NINA STERN"S EDUCATIONAL INITIATIVES

"S'Cool Sounds"
Eight years ago Nina Stern co-founded the Education Program for the New York Collegium. The goal of the program was to introduce public school children to instrumental playing through extended teaching residencies. Using recorders and percussion, teaching artists help children to develop the hands-on skills of playing, improvising, and reading music. The program, newly renamed "S'Cool Sounds" continues today under the sponsorship of GEMS (Gotham Early Music Scene).
Students from the program have gone on to perform (under Nina Stern's leadership) at The Miller Theater at Columbia University, The United Nations, and the Headquarters of the New York City Department of Education. For this work,Nina Stern was awarded an Endicott Fellowship in 2003 and was honored in 2005 with the “Early Music Brings History Alive” Award, bestowed by Early Music America.

VIEW THE S'COOLSOUNDS VIDEO BY GOING TO: http://gemsny.org/scoolsounds.html

RECORDERS WITHOUT BORDERS"
In February of 2008 Nina Stern published "Recorders Without Borders" a book of twelve original compositions for recorders and percussion in the styles of
traditional music from around the world - intended for use in the school classroom. Volume II, along with its accompanying CD, was published in 2009.

In June of 2010 Nina brought her "Recorders Without Borders" program to students at the Drug Fighters School in the Kibera slum of Nairobi, Kenya.

VIEW A VIDEO ABOUT NINA'S WORK IN KIBERA BY GOING TO: http://gemsny.org/scoolsounds.html

TO READ ABOUT THE TRIP and Nina's work connecting students in the Bronx with students in Kenya, click on or download attached PDF.

Ms. Stern has conducted professional development courses for school music teachers, introducing them to her approach to classroom recorder teaching. Incorporating the use of percussion instruments - and using music from around the globe and spanning the centuries - the method seeks to energize school children of diverse backgrounds, making instrumental music appealing and accessible to them. The Amherst Early Music Festival presented this course "Flutes and Drums Around the World" at their 2006, 2007, and 2008 summer festivals at Connecticut College. Nina presented at the 2006 MENC conference, at the Texas Music Educators Conference (TMEA) in 2010 and at workshops and schools in New York, Connecticut, and Texas. She has traveled abroad with this work as well, presenting at conservatories in the Netherlands (Utrecht and The Hague) and working with children in Nairobi, Kenya.


For more press coverage of Nina’s work in education please see "News" section of this website.