From our vantage
point up here on the magic carpet, it is much easier to get around all the
construction on 102 Ave. Slipping north from the Citadel over the top of
chain-link fences and construction, we find ourselves at the Francis WinspearCentre for Music. This is the Arts District, in downtown Edmonton. The history
of this particular building and the people who championed and funded it is,
like that of the Citadel, a testimony to the artistic drive and ingenuity of
people in Edmonton who thought our city was, in the words of Tommy Banks, "too
big and too good a city not to have a concert hall." Tommy Banks believed
that music has the power to change lives. The ESO and Winspear Centre believe
this too and the Tommy
Banks Centre for Musical Creativity is home to many wonderful programs,
including the Inquiring Minds Sound School.
While the music in the concert hall is on PAUSE right now,
thanks (is ‘thanks’ really the right word?) to Covid-19, the music makers are,
luckily for us, operating virtually. My hockey fan cheering self just
loves Quarantine 2020 Project: Hockey Night In
Canada - the Battle of Alberta Continues - ESO & CPO.
Amanda Banister, Associate Director of Musical Creativity, came
to the Winspear in 2013 to help launch the Youth Orchestra of Northern Alberta.
She had teaching experience with EPSB. Her introduction to Inquiring Minds came
by way of the cup of sugar borrowing neighbour, Linda Hut. Amanda was part of a
City Hall School observation and then a pilot Gr 3 one day Sound School.
Anne-Marie Switzer, Musical Creativity Program Coordinator, was
a music educator in the Pembina Hills for 10 years (when we say music educator,
we mean music and a dog’s breakfast of other things). She came to work at the
Winspear one week and found herself leading a Sound School class the next. She has
not looked back and regrets never having the chance to bring a class of her own
to this program.
Amanda and Anne-Marie agree that Sound School is much more
than the opportunity to cover a Gr 3 Science curriculum topic. This year they
took classes from Gr 2 to 6. They mention the multitude of career pathways,
concepts of Board governance, philanthropy, volunteering and women in music.
There is the current construction project to observe. The opportunities for non-music
cross curricular learning provide a veritable choose your own adventure for a
teacher to consider.
Amanda’s hidden gem is the time capsule in the lobby which is
part of the first day tour of Sound School. She enjoys talking about what is
inside, and why someone might make a promise to you and the community, to still
be here in 2095. In a beautiful circle of learning, students make a time
capsule of memories at the end of their week which they open at the end of the
school year. My heart literally sings with the deep connective power I see in
that activity.
Anne-Marie describes with relish the mystery musician
project that starts for classes before they even reach the site. Some personal items from an ESO musician visit
the class. Then on site, during the day of reveal, the items are laid out on an
orchestra poster and students speculate who they are going to meet. The
musician arrives and plays 5 notes. The silence at the sound of instrument and
the focus on that musician are evidence for Anne-Marie of the power of the
program.
The Inquiring Minds website has
this to say about Sound School:
Explore all
aspects of sound in this week spent at the Winspear Centre! You’ll get a behind-the-scenes look at
concerts and other events, with the opportunity to meet professional musicians,
sit in on an Edmonton Symphony orchestra rehearsal, and even perform
on-stage! Students will gain hands-on
experiences with a variety of instruments, will explore the acoustic properties
of Enmax Hall, and will learn about the importance that Arts and Culture have
within our community.
Look at the Sound
School webpage. https://www.winspearcentre.com/tommy-banks-centre/sound-school/
You can start your application process at the Inquiring
Minds website. https://ourinquiringminds.wordpress.com/application/
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