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U.S. Programs Are Approaching ‘The Middle’ of Their Movement. Now What?

Christopher Schroeder, Executive Director, Boston Music Project

07-08-2026

There are seasons in any movement. The beginning, that electric moment when a new idea catches fire, is unforgettable. So is the end, when a movement gains a permanent foothold in society. But the middle—the developing stage—is different. The middle is where the path is no longer clear, where the just cause and the strategies for seeing it through are both tested. It’s my impression that, in many places of the world, El Sistema-inspired programs find themselves in that adolescent stage.

These growing years are critical to our future as a movement—just as the adolescent years are critical to our students’ growth. Here are a few discoveries being made by U.S. programs I’m familiar with, shared with the hope that they resonate with programs around the world.

EDITORIAL

A Space to Be: What One Classroom Taught Me about Art, Listening, and Inclusion

Giovanni Acquilino, 2025 Cohort Member, Global Leaders Institute

09-03-2025

This was a Mus-e session at a public primary school in Genova, Italy, in a room filled with light, nervous energy and about 20 children in motion. Some moved eagerly. Some hung back. Some followed Olivia Giovannini, the teaching artist leading the session. Others wandered in their own rhythm. Throughout it all, something subtle was happening: no one was being excluded. 

EDITORIAL
Methods Change, but Community Drives Our Field Forward

Christine Taylor Conda, Director, REACH*TEACH*PLAY Education Programs at Ravinia Festival

07-10-2024

If music is the universal language that brings people together, one would assume that this truth would hold for music education as well. But often, unfortunately, our field can pull people apart into seemingly oppositional camps. Over the course of my career as an arts education leader, I have witnessed many of these schisms, as well as their resolutions. I’d like to share three such dichotomies here.

What is music education for?

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