A donation of $100,000 in musical instruments to six primary schools should go a long way in sustaining the Barbados Youth Orchestra.

This was expressed today as Principal of Charles F. Broomes Memorial Primary, Louis Griffith, and Director of the Barbados Youth Orchestra, Joy Knight-Lynch, accepted the cheque from members of the Multi-National Women???s Group, at the Government Hill school.

Co-chair of the Multi-National Women???s Group, Sharon Lady Carmichael, in making the presentation, pointed out that it was being done in tandem with the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation.

???We are here to contribute to the Barbados Youth Orchestra who will then distribute instruments to the primary schools,??? said Lady Carmichael, noting that the schools that stood to benefit included Charles F. Broome, Lawrence T. Gay and Wesley Hall.

Recognising the role played by Joy Knight-Lynch and other music teachers, she added: ???What???s important is to understand how important it is to children???s education and development when they learn to play musical instruments because playing an instrument stimulates every centre in your brain.???

Mrs. Lynch, who coordinates the music programme in primary schools, expressed gratitude for the gift, and noted that in addition to the violins, cellos, double basses and violas already in some primary schools, the aim was also to place wind and brass instruments in children???s hands.

Acknowledging that the instruments already there had been able ???to sustain and keep building??? the Barbados Youth Orchestra, she stressed: ???We want to expose as many children as possible to wind and brass instruments, all instruments in the primary school, from as young as possible.

“So, through this programme, we are hoping that the Barbados Youth Orchestra will be sustained and will build and will encourage children to play instruments.???

Principal Louis Griffith agreed that by playing music and getting involved in different activities, students tended to be better rounded, more disciplined and had improved academic performances.

While also extending thanks to Lady Carmichael and her team, he disclosed: ???So far, we have 14 students playing wind and brass instruments and the violin, through the programme, orchestrated by Mrs. Joy Knight-Lynch, from Reception straight to Class 4.

???And, with the expansion of the music programme, we are sure that we are going to have many more students involved in music and I am sure that they are going to feed into the Youth Orchestra and Barbados is going to have a much stronger Youth Orchestra and a better society.???

joy-ann.gill@barbados.gov.bb

Pin It on Pinterest