Over 700 music students\u00a0in 20 different musical ensembles from across the province will descend on the Manitoba Legislature this month to share the diversity and power of music education.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Manitoba Music Educators\u2019 Association, in partnership with the provincial government\u2019s Department of Education and Early Childhood Learning, will be presenting Music Month celebrations for the first time since 2023.\u00a0Concerts will be shared throughout the month\u00a0representing\u00a0different ages,\u00a0regions\u00a0and genres from\u00a0across the province.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are very excited,\u201d says Tyler Yip, a music educator in the Seven Oaks School Division and the past president of the Manitoba Music Educators\u2019 Association. \u201cIt\u2019s\u00a0our good fortune to be able to do this.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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Diversity on display\u00a0<\/p>\n
Starting on May 4, the Manitoba Legislature will host\u00a0four concerts that will feature everything from bands to choirs to guitar ensembles and everything in between. \u201cOur pitch was made through emails and social media,\u201d Yip says about the coordination process. \u201cIt is\u00a0kind of challenging\u00a0to get to a bunch of different schools in the province, but it was open to the entire\u00a0province.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
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The first concert of the Music Month series will feature an Orff ensemble from \u00c9cole South Pointe School, the Daniel McIntyre Collegiate Institute Concert Band, the \u00c9cole New Era School Junior Choir, the Amber Trails Community School\u2019s vocal jazz group, and the\u00a0Giinawind\u00a0Abinoojiiyag\u00a0Nagamog\u00a0singing group from the Riverbend Community School. Other performances\u00a0later on\u00a0in the month will feature performances from groups outside of the city of Winnipeg such as the \u00c9cole Morden Middle School\u2019s Noon Choir, the\u00a0senior choir from Shevchenko School in Vita, and Les Voyageurs from \u00c9cole St. Malo School.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAudience members in person and on our\u00a0YouTube\u00a0stream are going to hear a lot of different things,\u201d says Yip, adding that Minister of Education and Early Childhood Learning Tracy Schmidt will be\u00a0among the\u00a0MLA\u2019s\u00a0to bring greetings from the province\u00a0throughout Music Month.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Underlining the importance of music education\u00a0<\/p>\n
Yip hopes that these concerts can further underscore the importance of music and arts education in the school system for politicians and the public. \u201cWe know that music classes in schools can be a bright shining light in a student\u2019s school day,\u201d he says. \u201cWe know not all of our families are able to afford music lessons at the school or being in these extracurricular ensembles or experiences, so it\u2019s important that we bring those experiences to each of our schools and to make sure that kids have access.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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The support of the provincial government is also something that Yip does not take for granted in a time where arts education and funding is seeing cuts in other Canadian\u00a0jurisdictions. \u201cI know in other provinces, they are\u00a0maybe not\u00a0at the point where\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0able to have conversations with government or able to access funding, so we really see it as our good\u00a0fortune, and we really value the partnership. We all agree that this is important in kids\u2019 lives.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n