The Midnight Mission, “Music with a Mission”
This is a monthly program dedicated to Participants of The Midnight Mission’s programs as well as members of the Skid Row community at large.
Programs
The Weingart Center, “Music for Change”
- Weekly process group with Weingart Center Association Reentry Program Supervisors and Street Symphony musical facilitators, with participants in reentry from long-term and/or life sentences in California state prisons.
- Bi-weekly participatory “music labs” are held at Street Symphony’s offices, involving professional instruction and practice.
- A quarterly presentation of collaborative music-making takes place for Weingart Center participants and staff. (Supported by a Reentry Through the Arts grant from the California Arts Council.)
Education Based Incarceration, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department
Street Symphony ensembles engage groups of male, female, and LGBT populations in monthly education-based incarceration programs at 5 facilities across Los Angeles County.
Skid Row Museum and Archive
The Skid Row Museum and Archive is held at the offices of Street Symphony at 250 S Broadway in downtown Los Angeles, performances at the Archive feature musical presentations and dialogue performed by Street Symphony ensembles and Fellows.
People Assisting the Homeless: PATH
PATH facilities throughout Los Angeles provide permanent supportive housing for our neighbors throughout LA County. Intimate musical presentations and dialogue are held around musical themes curated by Street Symphony musicians. (Supported by an “Artists in Community” grant the California Arts Council.)
Arts in Corrections
Street Symphony will provide 20 intensive workshops for incarcerated men at California City Correctional Facility. Participants in these workshops will be introduced to and engaged in pathways to explore their own creative and expressive voices within the context of musical improvisation and performance. Workshops are designed for students with interests in all genres of music across all experience levels and will emphasize finding one’s own voice and story as a means to create new works of music which will be performed and presented throughout the course of the workshops, and in a culminating performance event. (Supported by the California Arts Council “Arts in Corrections” program with California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitations.)
Projects and Initiatives
The Messiah Project
The Messiah Project presents excerpts of Handel’s beloved Messiah while also
featuring stories, music, and performances from members of the Skid Row community. Community members often serve as soloists, choristers, and participants alongside Street Symphony’s roster of professional, world-class artists. Performed at The Midnight Mission, the Project also features a series of 12-15 free workshop events for the Skid Row community and the creation of several hundred hygiene kits and amenity bags for the Skid Row community. (Supported by an “ArtWorks” grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.)
Daniel Chaney Fellows Program
This program pairs world-class artists from Street Symphony’s professional roster of vocalists, instrumentalists, and composers with artists and musicians living in the Skid Row community who have been impacted by homelessness. After an application process, Fellows receive a year of free vocal or musical instruction and are eventually featured as soloists or lead artists in the year-end Messiah Project programs. (The Daniel Chaney Fellows program is supported by a grant from the S. Mark Taper Foundation and “Artists in Community” grant from the California Arts Council.)
Street Symphony Block Party: July 12, 2019
An open-air street festival held in Skid Row held in partnership with The Midnight Mission, the Block Party will feature several community ensembles performing alongside Street Symphony’s resident Mariachi, Reggae, and choral ensembles.
Take What You Need
Created by Reena Esmail (a former Co-Composer in Residence at Teaching Artist at Street Symphony), Take What You Need aims to create a warm, safe, equitable space, where musicians and community can connect with one another, where stories can come forward, and where the foundations of a relationship can be built and nurtured. Learn more at www.twyn.info
Partners
Mercado La Paloma
Mercado La Paloma is located in the Figueroa Corridor of South Los Angeles — a neighborhood that is full of creative and hardworking entrepreneurs, community spirit, artists, musicians, and cultural traditions. The area has historically suffered from disinvestment, including a lack of quality jobs and business opportunities, quality gathering spaces, quality food, and art and cultural opportunities. Street Symphony presents musical experiences curated around programming at the Mercado for community members and cultural celebrations throughout the year.
Classical KUSC Playground Pop-Ups
Playground Pop-Ups are informal performances on playgrounds, emceed by hosts from Classical KUSC. Street Symphony chamber music and choral ensembles present performances and dialogue for young audiences in partnership with the after-school enrichment program LA’s Best, which serves nearly 200 LA Unified elementary.
Educational Partners
The Colburn School
The Colburn School partnership creates a pathway for young, emerging artists to engage with underserved communities in Los Angeles affected by homelessness and incarceration. Students receive mentorship and guidance from Street Symphony staff and musicians, Artistic Director Vijay Gupta, and Colburn faculty. Students perform for regular Street Symphony events and venues, and also have the opportunity to develop their own programs for other underserved communities in Los Angeles.