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 For more information on the Young Composers Challenge (the guidelines, schedule and workshop registration) please click on the following link: www.youngcomposerschallenge.com.
The Young Composers Challenge is sponsored by Stephen Goldman, UCF-CREATE, and the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra.
The Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra is pleased to announce that The Orlando Magic Youth Foundation, a fund of the McCormick tribune Foundation, has awarded the Philharmonic a $30,000 grant to enable the orchestra to continue its Tiny Tots program, a music education series for pre-school age children.
In February 2003, the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra expanded its educational programs to include children of pre-school age. Thanks to a $10,000 grant from the Community Foundation and the Warren and Augusta Hume Fund, the Philharmonic instituted the new program, Tiny Tots. Two Orlando area pre-schools, the Winter Park Day Nursery and the Orlando Day Nursery, were selected to present this pilot project.
With the funds provided by The Orlando Magic Youth Foundation, this successful project will continue this spring. Four nursery schools are participating: The Orlando Day Nursery, Welbourne Avenue Nursery in Winter Park, Peter Pan Daycare in Orlando, and the Winter Park Day Nursery. Each nursery is a 501 (c) (3) agency.
"The Orlando Philharmonic is very proud of its high-quality Tiny Tots program," said David Schillhammer, Orlando Philharmonic Executive Director. "It is important to note that this program is not something that the Philharmonic is imposing on these day care centers. Rather, Tiny Tots was designed through a series of Focus Groups conducted by the Philharmonic and facilitated by Dr. Mary Palmer, Professor of Early Childhood Music Education at the University of Central Florida. Participants in the Focus Groups included day care leaders and teachers throughout the community. Through this process, we listened and learned the particulars of teaching this specialized age group, with the final product being of exemplary quality."
The Philharmonic's Tiny Tots program provides an introduction to the world on classical music to children of pre-school age in a format that is entertaining, educational and fun.
The Philharmonic's five-part Tiny Tots program takes place during a five-week period, with one program presented each week beginning April 14 and ending May 21. The first four programs introduce children to the specific instrument families of the orchestra - Strings, Woodwinds, Brass, and Percussion. Four Philharmonic musicians will present the first four programs, highlighting a specific instrument from each family. This year the series will focus on the clarinet from the woodwind family; the French horn from the brass family; the Double Bass from the strings family, and various instruments from the percussion family. The fifth and final program reintroduces the individual instrument families, and, through ensemble performances, demonstrates how these families work together as a group.
Each visit will be presented at the nursery school facility in the morning to accommodate the children's best time for learning. The programs will be approximately 20 minutes in length and will be repeated for age levels 2-3 years and 4-5 years.
To provide the children with a well-rounded educational experience, a packet of educational information is given to the teachers in advance of the program. Each packet contains information about the instruments and instrument families presented in the program, a vocabulary list of basic musical terms, movement exercises, book/on-line/video/CD resources, and more. Also included in the packet is a CD of orchestral excerpts that best represent the instrument families.
The Orlando Philharmonic is proud to be a pro-active leader in music education in the Central Florida community, and looks forward to bringing outstanding musical experiences to even wider audiences.
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