Winter 2011

No Doubt rockers visit YOLA EXPO Center Youth Orchestra

On January 22, four high school students participating in the LA Phil's Composer Fellowship Program and students in the YOLA EXPO Center Youth Orchestra welcomed acclaimed rock group No Doubt to their Saturday morning rehearsal. The four members of the band – Gwen Stefani, Tom Dumont, Tony Kanal and Adrian Young – observed the rehearsal and participated in a Q&A session, sharing advice and personal anecdotes that served as both guidance and inspiration.

In the weeks leading up to this special day, the four composer fellows – Daniel Allas, Tamzin Elliott, Phillip Golub and Aaron Ishibashi – were tasked with composing a four-movement piece inspired by songs by the Grammy-winning rock band. Each composer fellow selected a No Doubt song to serve as the musical inspiration for each one of the four movements that comprised the final piece. After the YOLA EXPO Center Youth Orchestra rehearsed their pieces, they had the opportunity to ask the group questions about their career paths, fondest memories and the music-making process. This was the first time the LA Phil partnered with a renowned rock group for the Composer Fellowship and YOLA programs.

LA Phil musicians perform for YOLA at HOLA community

YOLA families featured in LA Phil's first theatercast

A lucky group of YOLA families attended a private recital given by mezzo-soprano Kelley O’Connor earlier this year. Special guest Gustavo Dudamel surprised the group when he took a break from rehearsal to sit in on the performance and answer questions along with the soloist afterward. How does it get even more exciting? Students and parents in the audience were featured on the big screen, as the event was broadcast during the intermission of the LA Phil’s first movie theater simulcast on January 9. To learn more about LA Phil LIVE's upcoming programs near you, click here.

Highlights from the YOLA Resource Library

Struggling with scheduling? Check out YOLA at HOLA's Sample Schedule, one of the latest additions to the LA Phil's YOLA Resource Library, for guidance on program design. Stay tuned as the resource library grows and continues to help community members, music educators, and citizens across the country interested in starting their own El Sistema-inspired programs.

YOLA Neighborhood Project Day

On Saturday, March 12, YOLA Neighborhood Project (YNP) Day will bring one thousand students together at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Downtown LA to celebrate the music making that takes place in their neighborhoods. Inspired by the Harlem Children's Zone, YNP is an in-depth initiative aimed at building healthy communities in the two neighborhoods in which YOLA is currently situated, South LA and the Rampart District. Through LA Phil’s school programs, neighborhood concerts, and YOLA, YNP offers access to high-quality music and music-making opportunities for youth, families, and the community at large, offering multiple entry points into the world of music and the work of the LA Phil. 

On YNP Day, students in kindergarten and 1st grade from South LA and Rampart District schools will perform "Simple Gifts" alongside their community youth orchestra – YOLA at EXPO or YOLA at HOLA – with Dudamel Conducting Fellow Manuel López and special guests. With the help of their teachers and the LA Phil Teaching Artist Faculty, these students have been exploring the simple gifts that surround them. On this day, they will celebrate the gift of communities bound together by beautiful music. For more information on YNP Day, please contact YOLA@laphil.org.

YOLA in the Press

Watt Way Blog – Music Education for All (11/30/10)

Tavis Smiley Reports on PBS – Dudamel: Conducting a Life (12/29/10)

Tavis Smiley Blog – El Sistema: From Venezuela to the United States (12/29/10)

La Opinión – Dudamel ansía ser padre (1/22/11)

LA Times –  Gustavo Dudamel extends contract with L.A. Philharmonic through 2018-19 season (2/3/11)

LA Times – Mozart, Mahler and more: The L.A. Philharmonic's 2011-12 season (2/7/11)

Student Spotlight

Name: Israel, age 10
Program: YOLA at EXPO
Instrument: Violin
What is your favorite piece that you've played with the orchestra? I've like them all, but [Tchaikovsky's] Romeo and Juliet is my favorite right now. I like the accents and the soloists – and all the other instruments that are in the piece.
What's one thing you’re working on in your lessons right now? I’m trying really hard to work on my third position.
Your older brother is a clarinet player in the orchestra. What are the good things about that? I like that he's in the orchestra too. We get to play the same thing at home and practice together.

Name: Joanne, age 9
Program: YOLA at HOLA
Instrument: Clarinet
What music have you learned that you like the most? Wagner's Tannhäuser.
You got to sample all of the woodwind and brass instruments and pick which one you wanted to play. Why did you choose to play the clarinet? It looked fun. I didn't want to play a brass instrument…they're too loud for me!
Are there any other instruments you want to play? The oboe. I like the sound – it's not too high or too low.
What other types of music are your favorite? Rock music. Right now I like Bruno Mars.

Stakeholder Spotlight

San Diego Youth Symphony and Conservatory's El Sistema-inspired Community Opus Project launched in the fall of 2010 as part of a 10-year effort to make music education accessible and affordable for all students in the San Diego region. The first year of this project included launching community music sites at Otay and Lauderbach Elementary Schools in Chula Vista, CA. The Community Opus Project will be the catalyst to restore music education programs to all Chula Vista Elementary Schools. Seventy third-grade students are learning to play string instruments taught by SDYS' Artistic Faculty twice a week after-school at each site. SDYS minimizes barriers to participation by providing students with new instruments and instruction free of charge. Families and community members attend classes, learning alongside the students to support their growth as musicians and citizens. This winter students from both sites will convene each Saturday to receive small group lessons and form the beginnings of a Chula Vista Community Youth Orchestra.

Click here for more information about the YOLA Stakeholder Network.

Leadership support for the LA Phil's educational initiatives is provided by Fidelity Investments, Annenberg Foundation, Pasadena Showcase House for the Arts, Amgen Foundation, Rose Hills Foundation and the Lee and Hope Landis Warner YOLA Student Fund.