One note rings out, followed by another, and soon, an entire melody echoes from behind the computer screen. Even the inconveniences of teaching virtually cannot diminish the impact of Music Connect, a nonprofit organization led by students at the high school.
Since 2021, Music Connect has provided virtual, one-on-one music lessons to younger students, many of whom are picking up an instrument for the first time. Their board includes sophomore Justin Kim, junior Ethan Chen, senior Misha Klein Swormnik and alumnae Haley Kim ’25 and Vera Lin ’25. Driven by the belief that music should be accessible to everyone, Music Connect’s mission is to help K-8 students in Brookline grow a passion for their instrument and build the foundation necessary for high school-level music classes.
Justin Kim, the co-president of Music Connect, said that the program serves different purposes depending on the students’ ages. For older students, the goal is to prepare them for the rigors of high school music classes.
“Once you get to high school, you play your instrument every single day, but in middle school, there are music classes only once or twice a week,” Justin Kim said. “With Music Connect, not only do you have an extra one or two sessions per week, but you also get to talk to someone who plays the same instrument in high school and learn what their experience was like.”
The program’s main focus for elementary school students is to let them explore and start to love playing their instruments. Chen, the curriculum coordinator, teaches piano to two students and said they have significantly improved their skills over the past few months.
“I started teaching my current students at the beginning of the school year, and even though it hasn’t been that long, they’ve progressed a lot,” Chen said. “At first, neither of them could play their instruments, and now they’re able to play pieces of their choice.”
Not only does Chen see his students improve their skills, but he also notices their enthusiasm to learn and their increasing independence.
“A couple of times, they’ve told me they practiced something they found in the book, even though we weren’t on that piece yet, and asked if we could look at it together,” Chen said. “It felt really rewarding to see my students excited to learn new pieces and enjoy music at a young age.”
Students perform in two in-person concerts during the school year. Klein Swormink, the event planner, said that the most fulfilling moment is seeing the young musicians perform at those biannual concerts.
“I can really see the progress, not just with my own student, but with everyone’s,” Klein Swormink said. “They have these weekly lessons, and they’re practicing every day. The real culmination is the performance, and it really shows what they’ve worked so hard for. It’s important to have some sort of goal to reach, which is to play well at the concert.”
Klein Swormink also said that virtual learning on Zoom—Music Connect’s way of reaching its students—has made it difficult to be a mentor at times.
“I’ve been teaching English for a couple of years,” Klein Swormink said. “Teaching instruments is very different, though. You use the same basic teaching instincts, but you have to listen a lot more to the student. It’s more interactive, which makes the online classes difficult.”
While Chen also acknowledged that working with students on Zoom comes with certain challenges, he said that his experience at Music Connect has inspired him to consider teaching after he graduates.
“Before joining, I just played piano by myself, and teaching never really crossed my mind,” Chen said. “But after joining, I’ve started thinking about whether I might want to pursue music or teaching music as a career because of how much I enjoy it.”
Although Kim does not currently have a student, his work in the program is more administrative, consisting of advertising, communicating with parents and matching mentors with students. Still, Kim said that he’s learned important skills from having these responsibilities.
“Making sure that all the students are being paired with a teacher can get a little challenging when you have so many teachers and so many students who all play different instruments,” Kim explained. “So it’s really important to stay organized. It’s really taught me organization skills, making sure everyone has a teacher and staying on top of emails and performances.”
As May approaches, the mentors and students in Music Connect are preparing for their end-of-year concert, where students will showcase the hard work they’ve been doing to learn and grow as musicians.
“The goal is to end the year with a great concert,” Klein Swormink said, “and that goes hand in hand with supporting my student and making sure he’s the best he can be for the concert and proud of what he accomplished.”
