WAMSO—Minnesota Orchestra Volunteer Association

Kinder Konzerts have been the first exposure to classical music for tens of thousands of young people. Since 1978, the playful, instructive Kinder Konzerts have introduced preschool children to Minnesota Orchestra musicians, their music and Orchestra Hall.

Four- and five-year-olds are invited onstage with the Minnesota Orchestra musicians to hear a narrated concert designed especially for children. The other half of the program is the Sound Factory, a guided workshop providing children the chance to make sounds on real instruments.

This year's Kinder Konzerts feature Three Fun Fables, composed by Daniel Dorff. The corresponding storybook is The Classic Treasury of Aesop's Fables by Don Daily.

Questions?
Please contact the WAMSO office at wamso@mnorch.org or call 612.371.5654.

Limited scholarship and transportation funds are available for groups with more than 50% of children on public assistance. For more information, call the WAMSO office at 612-371-5694 or
e-mail wamso@mnorch.org.

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This program brings Kinder Konzerts to area schools reaching kindergarten through third grades. Kinder Konzerts on the Road features a musical composition by Minnesota composer Steve Heitzeg based on the book The Tin Forest by Helen Ward.

The program includes two 35-minute back-to-back programs with up to 150 students attending each program. An ensemble of musicians from the Minnesota Orchestra performs for the concerts. The concert opens with a song and interacitve activites to focus students and set the stage as the musicians are welcomed. Woven through the concert are instrument introductions made by musicians who come forward, talk to the students, and play solo excerpts.

WAMSO volunteers present a Sound Factory, a hands-on pre-concert workshop for children in their classrooms. These activities are designed to prepare students for the concert and give students a chance for hands-on experiences with three instruments (violin, snare drum and rain stick.)

A staff professional development session, tailored specifically to the school’s needs, is held several weeks prior to the concert for the K-3 classroom teachers, and arts and other specialists. Kinder Konzerts on the Road is standards-based and grounded in interdisciplinary links between music and other disciplines.

In 2010, Kinder Konzerts on the Road won the Gold Book Award of Excellence from the Volunteer Council of the League of American Orchestras. It was one of only eight programs in the country to receive this award.

WAMSO–Minnesota Orchestra Volunteer Association
1111 Nicollet Mall
Minneapolis, MN 55403
Phone: 612-371-5654
wamso@mnorch.org