Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
United Arts grant recipient 2004-2005
CONNECT Program

Today the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra’s CONNECT program is celebrating its’ eleventh season in the Twin Cities public schools. CONNECT (Chamber Orchestra’s Neighborhood Network of Education, Curriculum and Teachers) was developed by the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra’s musicians to bring arts education to Twin Cities public schools.

The CONNECT program is a partnership between The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra and 17 urban Minneapolis and St. Paul public schools and is provided at no cost to 6,000 elementary and middle school students each year. The program curriculum includes school visits and one-on-one interaction with SPCO musicians and Cultural Partners (local artists with various cultural backgrounds); teacher-led classroom discussions; quarterly student newsletters; selected classroom resources such as fine art reproductions and compact discs; and a special concert given by the full Chamber Orchestra for CONNECT students and their families.

Teachers and parents continue to sing the praises of CONNECT, particularly emphasizing the tremendous impact the classroom visits have on the children in creating interest and enthusiasm for music.

Please visit www.spco.org for more information.

SPCO Trombonist Tom Ashworth plays for third and fourth grade students at Seward Montessori School in Minneapolis. On the table are two other instruments – an Australian didgeridoo and a homemade “hose-a-phone,” which Ashworth uses show students that they can create and play their own instruments at home.

©2004 COMPAS, Suite 304, 75 Fifth Street West, St. Paul, MN 55102-1496
651-292-3249 • Fax: 651-292-3258 • Email UNITED ARTS