$10,000 donation brings new instruments into our classrooms

LALS 360 Jam classes are underway in Vancouver and North Vancouver, and students are thriving thanks to a $10,000 donation from Global Change for Children that allowed us to purchase a range of new traditional and adaptive instruments.

It was exciting for our teachers to see students immediately start creating new music using GarageBand on the new iPads. One student had a breakthrough moment when he successfully played the virtual guitar strings. The joy on his face was indescribable – it felt like witnessing the second coming of Jimi Hendrix. Another student played a beautiful tune on the app’s alchemy synth, setting a therapeutic tone for the class to enjoy using the C major pentatonic scale.

Other students gravitated to more accessible versions of traditional instruments. Favourites were the mini electric guitar, guitaleles, ukuleles, small Akai keyboards and Donner Drum kits. One student grabbed a ukulele and, within a matter of minutes, mastered every single note of AC/DC's Thunderstruck (all 32 of them!) In a touching moment, she wrote down all the fret numbers on a sheet of paper, looked up, and said, “Kris, you know I have autism, but I’m really good with numbers.”

Our teachers are also having great success using the Orba by Artiphon. This small, palm-sized musical instrument with eight keys and haptic feedback is immediately engaging, and its compatibility with various apps allows for endless creative possibilities.

Having access to new these new instruments that we purchased with the specific needs of our students in mind has been a game changer for Empower Through Music. Thanks to everyone at Global Change for Children, we are now equipped to grow and achieve our dream: to make music accessible to everyone, no matter the barriers.