used in these classes was developed by Sara Zur, Ph.D. especially for Opus 118.

As you know, your continued support helps underwrite the costs of these lessons and classes. This ensures that students who would not otherwise have access to music education can learn in an environment that nurtures creativity and excellence. We look forward to updating you on our progress throughout the year!