Urban Youth Harp Ensemble - Atlanta, GA
The program started with just two students at Brown Middle School. Ms. Remy Johnson taught the students on her small troubadour harp which was left at the school for the students to practice on each day. By 2004, 28 students in middle and high school were enrolled playing harps provided by the generous donations of supporters. In 2009, Carolyn Lund Munford assumed the role of Artistic Director in 2009. In addition to donations from private foundations and individuals, the ensemble receives financial support from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Fulton County Arts Council and the City of Atlanta Office of Cultural Affairs.
The Atlanta Chapter of the Pierians Incorporated and all members of the Pierians Foundation provided a grant of $1000 - $2,000 to the Urban Youth Harp Ensemble, a nonprofit organization that provides free harp instruction to over 100 students in Atlanta’s inner-city.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS: Currently the program thrives under the leadership of Ms. Lewis, now retired from Atlanta Public Schools, and Artistic Director Carolyn Lund Munford, an accomplished musician and gifted teacher. The program’s primary home is at Drew Charter School, where more than 80 students ranging in age from 9 to 18 are enrolled. The students are taught by Angelica Hairston, native of Atlanta, Georgia, who holds a Master of Music Industry Leadership from Northeastern University and studied with the world renowned harpist Judy Loman at The Glenn Gould School of The Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, Ontario; and Molly O’Roark, a native of Memphis, TN, who has won various awards and competitions including: 2014 National Anne Adams Award, 2014 Artist Presentation Society Auditions, Eastman School of Music concerto competition, Wayne Barlow Award for excellence in Harp Performance and holds a Master’s of Music in Harp Performance from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Through the current efforts and financial support from the Atlanta Chapter of the Pierians, Incorporated, the Urban Youth Harp Ensemble announced its expansion to the Main Street Charter Academy after-school program. Lessons for four young ladies in 2nd, 4th, 5th and 7th grades, began on January 28, 2019, in the after-school program. Monica Hargrave, professional harpist, teaches lessons for an hour every Monday that school is in session. Julia Blackwell, Agnes Scott College student and graduate of the Urban Youth Harp Ensemble is the practice intern. She reviews what the teacher has done and supervises the practice of the young ladies every Friday for an hour. The students performed one selection on the Urban Youth Harp Ensemble Spring Concert on April 16, 2019.
GOAL: The Atlanta chapter has a commitment to furthering the arts in the community. In the future, the chapter’s intention is to support the ensemble’s goal of giving children the opportunity to play the harp and further expose them to the fine arts.