Summerfest Outreach Through the Years 1996 (and years following) — Outreach performances were taken to the Kansas School for the Blind in Kansas City, KS. “Students were introduced to the colors and sounds of the various instruments featured by Summerfest musicians. . .” (Supported by the Sprint Foundation.) 1999 & 2000 — Other schools visited: St. Elizabeth School in Kansas City and the Center at Scuola Vita Nuova in northeast Kansas City. Summerfest held its first week of rehearsals at the Music/Arts Institute at the Bingham Academy in Independence, MO. 2002 — Summerfest presented programs at Johnson County Public Library–Lackman Branch and Kansas City Public Library–Sion in Kansas City, also performed for children in the Nelson-Atkins Museum Sculpture Garden in celebration of the longest day of the year (6/21/03) and to focus attention on a new sculpture, “One Sun/34 Moons” installed at the museum’s north entrance. 2005 — Special concert held in DeSoto, KS to help raise money for the DeSoto High School Choir to perform at Carnegie Hall in New York City. Summerfest also performed at Bishop Spencer Place retirement center in Kansas City. 2007 — Summerfest continued performances at the Kansas School for the Blind, KCKS, Bishop Spencer Place and Kingswood Manor retirement centers in Kansas City, MO. 2009 — A Summerfest performance was held at the Kansas City Public Library–Plaza Branch. 2010 — From the Outreach page in the 2010 20th anniversary Summerfest program: “In our 20 years Summerfest has reached 20,000 children from the Jack and Jill Club of America, Music Camp students from UMKC and the Music/Art Institute in Independence, MO.” 2011 — Working with Anne Calvert, Outreach Coordinator, Summerfest began a residency at Acadamie Lafayette French Language Charter School in Kansas City. The Summerfest musicians presented instrument demonstrations for the children, showing them the violin, viola, cello, clarinet and flute. 2012 — A grant from the Francis Family Foundation permitted Summerfest to have a large presence at Alta Vista Middle School in Kansas City’s Westside neighborhood. 2013 — In the winter months, Summerfest was at the Cub Care Learning Center in Blue Springs, MO where musicians visited classrooms and demonstrated various instruments. The residency concluded with a final performance in May of works by Bach, Mozart, Vivaldi and Handel. 2014 — Summerfest visited Carver Elementary and Boone Elementary Schools in Kansas City, MO where the musicians played short excerpts of classical music. Nearly all of the children had never before seen or heard instruments such a these up close. 2015 — Summerfest performed for approximately 2000 students, staff, and families through outreach events at Jack & Jill, Carver Elementary, and Crossroads Academy. 2016 — Summerfest worked with students and faculty at Lincoln Prep to coach young musicians. Students and Summerfest musicians performed a benefit concert to raise funds for the school’s orchestra department. 2017 - In addition to working with students at Lincoln Prep, Summerfest musicians performed a variety of outreach concerts at schools, nursing homes and community organizations in the Kansas City area. 2018 - Summerfest continued its outreach programming to a number of local schools, including performances for students of Harmony Project KC. 2019 - Summerfest has presented three outreach performances, and welcomes additional requests to perform. Please contact [email protected] to request a performance. |
COMMUNITY OUTREACH
Summerfest performs community outreach events year-round to audiences that traditionally do not or cannot attend paid concert events. Our intent is to share our passion for music with audiences who would not otherwise hear live classical music. We also hope to build future audiences for classical music by introducing young children and their families to our art. Check our website for additional dates and locations.
If you are interested in scheduling a free Summerfest event for your school, residential center or community group, please contact Cory Unrein, Administrative Coordinator, 816.895.2920 or [email protected]. |