New York, NY (Top40 Charts / Custom Computer Specialists) Custom Computer Specialists, Inc. ("Custom"), a leading IT services provider, announced that they arranged for members of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra ("RPO") to work with young musicians at the Thornton High School Performing and Visual Arts
Magnet Program to compose and perform original pieces of music. Inspired by the themes of the school's program: civil rights, art as a weapon, and/or art for art's sake, four musicians and a specialist workshop leader from the RPO conducted creative workshops with the students to compose rhythms, melodies and harmonies in keeping with the program's themes.
"We are extremely fortunate to be able to bring the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra from London to Mount Vernon City School District's Thornton High School, which we chose for this program as their commitment to providing an educational experience to students passionate about art aligns closely with the goals of the Creative Composition Project," said Gregory Galdi, President and CEO of
Custom Computer Specialists. "While our company focus is to improve student learning outcomes through the implementation of technology, we must not forget the importance of creativity and the arts."
Huw Davies, Deputy Managing
Director of the RPO, said, "We were delighted to be invited to work with the Mount Vernon City School District. This type of creative work is very important to the RPO's ethos of harnessing the transformative power of music to enrich lives, and we thoroughly enjoyed working with the young musicians from Thornton High School."
"In building an authentic visual and arts program we have to expose children to professionals in these arenas," said Dr. Evelyn Collins, Principal of Thornton School for the Performing Arts. "So, they see where the possibilities are for them. When we bring in a company from Africa, or we bring in a company from London or we bring in a company from the city they see the possibilities for themselves as professionals."
The workshops and the culminating performance were led by Paul Griffiths, an internationally renowned music educationalist. Griffiths improvised and had the students follow him, and when they were done, the students were able to perform original concert pieces at the school's Phylicia Rashad Auditorium.
If anyone is interested in learning more about this and other
Custom Computer Specialists' student outreach programs please call our Special Affairs department at 631.761.1465.
About
Custom Computer Specialists, Inc.
About
Custom Computer Specialists, Inc.
For four decades
Custom Computer Specialists, with offices in Hauppauge, NY and Lincoln, RI, has been partnering with school districts throughout the Northeast, offering premier services and technologies to maximize student achievement. Today
Custom proudly serves and supports over 300 districts and 2.5 million students. As an Infinite Campus Channel partner,
Custom is committed to providing the technology that will make the 21st century classroom a reality.
About Mount Vernon City School District
With more than 8,000 students in 16 schools, the Mount Vernon City School District is committed to providing a quality education to its children as well as developing programs that meet the diverse academic and social needs of its students. Dr. Kenneth R. Hamilton is the superintendent.
About the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
For more than seven decades the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) has been at the forefront of music-making in the UK. Its home base since 2004 at London's Cadogan Hall serves as a springboard for seven principal residencies as well as more than forty-five concerts per year in long-term partnership venues across the country, often in areas where access to live orchestral music is very limited. In London, the Orchestra's regular performances at Cadogan Hall are complemented by a distinguished series at Southbank Centre's Royal Festival Hall and a hugely popular series at the Royal Albert Hall. With a wider reach than any other UK large ensemble, the RPO has truly become Britain's national orchestra.
