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EDITORIAL
Musical Benchmarks Build Equity

Adam Karelin-Anderson, Executive and Artistic Director, Riverside Arts Academy

02-04-2026

Over the past decade, our field has worked tirelessly to ensure that music education is holistic, addresses socio-emotional learning, and is culturally relevant to our students. These are incredibly important objectives that will help us ensure that well-adjusted, diverse people shape the future of our society and music industry.

But to diversify that industry, they have to be able to enter it.

New ESUSA Opportunities & Events

 

 

02-04-2026

El Sistema USA is focusing on inclusion and accessibility in their 2026 programming.

 

Funding Opportunity for Arab Artists Based in Europe

02-04-2026

The cultural organization Ettijahat is accepting applications for their 2026 grant program, Zad: Miles for Connection, supporting individual artists and groups from the Arab region who have relocated to Europe since 2015.

The Importance of Free Play in Music Education

Dr. Richard Marsella, Executive Director, Community Music Schools of Toronto

02-04-2026

In my doctoral work, I did an instrumental case study of the Music Box Village in New Orleans. This alternative music space wears many hats. It functions as a music venue, learning space, playground, and much more. It includes interactive art installation and instruments made from salvaged materials that form a kind of sonic playground. It’s also widely welcoming: when I was observing grade-four children playing in the space, I noticed that multiple intelligences were accepted and fostered. 

Applications Open for Youth Orchestra Summer Programs

02-04-2026

Two outstanding youth orchestra programs are now accepting applications for their summer camps.

New Open-Access Report: “Intercultural Resonances among Music Teachers”

 

 

02-04-2026

RESONANCES marked the completion of its multi-year research project with a new report published in English and Portuguese: “Intercultural Resonances among Music Teachers: Their Impacts on Practices and Teaching Methods.”

 

February 5 Deadline: 12th SIMM-seminar Expressions of Interest

02-04-2026

Expressions of interest for the 12th SIMM-seminar, happening May 4–6 in Brussels, Belgium, are due February 5.

In Jerusalem, a Space for Healing

Micah Hendler, Founder & Artistic Director, The Jerusalem Youth Chorus

02-04-2026

The Jerusalem Youth Chorus (JYC) is a music and dialogue program for Israeli and Palestinian teenagers in Jerusalem. We bring young people from East and West Jerusalem into the same room each week to sing together, practice structured dialogue, and build the leadership skills needed to navigate a deeply unequal and polarized reality.

If you work in music for social change, none of that is conceptually new—“music builds connection” is something we all believe. What has surprised us over time is how much the container matters.

An International Exchange Program Shifts Power Through Music

Siri Syverud Thorsen, Project Manager for Musicians and Organizers Volunteer Exchange (MOVE) at Jeunesses Musicales Norway

02-04-2026

While our daily lives are rattled by increasing global instability, polarization, and apathy, culture workers working toward youth empowerment and social change share many of the same questions. How do we empower young people without transferring unreasonable responsibility? How do we equip and motivate while acknowledging legitimate, sometimes harsh realities? How do we facilitate interconnectedness, in times of global dehumanization?

Applications Open for Kuonyesha Art Fund

02-04-2026

Applications are open through February 28 for the Kuonyesha Art Fund, which welcomes proposals from artists and groups in Africa for creative projects that promote community collaboration and address social issues.

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