Get ready to support Musical Bridges Around the World during Big Give! With Early Giving officially opening on September 16, you can get a head start on helping us bring world-class music and educational programming to our community. Visit our official Big Give page to read our case for support and learn more about this year’s highlighted initiative, “Keys for Kids.” Donate...
A Year of Music, A Year of Impact As we reflect on the remarkable moments of our 28th season and look ahead to what comes next, our mission feels more urgent and meaningful than ever. In a world often filled with tension and division, the arts have a unique ability to break through stereotypes, remove barriers and remind us of our shared humanity. Music communicates where words fail, turning differences into harmony and strangers into a community. That spirit drives everything we do. Whether we’re bringing top artists to local classrooms, libraries, senior centers, or famous San Antonio stages, we stay committed to making every...
Photo Credits: Robert Michaelson A total of 15 different San Antonio Public Library branches came alive this summer as we proudly brought our vibrant German Music & Culture program directly into neighborhoods across San Antonio. Featuring the incredible talent of Grammy-nominated accordionist Alex Meixner, this initiative engaged local families and residents of all ages. To ensure equitable access to the arts, Musical Bridges Around the World (MBAW) intentionally designed this program to serve libraries located in all 10 San Antonio city districts, making sure that every corner of our city could participate in this cultural celebration....
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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,...