Community Corner

Summertime Chamber Music Engages Children at Holy Innocents' Concert

Student musicians from Franklin Pond Chamber Music performed a concert for children in the Horizons Student Enrichment Program, on Tuesday. The event was presented by the Sandy Springs Society.


How do you engage a room full of children on a summer afternoon? Great music.

Student musicians from Franklin Pond Chamber Music performed a concert for children in the Horizons Student Enrichment Program, on Tuesday afternoon, at Holy Innocents' Episcopal School.

Franklin Pond Chamber Music is a year-round program for string students ages 11-19. Horizons summer program serves low-income public school students. Both programs are grant recipients of the Sandy Springs Society, which presented the event. 
 

“It introduces additional opportunities to our kids and is a means of showing them something cultural and artistic,” said Kay Watson, head of the Horizons program at HIES, in a statement.

See a brief video of the performance above. 

Several students raised their hands during the event, when Ronda Respess, founder and artistic director of Franklin Pond Chamber Music, asked who plays an instrument. 

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Flute, clarinet, guitar were some of the responses.

“What I need you to know is if you like what you hear today,” Respess told them. “Even if you don’t think you can take lessons or do a program, you can, because there’s money out there through grants for you to study. You just have to tell somebody. Don’t let anyone stop you. Go do it and practice.”

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Respress is a violinist with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.

Tuesday’s concert featured Vivian Cheng on violin; Steven Chiou and MK Guthrie on violin and viola; Ariana Mao and Clarisa Colton, an HIES student on cello. 


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