Classical Easter – Music Festival for Children

The project “Cassical Easter – Music Festival for Children” is unique in Hamburg in its conception.

The charity “Klassische Musik und Kultur für Kinder e.V.“ was founded in February 2013. In the last two years, the charity has launched a great variety of projects for children and teenagers to promote classical music and culture.

Among them are:

The Classical Easter – Music Festival for Children
An instrument competition as part of the festival
A summer academy abroad (Poland)
The Academy of Classical Music for Children in Hamburg
The Little Classical Stars string ensemble
The regularly broadcast radio programme “Classical Music and Culture for Children”
Musical events to disseminate classical music to children
A musical workshop in a children’s daycare centre
Many concerts for children in renowned venues
Holiday activity programme for musical children (day trips, events, readings, etc. – all relating to classical music)

As part of the festival, an instrumental competition, master classes, musical workshops, instrumental try-out sessions as well as numerous events focusing on classical music will take place in various locations in Hamburg from 02 – 10 April 2016.

Thanks to the support of internationally renowned musicians and enthusiastically involved music teachers, all of whom will participate in the festival as volunteers, children with musical talent will receive assistance of the highest calibre. Participation in the events offered leads to great increases in the children’s self-confidence and are very enjoyable both for the children who actually play the music and those who attend the concerts – and for the older audiences, too!

The festival was initiated two years ago in order to offer children a platform to present themselves and their musical talents, and to respond to the many requests of parents and teachers at a number of music schools.

We were able to stage the festival in 2014 and2015 only thanks to our cooperation partners who include Gabriele Wulff’s Institute for Piano Studies, the Parkresidenz Greve Rahlstedt hotel and restaurant, Paganino music store and the Hamburg Central Library, all of whom have supported the charity in manifold ways, such as material donations or the provision of free or discounted performance spaces. All children who participated in the festival were given certificates, medals and prizes, motivating them to continue on their musical journey. The organization of the festival and the awards ceremony, however, always involve great effort and cost. Monetary prizes to honour the children’s excellent achievements, which are frequently a part of such festivals, have not been possible for us so far, unfortunately.

So far, members of the board of the charity have paid for many of the expenses upfront out of their private funds to allow the festival to go ahead at all, in the hopes of being reimbursed from the proceeds. Since the number of participants has continually risen since the festival’s first year, and since we expect more than 100 participants for the 2016 event, this kind of financing is no longer possible, unfortunately. The overwhelmingly positive reception and the continually increasing number of expressions of interest in the festival, however, show the charity that the concept and the quality of its implementation are heading in the right direction.

To succeed in staging the festival’s 2016 edition, therefore, the charity is in need of financial support, since the costs involved exceed by far the means available thanks to our cooperation partners mentioned above, and the charity can no longer finance the festival without outside help. With the “Classical Easter Music Festival for Children“, the charity has been supporting musically especially gifted children in their musical development since 2014.

For 2016, the charity “Classical Music and Culture for Children“ is planning the following further events:

I. Concerts:

NDR Studio 6 / January 2016
Church of the Holy Spirit, Farmsen / January 2016
Central Library / February 2016
Mirror hall, Museum for Arts and Crafts (Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe) / March 2016
Tchaikovsky Hall / March 2016
St. Michael’s Church / May 2016
Laeisz Hall, small hall “World Children’s Concert“/ June 2016
Bach Hall / July 2016
Church of St Mary’s Assumption / September 2016
Parkresidenz Rahlstedt / December 2016

II. “Classical Easter” Music Festival for Children 02/04/2016 – 10/04/2016

Opening concert
Competition 1st round
Competition finals
Musical afternoon for children
Concerts performed by children for children
Honoree concert

III. Academy of Music and Art in Dreilützow Palace 7/03/2016 – 11/03/2016

4 days of in-depth lessons in the subjects of ART and MUSIC

IV. Academy of Classical Music for Children in Tchaikovsky House

Solfège
History of Music
Choir
Ensemble
Early musical education
Instrumentalist exams
Certificates
Advanced classes

V. Further public performances

Musical afternoon, violin workshop, try-out session for various instruments in the Central Library
Music workshop in a children’s daycare centre
Performances of the Little Classical Stars ensemble (currently featuring children from 8 countries at various festivals and events in Hamburg (“Laut und Luise“ children’s festival, “Night of Churches“, Pentecost concert in St Michael’s Church, Rahlstedter Kultur Wochen, Pianon in the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg)
Radio show “Classical Music and Culture for Children” at TIDE

VI. Holiday programme