Check out the video above for a message from Danbury, CT-based bluegrass educator and musician Austin Scelzo. The video visits the series of Bluegrass in the Schools programs his band is implementing in Connecticut high schools (Austin is the mandolin player/fiddler in the video). Don’t miss the comments at the end from the orchestra students who participated.
During the month of May Scelzo’s band presented to 100 high school students at South Windsor (CT) High School, and also for 140 high school students at Ridgefield (CT) High School. The South Windsor Orchestra performed a set of bluegrass fiddle tunes in their spring concert, and Austin organized a guitar, mandolin and banjo trio to accompany them. The trio rehearsed with the orchestra and presented a workshop on bluegrass instruments and bluegrass vocal harmony. Austin provided supplementary materials to both schools, including the Discover Bluegrass video series posted on the IBMA Foundation YouTube channel, info on local jam sessions, opportunities to follow up on learning, and info about the bluegrass instruments available on loan from the Connecticut Bluegrass Association’s “Learner Loaner” program.
Austin Scelzo leads a periodic Zoom conversation for those interested in furthering bluegrass music education in schools. Contact him through his website: www.austinscelzo.com.
Return to the June 2022 issue of The Cornerstone.
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