Play On Philly’s Positive Impact
Anika Veda (she/her/hers)
September 8, 2021
Photographer: Daniel Kontz
Image description: several students of Play On Philly with flutes performing at a concert.
Photographer: Ann Moskow
Image Description: five school-aged children with various musical instruments and two adults outside St. Francis de Sales School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The children are playing their instruments and the adults are smiling.
2 minute read
Hundreds of children’s lives have been impacted by Play On Philly, an El Sistema-inspired program that gives students access to a high quality music education. Students are given opportunities to play in orchestras, get private lessons, and attend summer camps, all for free. Since the founding of Play On Philly, its students have had incredible experiences such as working with Sir Simon Rattle of the Berlin Philharmonic and playing at TED conferences and the Kennedy Center. Rather than preparing students to be professional musicians, the goal of Play On Philly is to prepare students to become better people.
In an interview by NADIA, Stanford Thompson, the founder of Play On Philly, discusses the many life skills that the students have learned through the organization. By playing an instrument and devoting time and effort to it, students learn discipline and perseverance, which are important skills in any career that they may choose. Students develop work ethic and the diligence required to learn an instrument. Overall, students of Play On Philly come to school 30% more and are over a letter grade ahead of their peers. it’s not just the students who are impacted by the program—their families and communities get just as much out of it. Thompson recounts that the students’ hard work has inspired their families as well, providing family members with opportunities to celebrate and strive to achieve their dreams. At concerts, thirty people might come to cheer on just one kid and even include their instrument in the family photo. Families who may not get the chance to hear a major orchestra otherwise have become incredibly moved by their children playing Beethoven’s first symphony. It might not be the best performance of Beethoven’s first to exist, but that doesn’t matter. What matters are the less tangible results—the experiences that these students have had and the memories that they’ve made.
Photographer: Sam Fritch
Image description: three young children playing violins
After graduating from the Curtis Institute, Thompson's career shifted from professional trumpet playing to music education. While he was passionate about orchestral playing, he soon realized that his heart didn't lie with taking audition after audition. He felt a deep sense of clarity hearing José Antonio Abreu, the founder of El Sistema Venezuela, speak during his last Semester at Curtis. Listening to Abreu talk about why music was so important made Thompson realize that education was his true calling. At first, he felt like he was letting the world down. All of the lessons his parents had paid for, all the scholarships he had won, would go to waste now that he was pursuing something else. There is also no clear path to success when starting a non-profit organization. It is far more straightforward for orchestra positions—once you win an audition, you have a stable paycheck that you can rely on. Switching from the mindset of a musician to that of an entrepreneur was necessary for Thompson when making this career change.
Establishing a program like Play On Philly was not at all easy. Investing a large amount of money on a small number of students was almost unheard of. Other programs designed to reach students put on large concerts for thousands at a time, but these often aren't as deep or impactful as the kinds of concerts Thompson envisioned. Finding donors was a challenge at first, but Thompson’s patience paid off. He found people who would be willing to invest in the program and to find rehearsal space and potential teachers. What helped him the most to establish himself was building relationships and networking, which he stresses is incredibly important for anyone entering the music industry. going out of his way to establish relationships is what got Thompson in touch with Sir Simon Rattle, who would eventually go on to conduct the students at Play On Philly. During a break at a Curtis Symphony rehearsal that Rattle was conducting,Thompson approached Rattle and introduced himself. That one conversation spurred a longer relationship, with Rattle even personally inviting him to see the Berlin Philharmonic play live in Germany. “You just don’t know where your lives will cross,” says Thompson.
This article is based on an interview and discussion with Stanford Thompson on June 30th, 2021.
NADIA is looking for more volunteers to write and edit our articles! If you’re interested in working at NADIA, please fill out this volunteer application!