Description
The Music Conservatory of Westchester is the county's oldest and largest cultural organization Today the Conservatory serves 3,000 students, 1,000 onsite in its beautiful new White Plains facility, and over 2,000 disabled and public school students who participate in outreach programs. Our students range in age from 6 months to 95 years, represent more than 30 nationalities and hail from 100 communities in seven counties (Westchester, the Bronx, Rockland, Putnam, Nassau, Bergen, NJ, and Fairfield CT); minority student enrollment is 41%. Our programs include classical music, jazz, musical theater and contemporary styles. We provide instruction in all instruments and voice to children and adults of all ages and backgrounds, as well as music theory, orchestra, ensembles, performance opportunities, and a wide range of classes for young children. Throughout its history, the Conservatory has been committed to providing the same high standard of instruction to each and every student, and reaching out to at-risk, financially needy and disabled students who have few opportunities to participate in music programs. We have never turned away a student for lack of financial means and each year disburses over $100,000 in need-based scholarship assistance. The Conservatory's Music Therapy Institute is the largest provider of professional music therapy services north of New York City and south of Boston, serving 1,000 special needs children and disabled adults each year. The Conservatory collaborates with under-resourced school districts, Head Start and early childhood programs in Westchester and the Bronx to provide a wide range of music education initiatives, workshops, and professional development for teachers; over 500 students and teachers are served annually. The Conservatory is accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music, chartered by the New York State Board of Regents and is a member of the National Guild of Community Schools of the Arts. Conservatory programs have earned the support of national funding organizations, including the Ford Foundation, Kresge Foundation, Hearst Foundation, Surdna Foundation, J.P. Morgan Chase, ChevronTexaco, the Grammy Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts. The Conservatory counts among its graduates a number of renowned musicians, including concert pianists Garrick Ohlsson and William Wolfram, New York Philharmonic flutist Mindy Kaufman and composer Todd Machover. Noted musicians who have chosen the Conservatory for their childrenâ  s music education include Maestro Kurt Masur of the New York Philharmonic, conductor Andre Previn, violinists Kikue Ikeda of the Tokyo String Quartet and Ani Kavafian of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, and cellist Peter Wiley of the Guarneri Quartet.
