Media Release

Media Release Oct 2011 (300.8 KB)

Release
For Immediate Release

HAMILTON MUSIC COLLECTIVE EXPANDS PILOT PROJECT
AN INSTRUMENT FOR EVERY CHILD (AIFEC)
TO THREE ELMENTARY SCHOOLS IN HAMILTON

Internationally renowned, award-winning artists Emma Rush and  Zimfira Poloz join AIFEC Faculty as instrumental instructor and guest performer
  

October 19, 2011 -  An Instrument for Every Child (AIFEC), the successful Hamilton inner-city free music program for children in Grades 1 through 4, is expanding to two additional Hamilton schools for the 2011-12 program, Dr. Edgar J.E. Davey elementary school and Holy Name of Jesus elementary school .
As the program enters phase two of the pilot project at King George Elementary School, The Hamilton Music Collective is pleased to announce the appointment of five additional, highly qualified AIFEC instructors, among them guitarist Emma Rush, winner of the 2011 City of Hamilton Arts Award, and guest instructor  Zimfira Poloz, Artistic Director of the Hamilton Children’s Choir.
 
Said Ms. Rush, “I'm so pleased to be a part of the AIFEC program, especially in the project's exciting second year.  Much of my early music education came through different school programs so I know first-hand the incredible impact that these kinds of initiatives can have.  Making music enhances our lives in so many ways - as a means of personal development and expression and as a way of connecting with those around us.  The excitement the children in the AIFEC program have about their new instruments and learning to use those points to the success of this remarkable endeavour.”

With the appointment of  Ms. Zimfira Poloz as a guest instructor, AIFEC will put a strong emphasis on vocal instruction and singing. Said Ms. Poloz, “AIFEC is a great program and an idea we strongly support. Every child has an inherent musical talent and I am thrilled to share my knowledge as a choir instructor with the instructors and students of this life changing program.”
 
The Hamilton Music Collective is a partner and founder of An Instrument for Every Child, a visionary music project aimed at providing elementary school children with the opportunity to learn to play a musical instrument.  Hamilton is the first city in Canada to offer this free musical education program to students starting in Grade 1.  AIFEC, in partnership with the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra and the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board, was started in September 2010 with Grade 1 students at King George School after a $125,000 seed grant to fund the program was donated by Hamilton philanthropist, Paul Lloyd.   AIFEC is modeled on a similar program in Germany and on the El Sistema Program in Venezuela.
 
An Instrument for Every Child follows students from Grades 1 through 4.  In the first year (Grade 1) elementary school children are introduced to a variety of instruments by an AIFEC instructor and receive forty minutes of in-class music lessons each week.  In the second year (Grade 2), students choose the musical instrument that they want to play. The instrument is on a free loan basis for the next three years (grades, 2, 3 and 4) with the students attending free after school weekly music lessons as part of the program.
 
The Hamilton Music Collective gratefully acknowledges the support of the program’s sponsors:  Paul Lloyd, President Pasword Protection, The Hamilton Community Foundation, Arcelor Mittal Dofasco, Turkstra Lumber, Corus Entertainment, The Hamilton Spectator and OKD Marketing.
 
For more information about An Instrument for Every Child, or if you would like to make a donation, please visit www.aninstrumentforeverychild.ca <http://www.aninstrumentforeverychild.ca>  <http://www.aninstrumentforeverychild.ca> .   Media Contact:  Allyson Wenzowski, Publicity Works, 905-379-73