Building Bridges with Music

In a time when many public elementary schools music programs are being cut back or eliminated, Rose Villa has partnered with Riverside Elementary School to help students get to experience the world of music. Instructed by Priscilla Lightbourne, a 4th grade teacher at Riverside Elementary and aided by a grant from Berklee College,  Rose Villa residents and her students are learning to play a variety of percussion instruments and having a  FUN time to boot! What’s not fun about spending some time with friends, plunking away on glockenspiels, xylophones, drums and a variety of other musical making things? The ultimate goal is for the children to play music together- with their peers and with people who hold the history of their community- to receive the enriching and long lasting benefits that learning music provides. Whether it’s River Road, Oregon or the world, music brings people together and can work to strengthen relationships, minds and spirit.