Student musicians at festival celebrate the power of music to inspire and uplift everyone

Miami Herald

02-04-2025

It was a joyous event when more than 600 students took to the stage to perform at the fourth annual Miami Gardens Youth Music Festival.
Celebrating with them were 2,000 attendees including city officials, music education leaders and industry professionals.
Held at the Betty T. Ferguson Recreational Complex, the festival showed how music can transform lives and open doors to careers in performance, sound engineering and the music business.
'Music shaped my journey — from my first piano notes to a lifelong appreciation for the arts,' Councilwoman Linda Julien said in her opening speech.
'The Miami Gardens Youth Music Festival is more than an event; it's a stage for young artists to find their voice and build their future. I'm honored to support this celebration of talent and opportunity.'
While the festival showcased the immense talent of Miami's youth, it also spotlighted key challenges in music education. Many schools and communities here still lack funding, resources and the infrastructure needed to provide high-quality music education, especially in underserved communities.
'The Miami Gardens Youth Music Festival shows the power of music and the arts to inspire, connect and uplift everyone. It is a celebration of creativity and community, proving what is possible when we invest in our youth,' said Alan Valladares, Arts Access Miami Manager.
The event was organized by Arts Access Miami and Young Musicians Unite in a partnership with Julien. YMU is a key program within Arts Access and plays a vital role in expanding students' musical horizons beyond traditional classroom settings.
As Miami-Dade County continues to grow as a hub for arts and culture, Arts Access and YMU are committed to ensuring that music education is not a privilege, but a right for all students.
Arts Access Miami is 'powered by philanthropist Daniel R. Lewis, managed by Young Musicians Unite, and incubated at the Miami Foundation in cooperation with the Miami-Dade County Public School System., Valladares said.
You can help by becoming a mentor, or donating to the Arts Access Fund at www.artsaccessmiami.org
LOCUST PROJECTS CELEBRATES BOWIE
Get ready to channel your favorite David Bowie look at the upcoming Spring Fling Space Oddity fundraiser hosted by Locust Projects. The annual benefit dinner is 7-10 p.m. April 26, at 297 NE 67th St., Miami.
The event also serves as a celebration of the premiere of Tomas Vu's 'Blackstar' exhibition, an immersive installation focused on Bowie's contributions to contemporary culture.
Central to the exhibit is a geodesic dome inspired by the work of futurist architect Buckminster Fuller. The dome is a recurrent motif in Vu's practice and serves as a platform for projection mapping and a site for continuous immersive visitor engagement.
This fun-filled evening will feature a silent art auction, live music and lip sync performances. Tickets start at $200 at https://bit.ly/4leDhhq
JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT SEEKS VOLUNTEERS
Something that has always been extremely important is teaching school kids early on about money: how to earn it; save it; spend it; share it.
Young professionals who want to mentor Miami-Dade and Monroe County public school students in developing financial literacy are invited to join the nonprofit Junior Achievement of Greater Miami's Young Professionals Network.
The group also provides work, career and college prep as well as hands-on programs in high schools in which students start their own small businesses. Programs are free, interactive and organized through the school systems.
To better position the organization for greater outcomes in graduation rates and decreasing absenteeism, the nonprofit recently added new team members and expanded to new offices in Coral Gables. Learn more and get involved at https://miami.ja.org/
MERRICK HOUSE TALK APRIL 6
The next gathering at the historic Merrick House in Coral Gables will feature Miami native June Thomson Morris speaking about 'Fortunes Gained and Lost: Miami's Visionaries and Their Fatal Passion to Create.'
The event is part of the '100 Voices: Yesteryear Stories of Coral Gables' to celebrate the city's centennial. The Merrick House is at 907 Coral Way, and tickets for the April 6 event are $5 at https://bit.ly/4hVI7xr
Thomson Morris will also tell the story of her grandparents that inspired her play 'Greetings from Paradise,' which premieres at Actors' Playhouse at the Miracle Theatre April 29 and runs through May 3.
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