Music Makes Us, Little Kids Rock, and Lakeview Design

Mayor’s “Music Makes Us: The Nashville Music Education Program” Receives A Rock & Roll Infusion from Little Kids Rock and Friends

Nashville Guitar Virtuosos Muriel Anderson and Ladd Smith deliver some of the 100 guitars donated by Yamaha to a Little Kids Rock class at Lakeview Design Center

With resources donated by Little Kids Rock, NAMM, Yamaha, Two Old Hippies and Muriel Anderson’s All Star Guitar Night, Metro Nashville Public Schools work to build nation’s most innovative music program

NASHVILLE, TN September 18, 2012 —National nonprofit Little Kids Rock has teamed up with NAMM, Yamaha, Two Old Hippies, and Muriel Anderson’s All Star Guitar Night to donate hundreds of instruments and provide free teacher trainings to Metro Nashville Public Schools. On Friday, guitar virtuosos Muriel Anderson and Ladd Smith will visit Lakeview Design Center’s Little Kids Rock class to deliver some of the 100 new CS40II nylon string acoustic guitars that Yamaha is donating to Metro Schools to  support the vision and instructional goals of “Music Makes Us: The National Music Education Program.”  A joint effort of Metro Schools, Mayor Karl Dean and music industry leaders, Music Makes Us is overhauling the district’s music education program to include a contemporary curriculum and modern instruments, while also enhancing traditional music education curriculum.

“By Including modern music education that is rooted in popular music and that focuses on songwriting and improvisation, Mayor Dean and Metro Schools are making Nashville’s music education program one of the best around, and Little Kids Rock is proud to support these efforts to set a new paradigm for music education in our public schools,” says David Wish, founder and executive director of Little Kid Rock, which has donated more than a half-million dollars worth of instruments, resources and curricula to Metro Schools since 2005. The group serves nearly 3,600 Metro Schools students with free instrumental music lessons.

Little Kids Rock will invest more resources into Metro Schools this year, including 100 acoustic guitars, electric guitars, drum kits, basses, keyboards, etc., with funds raised by Two Old Hippies’ “Celebration of Music” event and Muriel Anderson’s “All Star Guitar Night,” both of which took place at the 2012 Summer NAMM Show. Yamaha will also donate 100 new CS40II nylon string acoustic guitars to the Little Kids Rock programs in the district.

“This donation illustrates Yamaha’s support for music education and the mission of Little Kids Rock,” said Rick Young, senior vice president, Yamaha Corporation of America. “Little Kids Rock is known for finding and fostering innovative music programs around the country, and the work they have done in Nashville will help children develop skills that have been shown to provide benefits later on in life no matter what vocation they pursue.”

This joint effort will make the Metro Nashville Schools music education program among the most innovative in the world, as it will include a contemporary curriculum that utilizes new technologies in a way that reflects today’s diverse musical landscape. New classes in songwriting,  rock band and hip-hop performance and technology-based production, including recording and DJ/Remixing, have been launched at selectmiddle schools and high schools in the 2012-13 school year. At the same time, traditional music curriculum in band, orchestra and choir will be enhanced.

“Contributions like this one from Little Kids Rock will help make Music Makes Us a success by giving more students opportunities to learn guitar,” Mayor Karl Dean said. “I appreciate the support of Yamaha, NAMM, Two Old Hippies and Muriel Anderson. Their generosity underscores the importance of public-private partnerships in helping make Music Makes Us one of the best music education programs in the world.”

WHAT: Nashville guitar virtuosos Muriel Anderson and Ladd Smith will deliver 30 acoustic guitars to a Little Kids Rock class, jam with students and do Q and A, as well as photo ops.

WHEN: Friday, September 21st from 12:45-1:45 pm

WHERE: Lakeview Design Center (455 Rural Hill Road, Nashville, TN 37217)

About Little Kids Rock
Little Kids Rock is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organization that transforms children’s lives by restoring and revitalizing music education in public schools. Little Kids Rock was founded in San Francisco in 2002 by David Wish, an elementary school teacher who had grown frustrated with the lack of music education funding at his school. Today, Little Kids Rock is one of the leading nonprofit providers of free lessons and instruments to underprivileged children in US public schools, and has served more than 200,000 students at over 1,600 schools in 25 cities nationwide. Little Kids Rock Honorary Board Members include Taboo of the Black Eyed Peas, Joe Satriani, Bonnie Raitt, Slash, Paul Simon, B.B. King, Slash, Ziggy Marley and other well-loved artists. More information can be found at: www.littlekidsrock.org.

About Yamaha

Yamaha Corporation of America (YCA) is one of the largest subsidiaries of Yamaha Corporation, Japan and offers a full line of award-winning musical instruments, sound reinforcement and home entertainment products to the U.S. market. Products include: Yamaha acoustic, digital and hybrid pianos, portable keyboards, guitars, acoustic and electronic drums, band and orchestral instruments, marching percussion products, synthesizers, professional digital and analog audio equipment, Steinberg recording products and Nexo commercial audio products, as well as AV receivers, amplifiers, Blu-ray/CD players, iPod docking systems, home-theater-in-a-box systems, earphones, headphones, sound bars, and its exclusive line of Digital Sound Projectors. YCA markets innovative, finely crafted technology and entertainment products and musical instruments targeted to the hobbyist, education, worship, professional music, installation and consumer markets.