The National Association for Music Education is once again celebrating “Music In Our Schools Month” in March. To help focus attention on creating the next generation of musicians, Vincent James, founder of Keep Music Alive, has announced the second annual “Teach Music America Week” to be celebrated March 21 to 27. Keep Music Alive was formed to support music and music education.
During the week, musicians and music teachers are asked to offer at least one new student a free, 30-minute lesson. Keep Music Alive is also asking aspiring music students (young and old) to find a musician or music teacher participating in “Teach Music America Week.”
Why is this important? Sometimes the biggest hurdle to anything is just getting started. Keep Music Alive believes that by encouraging musicians, music teachers and potential students to reach out to each other during March, many will continue to teach, learn and share music with each other long after the month is over. The organization’s goal is to get as many new students as possible to begin learning how to play a musical instrument.
“The purpose of ‘Teach Music America Week’ and Keep Music Alive is to help remind us how important and valuable music is and all the reasons why,” says James. “By sparking musical interest in these new students, we will collectively help ensure that quality new music is created for future generations. As an added bonus, we will also be helping to develop their minds for many successful careers outside the arts.”
James cites cuts in music and arts education, the switch from CD/MP3 sales to streaming and fewer live music venues as factors leading music down a troubling path. He says the Keep Music Alive mission is an attempt to push back so that future generations will continue to enjoy quality new music.
Last year Keep Music Alive published the book “88+ Ways Music Can Change Your Life,” featuring over 150 inspirational music stories and quotes from musicians, music educators and music lovers from all over the world, including a number of celebrities.
