Au clair de la lune -- Grace's Sistema story
Here is an excerpt from the message sent by Sistema parent Sara Hamilton to NBYO President Ken MacLeod on January 2, 2012. Sara tells of Sistema's influence on her daughter Grace.
Hi Ken,
It was nice to meet you yesterday. You and the NBYO have certainly introduced a love of music to a lot of children who will benefit from the enrichment that Sistema has added to their lives for many years to come. This is Grace's story. Happy New Year!
Sara Hamilton
.....We had first heard of Sistema NB in late summer of 2009 and had been following the progression of the program ever since. We were convinced it was a good program and Grace had expressed interest in it, twice entering into the draw to see if she might be chosen, and ending up on a waiting list. We had to take the chance.
It’s only been three months, but, already, Grace has proven repeatedly that our decision was the right one. That’s not to say that we didn’t have a few moments when we questioned our decision to move to Sistema NB. There were a few rocky days after Grace learned that she would be playing the trombone. We knew she wasn’t going to get to choose her own instrument and had discussed that with her. All the same, she had her heart set on playing the flute. She was also unhappy with the strictly adhered to discipline required to learn to play an instrument; but there have been many more happy days.
One week-end, after having been in Sistema NB for less than a month, Grace accompanied my mother and me on a trip to Halifax. Grace sat in the backseat of the car by herself and spent most of the trip talking and writing about music or singing. She would draw a note on a piece of paper and pass it to me in the front seat asking me if I knew what the note was. She explained whole notes, half notes, quarter notes and more that I have since forgotten, but that I’m confident she remembers. She drew a picture of the orchestra seating arrangement showing me where the brass instruments would be placed in relation to strings, woodwind, and percussion. She wrote out notes that she then clapped or sang--trying to teach me how to read the notes, to know when to pause, and for how long to hold a note. I was amazed that she had learned so much in such a short time and at how interested she was in music. I was even more amazed at how interested she was in sharing her knowledge.
Another day, after Grace received her trombone, she came home excited that she was learning to play Au clair de la lune. She wrote out the notes from memory and played it on her recorder. When we went to visit my parents, Grace took her recorder and played Au clair de la lune for Poppa.
......It is clear that, not only is Grace learning, but that she loves Sistema NB and her trombone. We’re impressed at the progress that she and the rest of the Sistema NB students have made in such a short period of time; and we hope Grace, along with many other children, will continue to benefit from Sistema NB for many more years to come.
Sistema NB Orchestrating Change Campaign Chair David Holt (standing, second from left) hosts a visit by Yamaha Canada's GM Steven Butterworth (standing, left) and Regional Sales Manager Steven Bijakowski (standing, second from right) to meet Sistema Moncton Teacher François Godère (standing, right) and the Sistema Moncton Children's Orchestra Trombone Section.