Caleb Casiano, a 13-year-old who has played in Boston’s String Training Education Program since kindergarten, rehearses with members of Emmanuel Music at Emmanuel Church for a December concert. Photo by Sydney Ko/WBUR.
In Thursday’s (12/12) WBUR (Boston), Lynn Jolicoeur reports, “To learn to play a string instrument—like the violin or cello—at a high level takes intense practice, lots of money for instruments and lessons, and ideally, involvement with an orchestra or other ensemble. Those things can be barriers for some kids—particularly children of color. And that’s part of the reason the world of classical music performance isn’t as diverse as the general population. Nearly 80% of professional orchestra musicians are white, according to a 2023 report from the League of American Orchestras. The group’s research finds just 2% identify as Black, and 5% as ‘Hispanic/Latinx.’ But an organization in Boston has long been trying to help change that. Project STEP (String Training Education Program) provides instruments and classical music training to kids from populations historically underrepresented in the field. The program, founded in 1982, is affiliated with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and is based at Symphony Hall…. The STEP students learn from and perform with professional classical musicians … Project STEP’s artistic director, Ian Saunders, said it’s important for youth of color coming up in classical music to have role models; it isn’t enough to point to the relatively small number of Black and brown people playing in professional orchestras … Project STEP leaders say all of their graduates attend college or a conservatory. And 60% then work in music as a profession.”
