I recently came across an article about Damon Albarn (of British rock fame… Blur) partnering with Oxfam to aid the poverty stricken Democratic Republic of Congo. In his latest project, Damon is working with citizens of the DRC to produce an album influenced by the music of the Congo, with all proceeds going back to the country’s people in need.
I love the idea of using music to give back to those in need and at our piano studio we regularly engage our students in charitable projects using their music. Doing so, makes our students and families feel good, and gives them a heightened purpose for practicing piano. Most recently we have held theme month concerts to support local children in need, published and sold a book of student compositions to raise money for our provincial children’s hospital, and collected items during student recitals for the local food bank.
We’d love to hear about any great ideas you may have for piano students giving back through music. I’ll leave the first idea in the comment sections below and would love for the others to share. Oh… and check out the video of Damon Albam’s project in the DRC.