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CBS News
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- CBS News
Billboard-topping saxophonist "pays it forward" with program for young musicians in Boston
The Boys and Girls Clubs of Dorchester have offered music instruction for decades. But band instruments were not in the lineup, largely because of the cost. "It only works with instruments that we can share with as many kids as possible," explains music director Carleton Burke. "I can teach 20 kids to play piano on one piano. I can teach 20 kids how to play guitar on one guitar. I can't teach 20 kids to play trumpet on one trumpet." Brass, woodwind instruments, and drums were prohibitively expensive... until Billboard-topping saxophonist Elan Trotman chose the clubs as the Boston site for his Headstart Music Program. Headstart Music Program Trotman, who is also an associate professor at Berklee College of Music (his alma mater) established the Never Lose Your Drive Foundation to support the next generation of musicians. The foundation funds the Headstart Music Program which provides new band instruments and instruction to kids. He launched it in his native Barbados and added the Dorchester site in November 2024. "Music brings people together," he says smiling. Saxophonist Elan Trotman CBS Boston On a spring night in May, music also brings families to the Dorchester Avenue clubhouse for the kids' first recital. Six months after receiving the instruments, the performers--ages 10 to 17-- are ready to play. Elan arrives just as the event starts, fresh off a flight from California where he performed the night before. "Thank you for making room for us and giving us a home," he tells the crowd. He thanked his two instructors, Stephan Papandrea and Akili Jamal Haynes who teach the students several times a week. "You guys have two wonderful teachers who love music." Trotman's inspiration for the program was born years ago when, as a Boston Public School teacher at Mozart Elementary in Roslindale, a VH1 "Save the Music" grant purchased band instruments for beginner students. He left the school in 2012. But the idea stayed with him. "I knew that once I could get access to instruments and instructors, I had a curriculum-a vision for a curriculum-and how it works," he said. Companies donate the instruments and components. The single biggest donor is Utah-based Cannonball Musical Instruments. Other donors include Needham Music, Theo Wanne Mouthpieces, and Legere Reeds. Elan hosts two fundraising golf tournaments-one in Barbados and a newer tournament in Greater Boston-to pay the program's instructors. Burke, who accompanies the kids on guitar during the recital says, what was impossible now couldn't be easier. "Elan coming here just took all the issues-all the barriers-away from being able to do a concert band," Burke said. Students showcase talents For students Ellis Maynard, Dakhari Jones, and Jaralaney Ruiz, the program provides an opportunity to showcase their budding talents. As they perform the Herbie Hancock classic "Cantaloupe Island" audience members, including Elan, bob their heads and tap their toes to the rhythm. Earlier in the month, the trio performed for hundreds of people at the club's main fundraising event, the New England Women's Leadership Awards. Jaralaney says, partly because it is so challenging, it feels "amazing" to play trombone. "I just feel that I am heard through music," Jaralaney said. Young musicians perform during at the Boys and Girls Club of Dorchester. CBS Boston Trotman can relate. He says he has always expressed himself through music and the arts. As a child, music and science, he says, were not his strengths but creative pursuits were. His music teachers, even early on, saw that he had a gift. His first instrument was piano. He fell in love with the sound of the saxophone as a teenager and never looked back. His full scholarship to Berklee made it possible to pursue his passion and graduate from the school debt-free. He does not take that good fortune for granted and says, "I want to create those opportunities for other people." Hope and happiness Thirteen-year-old Dakhari, who proudly belts out the Miles Davis classic "So What" could not be more thankful. He says that, without the program, he probably would not be able to own a trumpet. Playing makes him feel confident and grounded. It's a stress-reliever. Dakhari eventually wants to be a music producer. Asked what music means to him, he smiles. "Hope," he says and adds, "Happiness." Happiness also sums up what people feel listening to Trotman play the saxophone. His talents as a sought-after smooth jazz artist take him all over the world to perform. It seems that he is living his dream as a professional musician, educator, and philanthropist. Nurturing young musicians is central to his mission. "I see a lot of potential in some of our students," he says proudly. "There's one or two of them in each group that have that 'x factor,' that special thing." In addition to the 17 kids in Dorchester, he connects with high school students in Boston who participate in the five-week Aspire Program at Berklee. In 2023, his foundation provided scholarships to the program for two students from Barbados. Skilled and supportive, Trotman takes special pride in seeing--and listening to--the young people who'll be making music we all listen to in the future. "That's the hope. Plant the seeds and let them blossom." Elan Trotman upcoming tour dates Boston, June 22 (City Cruises) Martha's Vineyard, July 19 Boston, July 26 (House of Inspiration Family Music & Arts Festival) Cambridge, July 27 (Cambridge Jazz Festival)
ABC News
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- ABC News
Busselton One Night Stand festival drives push for more regional gigs
Music festivals were a rite of passage among Australian millennials, with tales of moshes battled and portaloos survived becoming friendship folklore. But until this weekend, many teenagers in WA's South West had never stepped foot on the hallowed turf. According to one group of mates from Bunbury who attended triple j's One Night Stand in Busselton on Saturday, it was worth the wait. "It's really great. We usually miss out," Ruby Maratea, 15, said. The region's youth have ridden a rollercoaster of event announcements and cancellations, with the area's flagship annual festival Groovin the Moo and new entrant You & Me both pulling out last year. On Saturday night, triple j's all-ages One Night Stand brought the beat back with a line-up that featured Perth-based headliners Spacey Jane and New South Wales act Ruby Fields. Head of triple j, Lachlan Macara, said all 15,000 tickets sold out in less than six hours — the fastest in its 20-year history. "There's a huge appetite for live music in regional areas," he said. But Mr Macara said the main challenge was to keep the momentum after the lights had faded and the stage was packed away. Eight South West teenagers have put their hands up to help maintain that momentum. They were selected by youth music organisation The Push to receive music industry training while helping the triple j team prepare for the event, learning the ropes in audio engineering, social media, video production and radio broadcasting. The Push chief executive Kate Duncan said it was incredible to watch the teenagers develop their skills and confidence. Dunsborough 15-year-old Lachie Cole said he was keen to explore a career in audio engineering after the experience, which gave him the opportunity to help mix a live set. "I've learnt so much [about] how to work these giant events and how they all get put together," he said. "A lot of people don't realise how hard [it is] and how much team work gets put in." Riley Morrant, 17, said he could not believe he was not just attending his first ever festival, but working behind the scenes on it. "I'd already done some volunteering for the local theatre but this is just on another level," he said. The teenagers have already begun planning their own event in the coming months with ongoing support from The Push and the City of Busselton. The event also gave local artists a platform. Busselton band Fool Nelson opened the event after winning triple j's Unearthed competition. Lead guitarist and singer, Tom Broadbent, said it was the biggest gig the band had played. He said the band was keen to pay it forward to help grow the area's music scene. "If we're doing a show down here, it's cool to try and get local bands and support them and get them some gigs," Mr Broadbent said. Bunbury artist Molly McKenna, 20, has already been organising her own live music events for a few years. They have included Ruckus, one of the only recurring all-ages live music events in the area. But she said there were a huge amount of hurdles she encountered putting on the self-funded gigs, including "a lot of surprise costs" and paperwork. "Nobody's really willing to put their neck out … to dedicate time or money into something that's a slow-establishing or slow-growing community event," she said. Ms McKenna featured on one of three free industry panels triple j hosted in the lead up to the festival. She has called for more time, money and trust to be invested in young people to shape a sustainable music scene that they actually wanted to be a part of. The West Australian government contributed $60,000 to The Push's industry training program. But WA Minister for Creative Industries, Simone McGurk, said there was still work to be done to make regional live music events economically viable. "In smaller towns, it's really hard to make the economics work," she said. "We really want to encourage people to go to live music gigs."
