MusicalMatch
the problem:
The purpose of the project is to meet the needs of two constituencies, young performers and seniors, through a single vehicle. Residents of nursing homes and senior centers are not able to leave their facilities to see "live" musical performances; they very much appreciate not only the performance/musical component but also the visits and attention of young people. Young musicians spend hundreds of hours mastering their repertoires with extremely limited opportunities for others to hear the product. It is incredibly difficult for young musicians to navigate the details of arranging performances at nursing homes and senior centers by themselves.
vital stats:
people impacted:
2,800people involved:
70why it's important:
Simply put, MusicalMatch is a new service to match talented young musicians who want to perform with nursing homes and senior centers that are in search of entertainment for their residents.
Nursing homes and senior centers interested in having young performers come visit and entertain their residents are encouraged to register on the website and provide specific contact information, including the days and times when performances can be scheduled. Student musicians also are able to register on the website, entering their contact information, instrument played or type of musical group, their musical background, and current repertoire. The nursing homes and senior centers can then search for musicians they would like to have perform for them. The musician can search to find the facility that seems to best match his or her location and availability. Each side can contact the other directly, either by an onsite e-mail link or by phone, to finalize the performance details.
the plan of action:
During my sophomore year of high school(1.5 years ago), I conceived and designed a way for talented young musicians to share their expertise with residents of senior centers and nursing homes. I applied for ad received the Rosenblatt Summer Fellowship, a grant awarded each year to one student in my high school to support community service work. That summer I created a website, www.musicalmatch.org, to link musicians and nursing homes.
The following fall was dedicated to finding musicians who could perform and nursing homes looking for entertainment. I sent letters to nursing homes, private instrumental music teachers, and heads of music departments in San Francisco middle and high schools introducing MusicalMatch. I quickly learned that starting a new business, even a well-meaning non-profit, was not so easy. The next months were full of follow up-calls with music teachers and activities directors at the various nursing homes to generate interest in the program. MusicalMatch picked up steam as nursing homes and musicians signed up on the website throughout last all and winter. Dozens of performances took place last year, bringing live music into the lives of hundreds of nursing home residents.
A successful slate of concerts last spring culminated with filling a request from San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom’s Project Homeless Connect to provide musicians for their spring day-long program, which served more than 2,000 homeless individuals. It was gratifying beyond words to see a crowd surrounding the stage throughout the day, as many enjoyed a soothing break from their turbulent lives.
Comments
This sounds amazing. Our group has performed for nursing homes and assisted living facilities. The residents really enjoy the performances and are very grateful for the time that we spend with them. Good Luck!