BREAKING NEWS: AMP Senior Youth Ensembles to Embark on First Ever International Performances to Canada and New Zealand

Trips Will Include AMP Senior Youth Choir’s First Appearance at the World Choir Games

 

Atlanta, GA – March 29, 2024 – The Atlanta Music Project announces that, for the first time since its inception in 2010, the AMP Senior Youth Orchestra and Choir will travel internationally for performances and competitions. These opportunities for the student musicians of AMP to travel and perform outside of the Atlanta Metro are made possible thanks to AMP’s Travel & Tour Endowment, which was established in 2023 by an anonymous donor and the Chestnut Family Foundation.

From April 3, 2024 to April 7, 2024, the AMP Senior Youth Orchestra, under the direction of conductor John Young Shik Concklin, will travel to Ottawa, the capital of Canada. The orchestra will perform two concerts, both taking place at École Secondaire Publique De La Salle, a French, public high school boasting a renowned performing arts program known as the “Centre d’Excellence Artistique de l’Ontario” (CEAO). AMP Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer Dantes Rameau is an alumnus of De La Salle’s instrumental music program.

The AMP orchestra’s program will include music by two Black composers: “Danse Negre” by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor and “Visions of the Sky” by Adrian B. Sims. In an exciting artistic collaboration, The CEAO Senior String Orchestra will join the AMP Senior Youth Orchestra Strings on stage to perform two pieces: “Adoration” by Florence Price (a third Black composer) and the “Serenade for Strings in E Major Opus 22” by Antonín Dvořák. The Serenade for Strings will be co-conducted by Mr. Concklin and Jason Hutt, conductor of the CEAO Senior String Orchestra.

Additionally, the AMP Senior Youth Orchestra Winds will perform two pieces together with the KidPlayers (wind students) from Ottawa’s OrKidstra program. OrKidstra is a social development program that empowers kids from equity-deserving communities by teaching life skills through playing and singing music together. OrKidstra’s Co-Founder and Executive & Artistic Director Tina Fedeski will conduct the pieces.

The first concert will be a performance for the students of the high school on Thursday April 4. The second concert will be open to the public and take place on Friday April 5 at 7:00pm EST at De La Salle. Tickets to the Friday concert can be reserved here.

AMP and De La Salle students will also jointly attend a concert of the National Arts Centre Orchestra. AMP students will experience dining and cultural activities in Ottawa, including an Ottawa Senators hockey game.

From July 7, 2024 to July 14, 2024, the AMP Senior Youth Choir, under the direction of conductor B.E. Boykin, will travel to Auckland, New Zealand to compete in the 2024 World Choir Games. Based on Olympic ideals, the World Choir Games is the world’s biggest choir competition taking place every two years on different continents. This is the second time AMP’s Senior Youth Choir has been invited to compete in the competition, the first being for the 2020 World Choir Games in Belgium, which were postponed due to the COVID pandemic.

AMP will perform in the Open Competition category within the Youth Choir division. In addition to their competition performance, the AMP Senior Youth Choir will also perform in a Friendship Concert, a free public concert featuring choirs from around the world.

For the competition, the AMP choir will perform music by Black and Latinx composers. Their repertoire includes “Be Still and Know” by Stacey V. Gibbs, “Elijah Rock” arranged by Moses G. Hogan, “Ave Maria” by Robert Nathaniel Dett, and “Mata del Anima Sola” by Antonio Estévez. At the Friendship Concert, the choir will perform “Holding the Light,” a piece composed by their conductor B.E. Boykin. The Open Competition and Friendship Concert dates will be determined by the World Choir Games. AMP students will experience tourist attractions and cultural activities in Auckland.

“Over the past 14 years, AMP’s talented and hard-working young musicians have had the opportunity to perform concerts in most of Atlanta’s major venues, including the Woodruff Arts Center, The Fox Theatre, and Mercedes-Benz Stadium,” stated Dantes Rameau, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of AMP. He continued, “Our students began asking us about performing outside of Atlanta a few years ago, as they felt confident about the development of their craft and wanted to share it with a wider audience while having the chance to experience new destinations and cultures. I’m grateful to the anonymous donor and the Chestnut Family Foundation – who both share our vision for providing world-class music training and performance opportunities – for their very generous support of our travel and tour.”

“I am beyond excited for our young musicians,” said Aisha Moody, Co-Founder and Chief Program Officer of the AMP. She continued, “Because of their commitment to the pursuit of musical excellence and the outstanding tutelage of our conductors and faculty, they will now get a taste of life as professional musicians touring internationally. With the establishment of our Travel and Tour Endowment Fund, AMP students will get to experience the other countries all while bringing a piece of Atlanta culture and artistry to the world for years to come. Thank you to École Secondaire Publique De La Salle and OrKidstra in Ottawa and the World Choir Games for being such terrific partners in this first-ever international, musical adventure for AMP. Canada and New Zealand, here we come!”

 

About the Atlanta Music Project

Founded in 2010, the Atlanta Music Project (AMP) provides world-class music training and performance opportunities supporting youth growth and development. Operating in under-resourced communities, AMP’s mission is to empower youth to realize their possibilities through music. AMP serves 700 young musicians annually. Programs include: beginner-level choir, band and orchestra through the AMP Preparatory School; the intermediate and advanced AMP Youth Orchestras & Choirs; private instrumental and vocal lessons through the AMP Academy; and the annual month-long AMP Summer Series. Additionally, AMP runs a college and career program, supporting AMP high school students and AMP alumni. Since 2021, the AMP Chestnut Family College Scholarship Fund has awarded 70 college scholarships to
AMP alumni, totaling $306,375.

AMP music ensembles perform more than 60 concerts annually, performing in venues all across Atlanta, from community centers to the Mercedes-Benz Stadium. AMP music ensembles have performed alongside international stars such as cellist Sterling Elliott, rapper Lecrae, operatic baritone Edward Parks, R&B singer Monica, The Piano Guys, the Harlem Quartet, electric violinist Lindsey Stirling, pianist Terrence Wilson, and the Imani Winds. AMP musicians can be seen performing with rapper T.I. on NPR’s Tiny Desk concert series. AMP’s young musicians have successfully auditioned for Georgia All-State ensembles, performed with the Atlanta Opera and the Atlanta Ballet, and have concertized as far away as Los Angeles, Aspen, Mexico City, and Scotland.

AMP is the recipient of several prestigious awards: 2015 Local Community Service Award (Spelman College), 2016 Neighborhood Builder (Bank of America), 2016 & 2017 Top 50 Youth Arts Program (USA President’s Committee on the Arts & Humanities), 2018 MLK Jr. Community Service Award (Emory University), 2019 Luminary Award for Arts Education (ArtsATL), and 2021 Infusion Award (Lewis Prize for Music).

AMP’s existence is a direct result of the 2009 TED Prize, which was awarded to Dr. Jose Antonio Abreu, founder of Venezuela’s El Sistema. AMP’s co-founders were members of the Sistema Fellows Program at the New England Conservatory in Boston. AMP is a member of “El Sistema USA,” the National Alliance of El Sistema Inspired Programs.

The Atlanta Music Project believes the pursuit of musical excellence leads to the development of confidence, creativity and ambition, bringing together youth, family and community for the greater good.

For more information visit http://www.atlantamusicproject.org