03-05-2025
Eastman students perform for East House residents in recovery
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) — Eastman School of Music students and faculty performed at the East House's Alexander Commons Apartment Complex on Friday.
The event was held as part of the school's 2025 ROC City Concerts, featuring live performances in areas around Rochester to connect with underserved communities.
'We perform for audiences that don't have access to live music and can benefit from music's therapeutic effects,' said Associate Professor of Piano and Chamber Music, Elinor Freer.
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Organizers said East House has been a resource to the community for nearly 60 years, providing financial, social, and emotional support in addition to housing to over 12,000 people.
The Alexander Commons Apartment Complex serves as housing for individuals recovering from mental health or substance abuse disorders.
The Assistant Professor of Voice from Eastman School of Music, Joshua Conyers, spoke to News 8 about the personal connection to performing for organizations like East House.
'These projects are super special to me because this is how I got my intro to music. Both of my parents dealt with drug addiction and abuse, and those things, and I grew up in a shelter system throughout all of those things, so music outreach helped me,' Conyers said. 'It saved me to not be a kid in the streets and gave me something to do, so to be able to reach out to people through music because we all connect through music, it's extremely important to me and my mission as a musician.'
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