Music Makes an Impact
Music. Means. Everything.
We’re here not only to make music accessible to all in our community, but also to emphasize the importance of living a life filled with music.
The benefits of learning music have been documented time and time again. Becoming a proficient musician, especially at a young age, can improve memorization, develop creative and critical thinking skills, improve academic performance, and even enhance social skills. Simply put, learning music early provides invaluable opportunities for growth and improvement to use for the rest of one's life.
Further, learning music grants individuals the power to express themselves and truly make an impact. Throughout human history, music has acted as a way to bring people together, unifying cultures around the globe and creating an outlet for artistic expression. Through learning music, people gain the ability to hone their creative side and communicate messages they hold dear.
Here at Instruments Inspire, we understand the significance of learning and living music, and it is our goal to expand opportunities to learn music to all.
Opening Access to Music
A driving force behind our mission is that music education is a privilege that only some can afford fully. Instruments, music, and private lessons create many financial barriers that prevent people from participating in music. This leads to less students of lower socioeconomic status participating in music, both in the classroom and outside of school. Younger students who qualify for free or reduced lunches are statistically less likely to play an instrument in their own time. This is likely due to a lack of affordable lessons/educational resources, sheet music, and the high cost of instrument maintenance maintenance. However, students lower on the socioeconomic scale (SES) have just as much potential and drive to get involved with music, a power that we are working diligently to unlock through our organization.
It has been shown that low SES students who are actively engaged in music have performed at a higher level than their high SES peers, and academic growth was much higher for these music students. Students from at-risk (low SES) backgrounds tend to have increased benefits from music participation, and often outperform higher SES students who also participate in music.
The funding of music education programs plays a big part in access to education for all, and often communities with lower income rates disapprove of school music programs the most. Academic programs are almost always prioritized over music programs when funds are being distributed, leading to a disadvantage to more musically inclined or interested students. Even if music programs exist, they often lack the resources to support students who cannot afford their own music equipment. An instrument itself can be expensive, whether you buy it outright or rent it from a company. Additional costs, such as reeds and valve oil for band students along with rosin and shoulder rests for orchestra members can increase the price. It has been proven in studies that students with loaner instruments from school districts preform musically on-level to their peers. This ties in with the main mission of our organization, as we believe that each child must be given the proper and necessary tools to explore music. It truly does not matter how a person gets an instrument, but rather what they do with it to impact themselves and others.
No matter where a child comes from, each one deserves the opportunity to discover and experience the joy of music. Our organization is working to provide children with this chance, regardless of their position on the socioeconomic scale. We hope that you will assist us on this journey, as any support means the absolute world to us and helps to guarantee that music is accessible to all.