Join us on Sunday, March 16 at 3 pm at Rockport Music’s Shalin Liu Performance Center in Rockport MA for a free community concert as part of Rockport Music’s Education & Community Program. Following the concert is a complimentary reception hosted by Nina and Gene Doggett. Tickets are FREE and open to the public.
This concert will honor the legacy of William Moyer, Project STEP’s founder.
William (Bill) Moyer, in 1982, then-Orchestra Personnel Manager of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, was charged with finding musicians from underrepresented communities in classical music to audition for open spots in the orchestra. He crisscrossed the country and could not find any that had the extensive music training required to take these auditions. His conclusion: “If we’re serious about this, we must start a program.” With initial support from the Boston Symphony Orchestra and others in the Boston area, he helped design and launch Project STEP (String Training Education Program) to provide that comprehensive and long-term training, and a lasting connection to the surrounding community.
Because of Bill’s commitment to equity in the arts, Project STEP opened its doors in 1982 with 7 students, and graduated its first two students in 1988. Since that time Project STEP has introduced 2,000 children to music through our FOCUS and core programs. In contrast with Boston’s 4-year graduation rates for Black and LatinX students (which declined in 2019 to 76.4% and 67%, respectively), 100% of Project STEP’s graduates attend college or conservatory.
Recent Project STEP graduates have attended Juilliard, Harvard, the New England Conservatory, NYU, and Brown. Project STEP graduates have gone on to become orchestra members, founders of other programs modeled on Project STEP, music teachers, and soloists, as well as financial services advisors, doctors, and architects. We consider Project STEP to be a model for creative youth development where music is used to help young people develop key skills and find success throughout their lives. Project STEP is the nation’s FIRST pathways program for college and conservatory students typically underrepresented in classical music. Project STEP would not be here today without William Moyer.
