I’ve been working with one of my students in Greenport for the past five years, and through her family, I met a wonderful woman who’s very involved in the community. She approached me with a heartfelt idea: she wanted to sponsor music lessons for a few students from the Greenport School District who might not otherwise be able to afford them. She offered to fund all of their lessons anonymously, and of course, I gladly agreed.
So, starting in January of this year, I went from teaching one student to five. She has continued to support them quietly behind the scenes, and week after week, these students have been learning and growing at the piano. Over the past ten months, I’ve watched them progress from absolute beginners to confident young musicians — it’s been incredibly rewarding to be part of their journey.
And three of them play other instruments like saxophone and trombone. The little boy who is featured is named Ethan and loves to sing, I had no idea he had such a good voice until he started singing this piece during one of our lessons. So my students are learning to sight-read and count rhythm as well as learned to sing/play at the same time.
One of the art center heads, impressed with their performance, then wrote to the benefactor saying:
“We’ve been working hard to reach everyone in our community—last year’s Latino Cinema Sundays, our work with OLA, the current exhibit—all part of that effort. But your work with the piano lessons, and this recital in particular, is something else. It’s deeply grassroots and has brought in entire families who might not have otherwise stepped foot inside the building. Events like this show people—clearly —that this space belongs to them too. That kind of connection is powerful—and exactly what we want to continue.”
Affettuoso Music 
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