Nearly 11,000 Children Perform with the Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra in Six LINK UP Concerts, Beg. Today

Today, April 8 and April 9 and 10, nearly 11,000 of the region's third, fourth and fifth grade students will make their debut playing with the Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra at Veterans Memorial Auditorium in Providence. The six Link Up concerts are the culmination of a year of school-based music education with the Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra and Music School's FLEX program (Foundations in Learning Exploration). The Philharmonic seeks to serve every elementary student in the state within five years.

2014 marks the Philharmonic's third season of Link Up, developed by Carnegie Hall's Weill Music Institute. Providing instruments, curriculum materials and professional development to schools, Link Up culminates in concerts where students play along with the Philharmonic - not just for the finale, but for 75% of the program. The program started in 2012 with seven thousand children participating; this year, nearly eleven thousand children will play in six concerts, titled "The Orchestra Rocks." Funding for Link Up comes primarily from businesses, foundations and individuals.

"Link Up will serve almost 11,000 students and their teachers this year, and that number would easily double if additional funding were available," said David Beauchesne, executive director of the RI Philharmonic Orchestra and Music School. "Rhode Island and surrounding communities want and need quality music education, and our partners the Hasbro Children's Fund, TACO/The White Family Foundation, the Rhode Island State Council on the Arts, and the Victoria AlvitiMusic Foundation, along with many others, share our goal: to provide five years of quality music education to every elementary student in the state. A robust elementary school music program will pay off at every level; it prepares students for existing programs in middle and high schools, encourages administrators and parents to advocate for music in our schools, and improve academic achievement across the board."

"The Philharmonic has been presenting education concerts since 1946," said Annette Mozzoni, the Philharmonic's Director of Education and the Music School. "Performed by the full Philharmonic Orchestra at the Veterans Memorial Auditorium in Providence, these concerts are the first introduction, for many students, to music played by a large group of people on many different instruments. Our partnership with Carnegie Hall takes these concerts a big step further: Link Up unites the classroom with the concert hall, in a curriculum aligned with national standards for music learning."

FLEX is designed in consultation with area teachers and administrators to complement existing in-school programs, while making use of the distinctive resources of the Philharmonic Orchestra and Music School. Its three components are:

1. Listen Up: a five-year music listening program based on curricula that have been successfully implemented in elementary schools throughout the United States and Canada. Five-minute musical selections - chosen from the work of thirty composers spanning four centuries - are played in all of a school's classrooms daily for a week. Each is preceded by informational scripts whose aggregate provides both a foundation for the experience and a stepping stone for further exploration. The program requires a minimum of teacher preparation and direction: schools receive five years of scripts and recordings, as well as professional development and assessment tools.

2. Link Up: Designed by Carnegie Hall's Weill Music Institute, the program provides recorders and workbooks for third, fourth and fifth graders, and a hands-on curriculum that teaches the basics of music and music making through performance and creative work. Aside from music literacy, the curriculum includes interdisciplinary lessons with historical and cultural contexts, and a math exercise where students "score" melodies based on intervals. When students attend the culminating concert, they bring their instruments and become members of the orchestra - not just for the finale, but for 75% of the concert.

3. Phil Up: Intended to follow students previously participating in Listen Up and Link Up as they move into middle and high school, Phil Up provides artist residencies and ensemble workshops, customized for each school's needs, to complement existing music programs and infuse music across the curriculum.

FLEX benefits the community, both now and in the long term. Students gain: basic music literacy; singing and/or recorder proficiency; exposure to the symphonic music tradition; and increased interest in music and the music-making process. "In the big picture," said Mozzoni, "in-depth involvement in the arts leads to stronger academic achievement, higher graduation rates, loftier career aspirations, and greater civic engagement - particularly in underserved children. Teacher success and job satisfaction are strengthened, as well."

FLEX Sponsors include:

Rhode Island State Council on the Arts Carnegie Hall / Weill Music Institute

The Rhode Island Foundation Hasbro / Hasbro Children's Fund

Amgen Taco / The White Family Foundation

Bank of America TD Bank

National Endowment for the Arts Collette Vacations

Citizens Bank The Vets Foundation

The Jeffrey Osborne Celebrity Classic The Carter Family Charitable Trust

The Victoria Alviti Music Foundation The Grant Sherburne Fund

June Rockwell Levy Foundation Mary Dexter Chafee Fund

Frederick C. Tanner Fund Rhode Island Music Educators Association

The John Clarke Trust Navigant Credit Union

The 24 Hour Music Project The Pacifica Foundation

Staples Ms. Lisa Bisaccia and Robert Naparstek, MD

The Szostak Family Foundation Mr. and Mrs. Richard Higginbotham

Mr. and Mrs. Raymond F. Murphy, Jr.

CONCERT PARTICIPATION, BY DATE

Tuesday April 8, 9:45

Riverside: Waddington Elementary

Swansea, MA: E.S. Brown School

Pawtucket: Henry J. Winters School, Curvin-McCabe Elementary, Baldwin Elementary

Central Falls: The Learning Community Charter School

Cumberland: Blackstone Valley Prep Elementary School 2

North Providence: Marieville Elementary, Whelan Elementary

Exeter, W. Greenwich: Metcalf Elementary

Providence: The French American School

Tuesday April 8, 11:30

Woonsocket: Kevin K. Coleman Elementary, Harris Elementary

Franklin, MA: Parmenter Elementary

Cranston: Gladstone Street School, Pumpkin Patch Early Learning Center

Pawtucket: International Charter School

Providence: Reservoir Avenue Elementary

West Warwick: Horgan Elementary

Bristol, Warren: Hugh Cole Elementary

Warwick: Cedar Hill Elementary

Putnam, CT: Putnam Middle School

Coventry: West Coventry Elementary

Central Falls: Ella Risk

Cumberland: Blackstone Valley Prep Elementary School 1

Wednesday April 9, 9:45

Providence: Community Preparatory School

Acushnet, MA: St. Francis Xavier

Lincoln: Lincoln Central Elementary, Lincoln Lonsdale Elementary

Pawtucket: Agnes Little Elementary, Potter Burns Elementary, Cunningham Elementary

Swansea, MA: Luther Elementary

Central Falls: Calcutt Middle School

Middletown: Gaudet Learning Academy

East Greenwich: Our Lady of Mercy

Wednesday April 9, 11:30

Berkley, MA: Berkley Community School

Cranston: Edgewood Highland Elementary, William R. Dutemple Elementary, Eden Park Elementary, Edward S. Rhodes Elementary

Woonsocket: Globe Park Elementary, Leo Savoie Elementary, Bernon Heights Elementary

North Providence: Greystone School

Providence: Harry Kizirian Elementary, Paul Cuffee School

Coventry: Washington Oak Elementary

East Providence: Sacred Heart School

Thursday April 10, 9:45

Providence: Robert L. Bailey Elementary, Lillian Feinstein School at Sackett Street

Pawtucket: Fallon Memorial School, Varieur Elementary, Nathaniel Greene Elementary, Flora S. Curtis Elementary

North Kingstown: West Bay Christian Academy

Westport, MA: Westport Elementary

Cranston: Arlington Elementary

Warwick: Greenwood Elementary

Thursday April 10, 11:30

Cumberland: Blackstone Valley Prep Elementary School 1

Woonsocket: Citizens Memorial Elementary

Franklin, MA: Oak Street Elementary, JFK Elementary

Providence: Carl Lauro Elementary, Anthony Carnevale Elementary, Harry Kizirian Elementary

Coventry: EnrichRI Homeschool Group

Central Falls: Veterans Memorial Elementary

Plainville, MA: Beatrice Wood Elementary

ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION

The Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra & Music School is the largest fully integrated orchestra and music school in the United States. Our mission is to enrich and transform Rhode Island and our region through great music performance and education.

2013-2014 is the Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra's 69th Season, Music Director Larry Rachleff's 18th with the Orchestra. The season includes an eight-concert Classical Series with a roster of world-renowned guest artists that includes pianists Alon Goldstein, Cecile Licad, Jean-Philippe Collard and Robert Levin, violinists Jennifer Frautschi and Philippe Quint, cellist Colin Carr, and guest conductor Michael Christie. Our Amica Rush Hour Series offers an early start time - 6:30pm - on four Fridays (October 18, November 15, March 21, April 11). These shorter, informal, accessible classical concerts feature full performances of select repertoire from the Saturday Classical concerts. Our four Open Rehearsals, on Fridays at 5:30pm(September 20, January 17, February 21, May 9), offer audience members insight into the collaboration between the conductor, guest artists and orchestra musicians as they prepare for the upcoming classical concert. Special events include the perennial holiday favorite Handel's Messiah with The Providence Singers on Saturday, December 7 at 7:00pm. Resident Conductor Francisco Noya conducts Handel's Messiah, our Education Concerts and our Summer Pops Concerts.

Now in its 26th year, the Rhode Island Philharmonic Music School serves approximately 1,500 children, youth and adults every week with lessons, classes, ensembles and community partnership programs, and an additional 13,000 students annually through partnerships, residencies, education concerts and in-school performances. Ensembles include five youth orchestras, two wind ensembles, eleven jazz ensembles and many chamber music ensembles and the RI Philharmonic Community Orchestra for adults. Information is available at www.riphil.org.

TICKETS AND DISCOUNTS

Tickets may be purchased 24/7 on the Philharmonic website: www.riphil.org/tickets. Tickets may also be purchased at the Philharmonic box office at 667 Waterman Avenue, East Providence, by phone (401.248.7000) or in-person Monday?Friday 9am?4:30pm. On Open Rehearsal and Amica Rush Hour Fridays, ticket sales are also available at The Vets box office, from2:00pm and 2:30pm respectively until showtime. On Saturday concert days, tickets are available onsite at The Vets box office from 3:30pm until showtime, or by calling 401.248.7000.

Ticket prices start at $15 for adults, with discounts in selected areas of the hall for full?time students and groups. Rush Hour concert tickets range from $15 to $50. Additional facilities and handling fees apply. Tickets for Open Rehearsals are $15, inclusive of fees, and are general seating. There is free parking for all Philharmonic concerts at designated lots along Smith Street. For Saturday evening concerts, the Philharmonic provides free shuttle service to and from the parking lots before and after the concerts.

UPCOMING RHODE ISLAND PHILHARMONIC CLASSICAL CONCERTS

• LEVIN PLAYS MOZART - On Saturday April 12 at 8pm, Music Director LARRY RACHLEFF and the Orchestra perform with Mozart expert and pianist ROBERT LEVIN in a concert featuring MOZART's Piano Concerto No.20, IVES' The Unanswered Question, and SHOSTAKOVICH's Symphony No.5.

There will be an AMICA RUSH HOUR performance of select movements from MOZART'S Piano Concerto No.20 and SHOSTAKOVICH's Symphony No.5, along with a RIPYO side?by?side performance of BEETHOVEN's Coriolan Overture,Friday April 11 at 6:30pm.

• SEASON FINALE! BEETHOVEN WITH ALON GOLDSTEIN: On Saturday May 10 at 8pm, Music Director LARRY RACHLEFF and the Orchestra conclude the Classical season with returning pianist ALON GOLSTEIN and the PROVIDENCE SINGERS in a performance of BEETHOVEN'S Piano Concerto No.1 and RAVEL's Daphnis et Chloé Suites 1 & 2.

An Open Rehearsal will be held Friday May 9 at 5:30pm.

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