In the days immediately following the senseless violence of the Boston Marathon bombing, many in the Berklee community and throughout the Boston area were eager to channel their musical and philanthropic efforts toward a positive and healing response. More than 500 attendees did just that on Saturday, April 20, at a Boston Rocks concert at the Royale in Boston's theater district.
This new Berklee concert series drew approximately $100,000 in in-kind donations and has so far raised more than $288,000 in cash donations largely from new donors for Berklee's City Music program. The program offers Boston children from underserved communities in grades 4-12 an opportunity to engage in tuition-free music education, summer music programs, and college readiness programs. The goal is not simply to train participants as musicians and performers, but to equip them with the confidence that they will need to better their communities and world.
Exceptional students in the program receive scholarships to attend Berklee after graduating from high school. The Boston-based program, which has proven its merit over the course of more than 20 years, is now connected to like-minded programs throughout the U.S. through the Berklee City Music Network. The network's membership consortium includes programs in Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York City, Washington, D.C., and dozens of other cities.
Given the tragic events of the marathon bombing, Boston Rocks organizers discussed whether the show should go on, ultimately deciding that it would provide an opportunity to help return to normality after a very difficult week in Boston.
There is no time more appropriate than now to come together in creative ways to strengthen support for music education, said Berklee President Roger Brown. Boston Rocks will make a tremendous difference in the lives of young people.
The Boston Rocks concert featured a heavy dose of rock covers from Steve Oristaglio and the Berklee Full Circle Band, which, as its name implies, includes Berklee alumni, students, and staff. Oristaglio is president and co-chief investment officer of SCS Financial and a member of Berklee's Presidential Advisory Council. While many of Oristaglio's colleagues and peers in attendance knew of his investment skills, fewer were aware of his rock n' roll chops prior to the event. That all changed when he took the stage with the Berklee Full Circle Band, which also includes recent Berklee graduate Samantha Schultz and David Stewart, who was the first recipient of the Berklee Lollapalooza Endowed Scholarship.
The video below offers a glimpse of the band's Boston Rocks performance:
In addition to SCS Financial, Boston Rocks was sponsored by more than 150 sponsors and VIP donors, including Loomis Sayles, Slaight Music, Webster Capital, F-Squared Investments, First Republic Bank, GRT Capital Partners, Skadden, Five Ten Capital, and Boston Private Bank and Trust Company. The concert was followed by an after-party at Boston's W Hotel that afforded Berklee students and alumni the opportunity to expand their network among some very influential individuals, says Berklee Senior Advancement Officer Mirek Vana.
If you're a Berklee student, where else can you talk with a senior VP of Fidelity? Vana says.
As for the executives in attendance, Vana says the evening proved to be a welcome break from the formal gala circuit: This was an opportunity for them to come in jeans, to not worry about speeches, and to have a good time with friends and some music that is close to them. They really cut loose.
Special guests Rhythm of the Universe also brought a global flavor to the evening. Rhythm of the Universe is comprised of members from more than 90 countries and was formed based on the idea that music can bring the nations of the world together, a message that was particularly resonant in the wake of the marathon bombing. The video below showcases Rhythm of the Universe's remarkable capacity to blend styles of music from all over the world in order to create a tapestry of sound that is diverse and yet still unified:
A Blu-ray disc of the Boston Rocks concert is currently in the works, featuring video and some audio mixed by Grammy Award-winning engineer Alex Venguer '02. Vana says that, after a deluge of hundreds of positive emails and text messages the day after the concert, Boston Rocks will return next year. More information about Boston Rocks is available here and on Facebook.
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In the days immediately following the senseless violence of the Boston Marathon bombing, many in the Berklee community and throughout the Boston area were eager to channel their musical and philanthropic efforts toward a positive and healing response. More than 500 attendees did just that on Saturday, April 20, at a Boston Rocks concert at the Royale in Boston's theater district.
