“Students in schools throughout Milwaukee—in MPS, choice, charter and private schools—lack the instruments they need to pursue their musical dreams,” says Adam Shafer, director of development at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music. Budget cuts in education have diminished school music programs and, specifically, made it difficult for many schools to supply their students with musical instruments. The impact is especially hard on schools serving poorer households.
To address the problem, the Conservatory, which has a long history of educating aspiring musicians of all ages, is launching an Instrument Drive, collecting used instruments to distribute to children and schools in need.
“When neither school or family have the resources, the child no longer has the ability to participate in band and orchestra programs, programs which impact their intellectual, personal, familial and communal strengths,” Shafer continues. “The Instrument Drive is designed to meet this need by seeking instruments that are hidden away in closets, sitting in an attic or simply ready for a new home. An instrument is more powerful in the hands of a child than one that is sitting in a closet.”
Students, families and schools needing instruments will be able to submit applications. “The Conservatory will award instruments to the applicants based on need and inventory availability,” Shafer says.
The Conservatory’s Instrument Drive is scheduled for Sept. 22-24. For drop-off sites and more information on the drive, visit wcmusic.org/instrument-drive.
