Public Recital Event Raises Money for Division Scholarships

Three hundred children and adults who take lessons in DePaul University’s Community Music Division will participate in a 10-hour music recital marathon May 5 to raise money for the division’s scholarship fund and community service projects.

The “Performathon” will feature performances by the division’s students on two stages from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m at DePaul’s School of Music, 804 W. Belden Ave. The students have gathered pledges of $1 or more per minute of performance from sponsors.

“The event provides a wonderful opportunity for students to share their musical skills, build a sense of community within the school and help raise scholarship dollars for division students,” said Susanne Baker, director of the Community Music Division.

In its 13th year, the Community Music Division is a program of high-quality music instruction that the DePaul School of Music offers to community members of all ages, backgrounds and abilities. The division enrolls 700 children and adults in after-school, evening and weekend music lessons at DePaul. Sixty professional artists/educators teach in the program. Division students and faculty share their talents by performing frequently at neighborhood events. The program also engages in collaborative projects with schools, community organizations and public agencies in the Chicago area.

The Community Music Division is a full institutional member of the National Guild of Community Schools of the Arts, the preeminent organization in the United States that has fostered the growth of community music and arts schools since 1937.

In addition to performances, lunch and bake sale items will be available at the event, and a raffle will be held. For more information about the event or the Community Music Division, call (773) 325-7260.