Abreu Fellows To Begin Year's Training in October

Abreu Fellows To Begin Year's Training in October

Abreu Fellows Program Launches as First Initiative of el Sistema/USA

NEW YORK, Oct. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- In February, 2009, Dr Jose Antonio Abreu received the 2009 TED Prize, enabling him to bring his globally-acclaimed El Sistema program to the United States and other countries. Today, we announce the launch of the 2009/2010 Abreu Fellows Program, in partnership with the New England Conservatory and through the support of the TED community. Ten outstanding musicians will begin their year-long Abreu Fellows training today at the New England Conservatory, in Boston, Massachusetts.

The Abreu Fellows will study both at the Conservatory and in Venezuela, where Dr. Abreu first developed el Sistema, the program that has taught classical music to over one million Venezuelan children over the last thirty-four years, many of whom have become symphony musicians and performers, including Gustavo Dudamel, newly appointed Music Director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. During their second semester, the Abreu Fellows will spend two months observing the operations of nucleos, or local music education centers, in the Caracas area. When their year is complete, they will be required to devote at least one year to establishing or advancing an el Sistema program outside Venezuela.

The 2009-10 Abreu Fellows are:

Daniel Berkowitz, a trombonist, has performed in Europe, Asia and the U.S., and has had a residency in China with the Xiamen Philharmonic Orchestra.

Jonathan Andrew Govias, a conductor, has been the Director of Marketing for the Victoria (Canada) Symphony, the Assistant Conductor of the Colorado Youth Symphony, and Music Director for the Calcutta (India) Orchestra.

Lorrie Heagy is a music teacher and librarian at Glacier Valley Elementary School in Juneau, Alaska, where she works with the community, parents and teachers to integrate and advocate the arts for all children.

Rebecca Levi, a pianist and singer, has been living in Urubamba, Peru, working in a home for abused children and teaching music and English classes.

David Malek, a clarinetist, has performed in orchestras in Europe and the U.S. and has worked with children in rural America, inner-city San Antonio high schools and in South Central Los Angeles.

Dantes Rameau, a bassoonist who has performed with a number of North American orchestras, is a volunteer for the Leading Note Foundation, an el Sistema-inspired music education program in Ottawa, Canada.

Alvaro Rodas, a percussionist from Guatemala City, Guatemala, has served as an el Sistema administrator, percussion instructor and coordinator of programs throughout Guatemala.

Stanford Leon Thompson, a trumpeter, has performed with the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, Curtis Symphony Orchestra, Lancaster Symphony Orchestra and Symphony in C, and has recorded on the Ondine label with Christoph Eschenbach.

Christine Witkowski, a past volunteer for Youth Organizations Umbrella Inc., where she was Program Director for a mentoring and tutoring program for disadvantaged youth, has studied horn in Montreal as a McGill University graduate student. She recently won the horn position in the Miami (Florida) Music Project, an organization dedicated to bringing music performance to Miami area children.

Kathryn Wyatt, a violinist, was Director of Education and Community Engagement for the North Carolina Symphony from 2007-09, where she created and expanded programs for young audiences.

Additional information is available at the el Sistema/USA website, http://elsistemausa.org/

About the TED Prize

The TED Prize was started in 2005 and was originally designed to utilize the TED community's exceptional array of talent and resources. Today it is awarded annually to three exceptional individuals who each receive $100,000 and the granting of his or her "One Wish to Change the World." After several months of preparation, the winners unveil their wishes at an award ceremony during the TED Conference. Information on the TED Prize and all Prize winners, is available at http://tedprize.org/

About TED

TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. Started as a four-day conference in California 25 years ago, TED has grown to support those world-changing ideas with multiple initiatives. The annual TED Conference invites the world's leading thinkers and doers to speak for 18 minutes. Their talks are then made available, free, at TED.com. TED speakers have included Bill Gates, Al Gore, Jane Goodall, Elizabeth Gilbert, Sir Richard Branson, Nandan Nilekani, Philippe Starck, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Isabel Allende and UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown. The annual TED Conference takes place in Long Beach, California; TEDGlobal is held each year in Oxford, UK, and this November, the TEDIndia Conference will be held in Mysore, India. TED's media initiatives include TED.com, where new TEDTalks are posted daily, and the Open Translation Project, which provides subtitles and interactive transcripts as well as the ability for any TEDTalk to be translated by volunteers worldwide. TED has established the annual TED Prize, where three exceptional individuals with a wish to change the world are given the opportunity to put their wishes into action; TEDx, which offers individuals or groups a way to host local, self-organized events around the world, and the TED Fellows program, helping world-changing innovators from around the globe to become part of the TED community and, with its help, amplify the impact of their remarkable projects and activities.

Follow TED on Twitter, twitter.com/tedtalks, or on Facebook, www.facebook.com/TED

TEDIndia, "The Future Beckons," will be held in Nov. 4-7, 2009, in Mysore, India. TED2010, "What the World Needs Now," will be held Feb. 9-13, 2010, in Long Beach, California, with TEDActive, a simulcast conference of TED2010, in Palm Springs, California. TEDGlobal 2010, "And Now the Good News," will be held July 13-16, 2010, in Oxford, UK.

About The New England Conservatory

Recognized nationally and internationally as a leader among music schools, the New England Conservatory offers rigorous training in an intimate, nurturing community to 720 undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral music students from around the world. Its faculty of 225 includes internationally esteemed artist-teachers and scholars. Its alumni have filled orchestra chairs, concert hall stages, jazz clubs, recording studios and arts management positions worldwide. Through its outreach projects, the Conservatory allows young musicians to engage with non-traditional audiences in schools, hospitals and nursing homes -- bringing pleasure to new listeners and enlarging the universe for classical music and jazz.

Media Contact:

Laura Galloway
Galloway Media Group
c: (213) 948-3100
laura@gallowaymediagroup.com

Source: TED Conferences

CONTACT: Laura Galloway, Galloway Media Group, c: +1-213-948-3100,
laura@gallowaymediagroup.com

Web Site: http://www.ted.com/

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