Little Hands Create String Bliss

Children ranging in age from four to 17 demonstrated their skills on violin, viola, guitar and cello at Prospect Heights High School last Saturday for the Noel Pointer Foundation's annual "PlayIn" FiddleFest.

The Noel Pointer Foundation, an arts program housed at the Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation, has nineteen teaching artists in twenty-five public schools throughout Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island.

The annual event is in its eighth year, and each year, it gets better due to more student participation and better organization, said Chinita Pointer, widow of acclaimed violinist Noel Pointer and the foundation's executive director.

She pointed out that, although most school music programs have suffered greatly due to budget cuts, the string programs, for the most part, have survived.

"I thank God from the bottom of my heart that we can still provide our services," Pointer said. "With this program, we are empowering children one note at a time and developing skills they can pass over to academics."

Councilwoman Letitia James addressed the students and parents before the beginning of the PlayIn and echoed the importance of music education in public schools.

"I can't think of anything greater than giving your tax dollars back to your children," said James. She also urged parents to get involved, as the governor attempts to make more budget cuts to arts programs in public schools.

"We need to raise our voices and recognize that the power is in this room," she said to the packed auditorium. 

The show opened with the first movement of Vivaldi's "Concerto in D Major" from the New Legacy Ensemble on guitar and strings. The most advanced players from the Saturday program played "Danse Negre," and the advanced guitar ensemble followed with "Rise and Shine." 

The FiddleFest PlayIn officially began when co-artistic director of the program Jeannie Oliver invited the students to come to the stage. The young musicians were directed to join an instructor when they heard a song announced that they knew how to play.

"These students are meeting for the first time on stage," noted Oliver. "They've been practicing the pieces separately--some since November and some starting as recently as February."

The foundation's In-School Teaching Artists stood at the front of the stage in three groups and conducted the students in "Lightly Row," "Allegro," "Old Joe Clark" and the famous French folk song "Frere Jacques," played as a round in a wildly successful experiment. 

This was the first FiddleFest for instructor Annelies Mast-Majumdar, who started teaching lessons at New American Academy in Crown Heights in September.

"There were tons of kids running around and some got a little lost, but it was still fun," she said, smiling. "Days like today are when they know why I make them practice so much." 

Mast-Majumdar emphasized the importance of music education in public schools, noting that learning an instrument can help children in a wide range of skills, such as math, reading and spatial concepts, and can help their muscle relationships.

"I know that having [music lessons] during the day at all schools is unrealistic," she acknowledges. "But even having it just after school is a big plus because it adds something to their education."

Pointer emphasized the importance of the parents' role as well.

"They get so excited to see their kids perform and it would be great if that excitement would roll over to them telling their kids to practice, study, and develop their craft," she said. "It's just so important that they become proactive in extra curricular activities and, by extension, their education."