NEWS — Musician Corps

Another Winning Team in New Orleans!
Two Grammy Winners Pass Along The New Orleans Music Tradition to Our Kids

David Pulphus, who shared a 2010 Grammy for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album as part of the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra, and Terence Blanchard, who won in the Best Improvised Solo category (his fourth Grammy), share something besides musical accolades. Both are part of MusicianCorps in New Orleans, a new initiative that combines the power of creativity with the desire to serve.

New Orleans is one of four cities chosen for this “musical peace corps” launched in five New Orleans schools last fall.
Pulphus, a MusicianCorps Fellow who teaches music to children from kindergarten to second grade at Langston Hughes Academy Charter School, is one of New Orleans’ premier bass players. He has toured and recorded with internationally acclaimed artists including Blanchard, Wynton Marsalis, Benny Golson, Harry Connick, Jr. and Tony Bennett.

“I realized that I was the result of the seeds all my teachers had planted in me,” explained Pulphus, “and I decided it was my time to harvest and to plant.  Now we are planting seeds in 800 New Orleans school kids.” Pulphus’ teaching follows a program called Music and the Brain.  MATB is based on the research that shows that "music has a significant effect on the way our brains develop and function. When children receive sequential music instruction, it can impact their proficiency in language, reading, math and cognition." (www.musicandthebrain.org).
           

Blanchard is a member of the task force that has helped bring MusicianCorps to New Orleans. Last fall, projects launched in four cities: New Orleans, Chicago, Seattle, and the Bay Area. The Aspen Institute has termed the project “1 of 10 nonprofit innovations that will strengthen U.S. communities.” It was founded by Kiff Gallagher –– an early architect of AmeriCorps, a singer-songwriter and social entrepreneur –– and a network of volunteers and advisors.

In New Orleans, four MusicianCorps Fellows are working in five charter elementary schools, after having completed the rigorous application process and a two-week training program. Each of the Fellows devotes a year of service to bring the transformative power of music to our schools and community. In return they receive a modest living stipend, health insurance, ongoing training and support.

Through the work of MusicianCorps, students develop those “21st-Century” transferable skills that music education cultivates: imagination, critical thinking, persistence, discipline, courage, collaboration and teamwork. “Those are exactly the kind of skills we need to nourish the future economy of our region,” said philanthropist Randy Fertel.
Fertel co-chairs the task force with Robin Burgess, president of Burgess Management, a boutique entertainment management company founded in 1989 which represents multiple Grammy winners, Emmy nominees and Golden Globe nominees.

The program also helps preserve and continue the strong musical legacy of New Orleans by developing the next generation of talent as it simultaneously lays the groundwork for a lifetime of music appreciation among future audience members and advocates.