Washington Heights Youth orchestra

Founded in 2012 by David Gracia, Andrea Profili, Kathryn Tomlin, Jose Iglesias Carnot and Xiomara Niño; the Washington Heights Youth Orchestra currently serves 100 students. The program fills the educational gaps in the communities of Washington Heights and Inwood and forms a music education pipeline from birth through adulthood for all students. Students are accepted regardless of their ability to pay for lessons. The Washington Heights Youth Orchestra is comprised of three programs which provide group and private classes to beginners and advanced students.

  1. Early Childhood Program

  2. Musical Foundations Program

  3. Instrumental Program

Musical Foundations Program

music Play | Ages 2-4

Music Play is the entry point to the program for students ages 2-4. Students and their parents/guardians experience multicultural music in a child centered environment; allowing students to make choices individually and as a group, to explore space, to share their individual ways of moving and making music, to tell stories, to express themselves, and to develop executive functioning skills. 

Wednesdays | 4:15-4:50pm

Musicianship | Ages 5+

Musicianship serves an important role in building aural and ensemble skills. Students transition from informal learning to formal instruction. Pieces are selected according to abilities of the group and sequentially builds listening, performing, audiating, improvising, reading, and writing vocabularies.

Wednesdays | 4:15-4:50pm

Instrumental Program

Private Lessons | Ages 3+

The instrument is a tool for self-expression and developing problem solving skills. Private lessons teach children to understand and make music through a natural sequence and we teach adults how to follow the child in order to allow the child to develop his/her potential. Central to the lessons are the child's five basic needs for order, coordination, concentration, independence, and sense of belonging as outlined by Maria Montessori. 

Teachers model effective communication, organize learning into sequential steps, and guide parents to continue to build their own confidence as teachers and learners so they can serve as the home teacher. Instructors observe and make recommendations about the relationship between the parent and child in order to support the child's self-construction, independence, and lifelong love for learning. 

Ensembles | Ages 5+

Students who take private lessons at Washington Heights Youth Orchestra also participate in musical foundations and an ensemble class according to their ability. The group setting provides opportunities for students to engage in peer teaching and to learn to conduct the ensemble. We offer three levels of ensembles.

Wednesdays

Pre-Orchestra | Beginners | 5:00-5:30

Orchestra | Intermediate | 5:30-6:30

Camerata | Advanced | 6:30-7:30

Students participating in Instrumental Program are required to participate in the Musical Foundations Program.

Students participating in private lessons are required to participate in the Musical Foundations Program AND Ensembles.