Boston Raising Powerful Musicians
Boston RPM "makes me feel safe, powerful, but most of all, welcomed. We are taught to begin new things, to have great ideas, and empower others...We learn to be powerful and unique! We can be what we want!" -11 year old Keyboardist Boston Raising Powerful Musicians empowers girls, women, and gender expansive youth and adults to believe in themselves by building a supportive community that fosters self-expression, confidence, and collaboration through music education and performance. Serving 120+ youth annually, Boston runs week-long summer sessions where youth, ages 8-17, receive technical instrument instruction, form bands, and write songs. At the end of the week, youth perform local music venue. Participants are also given the chance to experiment with other artistic media and attend workshops such as Media Literacy and Intersectional Feminism. During the school year, BEATS is an in school, after school program that combines art, technology and music, currently serving youth in Allston, MA. There is no experience necessary to participate in any of our programs and all equipment is supplied. All lessons, band practices, and workshops are facilitated by volunteers in order to provide positive role models for our participants. Our programs have been proven to help youth grow measurably in confidence, self-expression, peer support, and collaboration skills. After just one week of programming, 98% of girls strongly believe they have good ideas, 96% believe they were good at helping people and 92% of participants feel encouraged to look and act the way they want. As one parent remarked, “Your instruction, programming, and just general presence are powerful tools that she can refer to every day. Being around an amazing group of strong and diverse women is the best education she can get."
