Carnegie Hall, Lewisburg’s annual Link Up program partners with Carnegie Hall, New York to offer Greenbrier County’s 5th grade students a once in a lifetime opportunity.
Every year, Carnegie Hall (NY) Link Up shares educational expertise and resources with arts organizations and school districts throughout the United States. Carnegie Hall (WV) and The Weill Music Institute of Carnegie Hall then collaborate to bring this exciting program to West Virginia schoolchildren.
At the beginning of the school year, all elementary school music teachers participate in professional development workshop taught by Carnegie Hall’s Education Director, Harmony Flora. Curriculum support materials are provided for students and teachers by Weill Music Institute. Carnegie Hall in Lewisburg provides the soprano recorders and coordinates the program through Greenbrier County Schools. Using the Link Up materials, 5th grade students engage in classroom activities to learn recorder and vocal pieces from a rotating curriculum, which concludes with a live concert each spring. Throughout the concert, the musical concepts that the students have studied during the year are demonstrated, and students are given the opportunity to play a recorder and sing along with the orchestra.
This year’s concert took place on Thursday, Apr. 18 and featured the WVU Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of Dr. Rotem Weinberg, with special guest Greenbrier East High School Choir students.
The Link Up program was ‘The Orchestra Rocks’, featuring the Link Up theme song, Come to Play, by Thomas Cabaniss as well as a selection of upbeat pieces including The Anvil Chorus by Guiseppe Verdi, Go Big or Go Home by Jessica Meyer, (which was specially written for Link Up’s rock orchestration) and Johnny B. Goode, by Chuck Berry. Students participated by playing recorder, singing along with the music, and hand-jiving to Johnny B. Goode.
Participating elementary schools included Alderson (Andrea Edge), Crichton (Deidre Marshall), Frankford (Cassidy Hicks), Lewisburg (Stephanie Campbell), Rainelle (Susan Simms), Ronceverte (Jeremy McClung), Rupert (Stephanie Boothe), Smoot (Stephanie Boothe), and White Sulphur Springs (Sarah Hann).
GEHS Choir students Claire Wills, Serena Ramsey, and Clara Mills provided vocals during the performance. The GEHS Choir is under the direction of Carrie Neese.
A special thanks to Barbara Lutz and Susan Adkins who helped coordinate the performances.
The Link Up program is funded by Greenbrier County Schools, Greenbrier County Commission, and the Carnegie Hall Guild.
