Giving Back: Helping Local Businesses During Shop the Block

Shop the Block is a 4-day event started by independent businesses in down town Reading, MA to encourage residence to shop locally for the holidays. The kick-off night, always a Thursday, is celebrated with special promotions, music, costumed carolers and retail open houses.

David, viola student of Karl Orvik, and his mom, Elena, perform Christmas Tunes at The Hitching Post

Creative Arts contributes to the evening with music. Our music students roam from shop to shop performing classical selections or favorite holiday tunes to delight shoppers.

Julia Parker, flute student of Judy Braude, performs at Simms Jewelers

Students also gain the experience of another performance opportunity, and many practice sight reading...another valuable skill.

Lailoo Perriello, violin student of Jenna Potts, plays holiday selections at Encore Consignment

Plus, students learn to adapt and improvise at each performance location.

Savannah Simpson, piano student of Tatyana Foaksman, performs classical repertoire at The Chocolate Truffle

Store performances are not formal, quiet concerts. Music students must focus on their playing and adapt to ambient music, shoppers and merchants talking and laughing.

Taylor Aspeslagh, piano student of Roald Wilson and vocal student of Andre Loretz-Frey, plays at Everything But The Dog

And, public performance opportunities allow us to give back to our community!

Amy Imrich performs a selection of fiddle tunes to get people in the mood to shop!

Thank you to performers and hosting stores: The Hitching Post, The Chocolate Truffle, Encore Consignment, Everything But the Dog, The Wine Shop of Reading, The Hot Spot, Olde Reading Butcher Shop and Simms Jewelers.

At the Reading Tree Lighting Festival

Our music students performed at Grumpy Doyle's pub and Reading Cooperative Bank as part of Reading's Tree Lighting Ceremony festivities! Our mission was to entertain folks!

 

Tim Sanford, student of Jenna Potts, performed classical violin pieces at Grumpy Doyle's. I think, for the majority of attendees, it was the first time they heard a solo student violin performance.

Amy Imrich performed fantastic fiddle pieces throughout the afternoon. That's a lot of fiddlin'!

At Reading Cooperative Bank, our piano students performed for families waiting in line to see Santa.

Lily Johnson performs a selection of pieces including an original composition. She takes piano lessons with Roald Wilson.

We also offered face painting...thanks to a generous donation by Artists & Craftsmen Supply (Saugus).

Taylor, also a piano and vocal student, carefully paints a Santa hat on a very patient boy.

He's concentrating hard on staying still!

Ta-da! Santa hat!

And Christmas trees...

Getting a pair of candy canes. For the record, the brushes kinda tickle and he was trying hard not to move!

We all had a great time! Thanks to our performing students, their families and our wonderful volunteers.

You made this a wonderful experience!

November 5 Student Performance Night

We hold monthly concert opportunities for students, enrolled in music and theatre, to experience and practice performing in front of an audience. Performing builds confidence but it requires doing it often, which is why we hold many performance opportunities throughout the year.
I included excerpts from our Nov 5th Student Performance Night.

Paul Maschhoff, student of Roald Wilson, performs Prelude in G Minor by Frederick Chopin

Lailoo Perriello and her violin instructor, Jenna Potts, perform Concertante in G by C. Danela

Annabelle Rie, student of Brent Erstad, performs Ode to Joy by L.V. Beethoven

Lauren and her mom, students of Brent Erstad, perform a lovely duet, the Polovtsian Dance.

Our adult students perform, too.

Here, Jeff Struble, student of Roald Wilson, plays Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans

Anson Huang, student of Roald Wilson, performs Peppermint Patty

Adrian Lin, Suzuki violin student of Jenna Potts, performs for the third time!

To end the evening instructors Brent Erstad and Jenna Potts performed a gorgeous Mozart violin and piano pieces, which was followed by a delicious post-concert reception. Thank you to performers, families and faculty for a wonderful evening!

Creative Arts at the Reading Recreation Halloween Parade

On Sunday, October 24 Reading Recreation held their annual Halloween Parade at Coolidge Middle School and invited Creative Arts to participate. Our available theatre students dressed in costume, led the Halloween Parade, and provided theatrical entertainment.

Wizard (Alexander Witham), Minnie Mouse (Kelly DiCicco), Susa List (Sally from Nightmare Before Christmas) and Jennie List (Lady Gaga) led the parade of Reading families

 Entertainment by a juggling-acrobatic-magician-clown-guy

 Then, our theatre students and Director, Angela Merrill, wrote a script, Mad Libs style, using the audience's help.

 After completing the script, brave volunteers jumped up on stage and acted out the story with the help of our theatre students.

 The Halloween Parade is the first of many new partnerships with Reading Recreation! Soon to follow are January & February workshops and February Vacation Theatre Workshop, Candyland!

A New Way to Explore Old Concepts: The Mathmatickle

I love this activity for teaching math! The Mathmatickle (Math-MA-tickle) uses multiple intelligences to teach language arts and math. A mathmatickle, or equational poetry, is a collection of statements or words combining a mathematical operation in a poetic manner.

For instance: (subject + materials + medium) x (creativity + imagination) = visual arts

Georgia O'Keefe "Red Poppy"

Mathmatickles are a great way for students to understand mathematical concepts while practicing language arts...or is it the other way around? Very interdisciplinary - I love it! Author Betsy Franco wrote a great children's book with many mathmatickles: check it out at your local library.

If your child or student has trouble with either these two subjects, try a Mathmatickle!

Scenes from the Community Arts Festival

The Cultural Connection and Creative Arts held the first Community Arts Festival on Oct 2nd to unite Reading's cultural and artistic organizations.

The event was open to the public. Activities included demonstrations, music instrument petting zoo, performances, activities and information booths.

 Percussion instructor, Joshua Jade, mans the instrument petting zoo. Here, he encourages his daughter to explore a violin.

While public numbers were low (despite a ton of advertising), participating arts organizations had a blast networking!

 We had wonderful music and theatrical performances!

 Family trio from Reading Civic Concert Band

Student from Alpha Omega on the acoustic guitar. He was great!

Guitar & vocal instructor, Mark D. Troiano, provided music for those milling in the info booth hall.

Fiddle instructor, Esther Friedman, fiddled away on the main stage!

Quannapowitt Players performance: Velma and company performer All That Jazz

Billy Flynn: All I Care About is Love!

And let's not forget about the art show:

And this is just a selection. Great show...thanks to Creative Arts instructors, students and volunteers. Many thanks to our performers, sponsors and booth contributors!

Be A Part of the Arts!

I really enjoyed reading this article about the Arts as an important component of human psychology or, more importantly, the fundamental - almost basal - need to CREATE and imagine.

Think about it.

We require our creative thinking abilities everyday...in school...getting dressed...planning the week...making breakfast/lunch/dinner...at work...playing video games....We are creative everyday.

Like the article enumerates, during tough times, we crave self expression and entertainment.

We listen to music to free ourselves, to relax, to workout, to focus. We doodle - even if it's the 3D cube. We write, we journal, take pictures and play Scrabble and Chess. We like putting complementary colors and patterns together, well, almost. A specific memory comes to mind of my first self-dressing experience at age 3 (think stripes, polka-dots and a pink tutu).

Though artists and teachers of the Arts may not save the world (as this article indicates), they can save us by encouraging self expression and channeling our emotions, which can be quite healing. In the end, everyone needs a creative outlet.