Photo by Kent Young
Crowden School crows, well justified:
Legislators and lobbyists have a chance to see a true success story of music education in action next week when seventh and eighth grade students from the Bay Area's pioneering music day school, The Crowden School, take on Washington, D.C. for their biennial music tour.Recognized by the Berkeley Historical Society as the first school of its kind in the nation, Crowden was the dream of the Scottish violinist and teacher Anne Crowden, who had a vision of combining first-rate musical instruction, rooted in the art of chamber music, with a rigorous academic program for students younger than those typically reached by conservatories or performing arts high schools.
Photo by Geoffrey Biddle
Crowden's name-dropping rights are awesome, including a long association with John Adams, who enrolled his own children in the school, Yo-Yo Ma, the Kronos and Takács String Quartets, Midori, and Sir Simon Rattle, who serves with Adams on its Music Advisory Board.
So now, following Crowden tours and residencies in Canada, England, Scotland, France, Italy, New Zealand, Sweden, Denmark, and a dozen other locations, seventh and eighth grade students at the school, aged 12 to 14, next week will give free public concerts in Washington.
The schedule calls for stops at the National Gallery of Art (noon April 2, West Garden Court), on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial (1 p.m. April 2),George Washington Middle School (7:30 p.m. April 3), U.S. Navy Memorial and Navy Heritage Center (10 a.m. April 5), and the Senate Rotunda (noon April 5).
Eugene Sor and Michel Taddei will conduct works for chorus, orchestra, and chamber ensembles on the tour.