The 10th edition of Mile of Music in downtown Appleton Aug. 3-6 features Lawrence University faculty, students, and alumni leading interactive Music Education sessions.
The Music Education Team is marking its 10-year anniversary. It was a huge part of the first Mile and continues to be a key component a decade later.
Leila Ramagopal Pertl, a music education instructor in Lawrence’s Conservatory of Music and a performing arts teacher at Edison Elementary School, is the visionary behind incorporating diverse, hands-on music-making events into Mile of Music and has been the music education curator for the festival since its debut in 2013. Working with Music Education Team director of operations Jaclyn Kottman Hittner, artistic director of the Lawrence Community Music School’s Girl Choirs, she is again leading a team of music educators and guest artists to add a signature component to the festival.
“Mile of Music is all about hand-crafted songwriting and uplifting the power and magic of music-making in community,” Ramagopal Pertl said. “What better way to do this than through hands-on music-making events where festivalgoers discover their musical birthright?”
Over the past nine festivals, the Music Education Team has led more than 350 sessions and has made music with 45,000 community members. Another 30-plus interactive music and dance sessions are on tap for Mile 10, beginning Friday morning and continuing through Sunday. They include everything from Ghanaian drumming and dancing and Southeast Asian dance to workshops on ukulele, hip-hop, and songwriting.
“The music education component of Mile sets it apart from nearly every other festival in the country in that festivalgoers who participate in music education events are an integral part of the Mile of Music soundscape,” Ramagopal Pertl said. “They are, themselves, Mile artists.”
The Music Education workshops will take place on the main stage of the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center, at Heid Music, and on Lawrence’s Conservatory lawn.
The free workshops are for all ages, designed to build community and ensure that music-making is accessible to everyone.
