Educational Programs Archives - Musical Bridges Around The World

MBAW Summer 2025 Newsletter

MBAW Summer 2025 Newsletter

June 18, 2025

Comedy group Duo Baldo performs for a full house at San Fernando Cathedral in downtown San Antonio. Credit: Robert Michaelson As summer arrives in full swing, it brings new opportunities of growth and vibrancy. We’re thrilled to share highlights from the past few months and celebrate what your support has helped us accomplish across San Antonio and beyond! Musical Evenings at San Fernando Cathedral This season, more than 2,600 guests filled the historic San Fernando Cathedral for an unforgettable series of concerts—all free to the public. From piano masterpieces and theatrical musical comedy to Sephardic Jewish ballads, African American...

Musical Bridges Featured on Arts and Culture TX!

Musical Bridges Featured on Arts and Culture TX!

February 19, 2025

Photo Credit: Robert Michaelson We are thrilled to share some exciting news! Musical Bridges Around the World has been featured in a recent article by Arts & Culture TX, titled “Early Exposure: Growing the Next Arts Generation in San Antonio.” This piece beautifully captures the heart of our mission and the impact we’re making in our community. By introducing children and families to the universal language of music, we’re planting seeds of curiosity, empathy, and creativity. From the unique melodies of a Middle Eastern oud to the vibrant rhythms of Latin American percussion, our programs open doors to new worlds, showing...

Arte y Pasíon performs at 10 schools and 5 senior centers in November!

Arte y Pasíon performs at 10 schools and 5 senior centers in November!

November 18, 2024

Tamara Adira of Arte y Pasíon performs at SATX District 2 Senior Center. Photo: Robert Michaelson MBAW coordinated the incredible flamenco group Arte y Pasión who performed at 10 schools and 5 senior centers in the greater San Antonio area from 1 to 8 November 2024. From passionate guitar melodies to stunning dance moves, their performances inspired audiences of all ages, spreading the rich traditions of flamenco across the community. Senior Centers Served St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church Friendship Center San Antonio District 2 Senior Center San Antonio District 5 Senior Center Walker Ranch Senior Center McCullough Hall Nursing Center...

“The Quilt” Makes Its San Antonio Debut

“The Quilt” Makes Its San Antonio Debut

July 27, 2023

Cast and crew of “The Quilt” film speak during a Q&A session following the screening premiere. © 2023 Robert Michaelson “The Quilt: A Living History of African American Music”, an educational documentary produced by Musical Bridges Around the World, had a full house for its red carpet premiere at the Jo Long Theatre of the Carver Community Cultural Center. The venue is also the same location where all of the onscreen dialogue and some of the film’s musical performances were filmed, with the rest being captured at Texas Public Radio’s Malú and Carlos Alvarez Theater & Studio. Community is a big...

Kids to Concerts Merges Into Musical Sprouts!

Kids to Concerts Merges Into Musical Sprouts!

October 4, 2022

Over the course of Summer 2022, Musical Bridges Around the World has made some positive shifts in the Musical Sprouts educational program, which has provided live concerts (or virtual concert films) plus cultural curriculum and learning to students in need. We have finished the five-year Sprouts research study proving its efficacy and are now in the process of expanding the program exponentially with the needs we see in the community. Our first educational program, Kids to Concerts, started in 2001 by providing impactful live concerts in schools. Now as Sprouts continues to grow and provide these same exact live concerts as part of its...

The History of Musical Sprouts

The History of Musical Sprouts

October 3, 2022

A History by Anya Grokhovski, DMA, MBAW CEO, Founder & Artistic Director The beginning of Musical Bridges Around the World’s educational programs started at the oldest official venue for Mexican culture in the U.S., Instituto Cultural de Mexico. We’ve always had an excellent relationship with this gem of a space in San Antonio. It’s the largest cultural arm of Mexico in the country, outside of Washington, DC. The performance hall seats about 180 people, and our first audiences were children from surrounding schools who walked to the concerts with their teachers. As the series grew, we learned that many schools faced logistical...

Musical Sprouts in UTSA’s Education News

Musical Sprouts in UTSA’s Education News

April 14, 2022

UTSA’s College of Education & Human Development’s Chris Reichert just published a new online article covering the latest in MBAW’s Musical Sprouts, a FREE educational engagement program providing students the opportunity to travel the world by bringing performing artists and cultural connections to their classrooms. During the past three years, the curriculum portion of the program was also subject to a simultaneous research study put together in partnership with the University of Texas System to determine and prove the impact and efficacy of the program. In this article, Sprouts research assistant and UTSA Department...

Fall 2021 Educational Impact Report

Fall 2021 Educational Impact Report

December 20, 2021

Report by Jennifer Reed-Martinez, MBAW Director of Community Engagement This fall, over 3,300 students traveled virtually to Ukraine with our Kids to Concerts program, with a concert video (seen below) by renowned Ukrainian musician Jurij Fedynskyj. During the pandemic, this program had to shift from live in-person concerts to virtual concert videos. And now, as schools move back to a mix of virtual and/or in-classroom learning, the program adapts to meet that change again as our January concerts covering the music of African American culture & history will be live in the schools. In addition, 650 students received five hands-on,...

Musical Sprouts Research in UTSA Today

Musical Sprouts Research in UTSA Today

February 7, 2020

Our growing Musical Sprouts curriculum-based program has made its way into the University of Texas at San Antonio’s news site UTSA Today! The article discusses the partnership with UTSA researchers to analyze how our program is affecting and helping local students in the San Antonio area. Check it out here: https://www.utsa.edu/today/2020/02/story/musical-sprouts.html and here:...

Kids to Concerts-Russia!

June 1, 2018

Musical Bridges Around the World is proud to report another successful segment of our community outreach Kids to Concerts program at no charge to the schools visited! On January 22-23 & 26-27, the Flying Balalaika Brothers from Austin visited 8 San Antonio elementary schools: Fernandez, Madison, Oak Meadow, Colonies North, Scobee, Howsman, Leon Springs & Glenoaks. MBAW’s interactive and exciting program incorporated TEKS and STEM curriculum-teaching the culture and geography of Russia through music. About 7,500 children learned about rythm & sound, dance, history, ethnic instruments and Russian language during the 40...

MBAW Brings African Flare to 10 San Antonio Schools

MBAW Brings African Flare to 10 San Antonio Schools

February 3, 2018

Musical Bridges Around the World recently completed its African phase of community outreach Kids to Concerts program at no charge to the schools visited. Originally from Senegal, Africa and New York City, African musicians Abdou Mboup, Mar Gueye, and Craig Rivers performed at 10 schools (Wanke Elementary, Steubing Elementary, Locke Hill Elementary, Oak Meadow Elementary, Red Oak Elementary, McDermott Elementary, Rayburn Elementary, Vestal Elementary, Kriewald Road Elementary and Colonies North Elementary) over four days last week and introduced kids to African culture through music, colorful folk costumes and ethnic instruments. District...

Kids to Concerts: Syria

Kids to Concerts: Syria

November 22, 2017

Musical Bridges Around the World is proud to report its tenth successful segment of Kids to Concerts during the 18th season! Syrian clarinetist Kinan Azmeh and percussionist Shane Shanahan visited 5 San Antonio schools on May 12-13, 2016: East Terrell Hills, Las Lomas, Roan Forest, Stone Oak, and Canyon Ridge. MBAW’s interactive and exciting program incorporated TEKS and STEM curriculum-teaching Syrian culture and geography through music. About 2,500 children learned about rhythm & sound, history, ethnic instruments & arabic language during the 40 minute program. Teachers and students praised the interactive program. One teacher at...

Kids to Concerts: Japan

Kids to Concerts: Japan

April 13, 2016

Musical Bridges Around the World is proud to report its eighth successful segment of Kids to Concerts during the 18th season! This segment brought us to five more San Antonio Elementary schools on April 11-12, 2016: Woodstone, Andrew Briscoe, Collins Garden, Neal and Eleanor Kolitz Hebrew Language Academy. Guest artists included: Japanese Koto and Shamisen player Sumie Kaneko, who has been recognized as a pioneer of uniquely chromatic instrumentation; Kaoru Watanabe, a New York based composer and musician who specializes in the Japanese shinobue flutes and taiko drums; and Taiko artist Kenny Endo. The trio are deeply rooted in Japanese...

Kids to Concerts: Russia & Ukraine

Kids to Concerts: Russia & Ukraine

March 25, 2016

Musical Bridges Around the World is proud to report its seventh successful segment of Kids to Concerts during the 18th season at no charge to the schools visited! On March 23-24, 2016 the Flying Balalaika Brothers visited six San Antonio Elementary schools: Larkspur, Kriewald Road, Regency Place, Young Men’s Leadership Academy, Bowden and Riverside Park. MBAW’s interactive and exciting program incorporated TEKS and STEM curriculum-teaching the culture and geography of Russia & Ukraine through music. About 5,000 children learned about rhythm & sound, dance, history, ethnic instruments and Russian language during the 40 minute...

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