The Chicago Sinfonietta’s Project Inclusion Ensemble is just one way Project Inclusion brings diversity to music.
“Orchestras these days are about 90 percent white, then asian, and only about two percent are African American or latino,” said Project Inclusion Manager Hiliary Mercer. “Project Inclusion is specifically designed for people who are under-represented in America’s orchestras today.”
It offers them fellowships – for one to two years young musicians selected for the program can play with the Chicago Sinfonietta, get conducting experience, or play in the Project Inclusion Ensemble.
“It’s important for me because I am latina,” said Alexandra Switala, Violinist in the Project Inclusion Ensemble.” Once it was called to my attention tht there was a lack of diversity I immediately started seeing it. There’s not a lot of women like me playing music.”
The hope of Project Inclusion is that once its fellows are done with the program they can succeed in auditions and fulfill their dreams of becoming professional musicians.
“I started violin when I was four, and I started with the Suzuki Method. It gets you performing at an early age, gets you on stage quickly. So I was bitten with the bug early on,” said Switala.
“The future I want to have in music is to make more people fall in love with it or to help people fall in love with it and that’s in line with Chicago Sinfonietta’s mission,” said Danielle Taylor, Violist in the Project Inclusion Ensemble.
A more inclusive orchestra for a more diverse world.
Naperville News 17’s Blane Erwin reports.
