Alexander Muir/Gladstone Students perform for Yo-Yo Ma

On May 31, Grade 7 and 8 students at Alexander Muir/Gladstone JSPS (AMG) were given the chance of a lifetime as they performed at the Toronto Music Garden for world-renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma. 

The performance was the culmination of an amazing year-long journey.   AMG Special Education and Visual Arts teacher Sheila Ayearst and Grade 7 Homeroom and Music teacher Julie Grierson coordinated a special student exploration – the Music Garden Project - of the Toronto Music Garden in different seasons throughout the school year. Students then reflected on the relationship between nature and art. The performance of student-created poetry, dance, music and visual art delighted Mr. Ma and he said it was the best integrated arts project he had ever seen.  He later performed two movements from the Bach Cello Suite #1, which was the original inspiration for the garden.

This project came about thanks to major support and coordination by the Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO) as part of their 90th Season celebration and was one of three major artist residencies that included a meaningful education project.

A special component of the Music Garden Project was that students got to consult with Mr. Ma via Skype about their artistic responses to the garden.  In addition, Jeffrey Beecher, the TSO's Principal Bassist and a member of Mr. Ma’s Silk Road Ensemble, guided the students through the creative process and visited them many times at the school.

The Music Garden Project was a partnership between the TDSB music department in Teaching and Learning, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra’s Educational Outreach Department, and Ms. Ayearst and Ms. Grierson.  The project was a perfect demonstration of the powerful impact arts education can have on student success, when guided by expert teachers who reach out beyond the walls of the classroom. 

Learn more about the project by watching CBC’s The National’s coverage of this event.

Photo Credit: John Loper.