Last weekend 11 WHEELS music students auditioned for Camp MSM at Manhattan School of Music! We're very proud of them for taking on this challenge. Just completing an audition like this, regardless of the outcome, is a big accomplishment.

On Tuesday morning we were lucky enough to have clarinetist Alan Kay work with one of our middle school bands! We got to see Mr. Kay perform with Orpheus Chamber Orchestra at Carnegie Hall the previous Saturday, and students had plenty of questions for him. Students even got to improvise with him on their band instruments!

This weekend 7th and 8th grade WHEELS students rehearsed and performed with middle school students from all over the city in the MEANYC All-County Concert Band and Jazz Band! The students put together a great concert in just a short amount of time, and we're very proud of their hard work and collaboration with new friends from other schools.

Also this weekend, thanks to Access Orpheus, WHEELS students were lucky enough to see Orpheus Chamber Orchestra perform with violinist Vadim Gluzman at Carnegie Hall!

Last week each class of 30 6th graders (all 90 6th graders in general music classes) put on a concert where they played music and instruments of their choice, and showcased instruments that they created from recycled materials. Their audiences included families and other WHEELS students, including 1st and 2nd graders they collaborated with to build instruments. Our school community celebrated our students' musical accomplishments by playing and singing along to "Oye Como Va," "Uptown Funk," and John Legend's "All of Me."

Six WHEELS students performed with the Middle School Jazz Academy at Jazz at Lincoln Center this weekend! They all improvised solos and played big band and small group arrangements of tunes like "Jumpin' at the Woodside," "Now's The Time," "Second Line" and "Work Song."

Yesterday, thanks to the generosity of Access Orpheus, sixth grade WHEELS music students got to observe Orpheus Chamber Orchestra rehearsing Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto with violinist Vadim Gluzman! The musicians were very friendly and the students got to ask lots of questions during their break.

First, second and sixth grade music students have been collaborating to build instruments from recycled materials!