P.L.A.Y. Music
Piedmont Learning Academy for Youth (P.L.A.Y. Music) is the Winston-Salem Symphony’s El-Sistema-inspired music education program which places an emphasis on the teaching of the whole child: head, heart, and hands.
The P.L.A.Y. Music program was established in 2015 after an in-depth study of music education in public and private education. The central focus of the curriculum is to instill in each student a thankfulness for their background and place in the world, an appreciation for those different than themselves, a motivation to work with others in a team, and to better themselves holistically through active contribution and participation in an ensemble.
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Affecting Literacy through Music
In addition to learning to play a musical instrument, students at each location participate in literacy activities led by the P.L.A.Y. Music teachers. Reading books, teaching students to read notes and rhythms, and singing songs are all ways that literacy is integrated into the P.L.A.Y. Music curriculum. Students are taught songs that help develop the brain’s ability to memorize, hold attention to, and follow a story. By teaching stories in song form, children develop the brain connections to understand a story line.
Playing an instrument develops fine motor skills in the arms, hand, and fingers. This develops the muscles and attention the child needs to write.
Team Mozart
Team Mozart is the primary level of string ensemble musicianship training and provides beginner 1st–3rd grade students the opportunity to develop basic musical skills including early music notation, creative movement and dance, beginner violin techniques, and care, composition, improvisation, and solfège singing, which are all accomplished through participation in “paper orchestra” and beginner strings ensemble.
Team Chevalier
The secondary level of string ensemble musicianship training, Team Chevalier, provides graduates of Team Mozart the opportunity to further refine their musical skills before joining seated, traditional orchestral ensemble teams. Team Chevalier students transition from aural learning and early musical notation to formal note reading while continuing to progress in their instrumental instruction.
Team Beethoven
The intermediate level of string ensemble musicianship training, Team Beethoven, provides graduates of Team Chevalier the opportunity to further develop their musical skills. Team Beethoven students transition from the “general” music format of Team Chevalier into more of a formal “orchestral” setting through more consistent use of chairs, stands, music books, and an introduction to viola, cello, and bass for select students in hopes of graduating into our elementary-aged advanced group, Team Brahms.
Team Brahms
Team Brahms is PLAY Music’s most advanced elementary-aged string ensemble. It provides graduates of Team Beethoven the opportunity to rehearse and perform in the sections of a traditional string orchestra ensemble. At this level, students are performing scales, reading and performing intermediate repertoire, refining technique and learning vibrato. Students in Team Brahms will also have the opportunity to audition for the Winston-Salem Symphony’s Youth Orchestras program.
Team Clarke
Team Clarke is PLAY Music’s middle-school-aged intermediate string ensemble that provides graduates of Team Brahms and other middle school orchestra students the opportunity to rehearse and perform with students throughout the community. At this level, students are learning two-octave scales, reading and performing intermediate repertoire, learning to shift into third and fourth positions, and perfecting vibrato and other more advanced techniques. Like Team Brahms, students will continue performing in a formal orchestral setting. Students in Team Clarke are encouraged to audition for the Winston-Salem Symphony’s Youth Orchestras program!
Team Price
Team Price, P.L.A.Y. Music’s advanced string ensemble, provides students in middle and high school the opportunity to rehearse and perform advanced repertoire. Similar to Team Brahms, students will continue performing in a formal orchestral setting. At this level, students are performing three-octave scales, reading and performing advanced repertoire, performing chamber music, and participating in weekly music appreciation, theory, and coaching sessions. Many students in Team Price also participate in the Winston-Salem Symphony’s advanced youth orchestra ensembles.
In an environment that supports their musical growth, social growth, and participation in the ensemble, students will develop musical literacy, learn basic music theory concepts, practice group performance pieces, compose and improvise short compositions as a class.
Watch Team Mozart as they graduate from paper violins to their own real violins!
Maestro Mentors
With our 2023-2024 school year, P.L.A.Y. Music introduced its new youth development program, Maestro Mentors! Maestro Mentors is for our P.L.A.Y. Music students, 8th grade and older, who would like to learn more about how P.L.A.Y. Music operates and get valuable work experience in this field while doing so.
The Maestro Mentor program is designed to help develop leadership, communication and interpersonal skills in its Mentor participants. Our goal is to create meaningful opportunities for our Mentors to contribute to the P.L.A.Y Music program while also gaining an understanding of how both classroom education and not-for-profit businesses operate. We hope our program will offer students the ability to recognize their own unique strengths and to build their self-confidence while helping to develop the abilities of our younger students. We hope that this experience will assist our Mentor students with connecting their interests to future career pathways and post-secondary education opportunities.
With those goals in mind, we have high expectations for our Mentor students. We expect Mentors to regard this opportunity like they would a regular employer, to be reliable and responsible. We also expect our Mentors to continue participating in their regular P.L.A.Y. Music classes and to continue to display musical excellence and to grow and develop as musicians and individuals.
Beyond the critical skills and experience we hope our students will gain from our Maestro Mentors program, after 50 hours of training, our students who are 9th grade or older will be eligible to be hired as assistants for our regular P.L.A.Y. Music classes.
Sponsored By:
P.L.A.Y. Music is supported in part by a grant from the LA Phil Partners in Learning program.
P.L.A.Y. Music Teaching Artists
Dr. Ryane Dunnagan Lead Teaching Artist
Ryane Dunnagan is a native of Winston-Salem. She received both her Undergraduate and Master’s degrees from UNCSA in cello performance. After completing her Master’s degree, Ms. Dunnagan taught orchestra in the public schools at the middle and high school levels. In 2006, Ms. Dunnagan began her Doctorate degree in cello performance at the University of Georgia. There she was the Master Teacher of the UGA String Project, a national organization dedicated to promoting music and fostering music education in the public schools. Ms. Dunnagan completed her doctorate in 2011 and returned to North Carolina in 2012. Dr. Dunnagan is in demand as a clinician and frequently guest conducts in schools, county events, and youth orchestras. Dr. Dunnagan maintains a large private studio and is a past president of the American String Teachers Association. She is currently a lead teacher for the Winston-Salem Symphony’s P.L.A.Y. program, as well as the conductor for both Premier Strings and Chamber Sinfonia ensembles of the Winston-Salem Symphony Youth Orchestra program.
Ryan Keith Lead Teaching Artist
Originally from Kansas, Ryan Keith is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Violin Performance at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts under the tutelage of Kevin Lawrence. Ryan earned his Bachelor’s in Performance from Kansas State University, where he also taught at a local string project and a community arts center. He is a member of the American String Teacher’s Association and presented at their 2022 conference. Beginning violin at the age of ten, Ryan aims to instill in his students a passion for learning and sharing music with others.
Alex Dashkevych Assistant Teaching Artist
Olesya (Alex) Dashkevych, a lead teaching artist with P.L.A.Y. Music, was born in Ukraine. She earned her first Master’s Degree from the State Music Academy of Lviv, Ukraine. Alex received her Doctorate in solo performance from Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, Italy, and shortly thereafter received a second Master’s Degree in Chamber Music Performance from Conservatorio di Santa Cecilia. Alex was the winner of the AGIMUS, Rome Chamber Music 3rd place, Note di Roma 2nd place, and a solo performance of the Brahms Concerto with the Rome Orchestra in Italy. Since then, Alex has played in various orchestras in Italy, New York, and the Carolinas.
Lisa Morris Lead Teaching Artist
Lisa Morris graduated from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in 2004. She is a lead teaching artist with P.L.A.Y. Music and has been with the program since 2017. Lisa taught privately for 8 years in the Charlotte area before moving to Winston Salem in 2011. Lisa was the full-time magnet orchestra teacher at Diggs-Latham Elementary for eight years and is currently the orchestra director at Mount Tabor High School and Jefferson Middle School. Her teaching is heavily influenced in the Suzuki Method. She received her Suzuki training in 2010. Lisa maintains a private studio teaching violin, viola, cello, and bass. She is an active member of the North Carolina Music Educators Association, the American String Teachers Association, and has been a member of the Suzuki Association of the Americas. She has attended many conferences, and has presented as well. Lisa has performed with the Western Piedmont Symphony Orchestra, The Davidson College Symphony Orchestra, and The Charlotte Philharmonic. She has three children and lives in Clemmons.
Naiara Sánchez-Kissick Lead Teaching Artist
Naiara Sánchez-Kissick started her violin studies at the age of eight in Spain. She completed her Bachelor’s Degree at the Royal Conservatory of Granada and the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre in Tallinn. She started teaching violin in Granada where she also developed her career as a chamber music and orchestra musician. As the concertmaster of Granada University Orchestra, she had the opportunity to perform across Europe and Morocco. She also had the chance to work with main conductors as Daniel Barenboim, Pablo Gonzalez, Jean Jacques Kantorow, and Bernard Haitink among others. She recorded several CDs with the Granada Baroque Orchestra and the Baroque Ensemble Oniria. In 2011 Ms. Sánchez moved to the USA where she received a graduate assistantship and earned her Master’s Degree in Violin Performance from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. During this time she worked as a teaching assistant for the UNCG School of Music. Currently, she combines teaching violin and being an active performer playing at several orchestras across North Carolina as Greensboro Symphony, Winston-Salem Symphony, Western Piedmont Symphony and Charlotte Symphony.
Kaitlin Wall Assistant Teaching Artist
Kaitlin Wall is a full time orchestra teacher with the WS/FCS system and has been dedicated to the arts her entire life. She began learning violin at the age of 11 under the direction of Mrs. Rachel Watson. She graduated from Forsyth Technical Community College with an Associates in Fine Arts and from Winston-Salem State University with a Bachelor’s in Music Education and a minor in Psychology. Kaitlin is in her second year of teaching with the P.L.A.Y program and also coaches the Premier Strings and Chamber Sinfonia ensembles with the Winston Salem Symphony Youth Orchestras program. She is a member of the North Carolina Music Educators Association and the American String Teachers Association. Kaitlin currently resides in Kernersville with her daughter and two fur babies.
Kai Leigh Clemans Assistant Teaching Artist
Originally from the Metro-Detroit area of Michigan, Kai Leigh Clemans is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Music Education at the University of North Carolina Greensboro. Mx. Clemans began studying the violin at the age of three. They completed their Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education – Instrumental Emphasis in 2018 at Western Michigan University (WMU) in Kalamazoo, Michigan. While pursuing their degree, Mx. Clemans taught violin, viola, and piano lessons, as well as volunteer-taught in the Kalamazoo Kids In Tune program and orchestra programs in the area. In the summers of 2015 and 2016, Mx. Clemans attended Le Domaine Forget, a summer music academy in Saint-Irénée, Québec, Canada. After graduating from WMU, Mx. Clemans taught 5th through 12th grade string orchestra in the Lakeview School District in Battle Creek, Michigan from 2018-2022. During this time, they also performed in the Kalamazoo Philharmonia and churches within the Kalamazoo metropolitan area. Mx. Clemans is extremely passionate about teaching string instruments and the El Sistema model. They are so excited to be working with your students!
David Mullikin Assistant Teaching Artist
David Mullikin is graduate of UNCG School of Music. He has formerly attended the University of North Texas, and University of Houston- studying violin performance. He is a musician in the Greensboro Symphony, and he currently teaches music/orchestra at Diggs-Latham Elementary.
Katiana Wu Assistant Teaching Artist
Katiana Wu is a Winston-Salem native. She began playing viola and violin at the age of eleven under the instruction of Lauren Kossler whose loving teaching inspired her commitment to the craft. She later continued her musical studies at the Conservatory of Annie Moses and studied viola with Alex Wolaver and violin with Annie Dupree. She has participated in numerous chamber groups, quartets, music festivals, and symphonic ensembles. She led and coached several groups and has continued to nurture her love for teaching and music in her work as a strings technician, choir teacher, and private strings teacher. She is excited to continue to teach in WSFCS as a P.L.A.Y. teaching assistant and hopes to foster the same love for music in this new generation of young creatives.
John Beck Lead Teaching Artist
Principal Percussionist John R. Beck served for 25 years as Professor of Percussion at the UNC School of the Arts and is now the UNCSA Coordinator for Arts & Health Partnerships. As president of the Percussive Arts Society in Indianapolis he began facilitating drum circles in healthcare settings and received the League of American Orchestras Ford Musician Award for Excellence in Community Service for his community drumming in Winston-Salem that included a research study using group drumming with stem cell transplant recipients. Beck earned degrees at Oberlin Conservatory and the Eastman School of Music and is a former national tour soloist with the US Marine Band. He has also performed regularly with the National and Baltimore Symphonies and Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra before moving to North Carolina.
Danté Thomas Assistant Teaching Artist
Danté Thomas is a freelance musician and educator within the Piedmont area. He attended The University of Southern Mississippi for a Bachelor’s in Music Education, where he studied with Dr. John Wooton. During his time at USM, Danté was a member of the marching band, various concert ensembles, and the steel band (SoMiSPO). After undergrad, Danté then moved up to the Winston Salem area and over the course of the next few years, would later become a double graduate of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. He would obtain both a Master’s degree and Professional Artist Certificate in Music Performance. Mr. Thomas has a skill set in all areas of percussion, but some of his strengths are in jazz vibraphone, classical/orchestral percussion, and marching percussion. You may be able to catch Danté working around the Piedmont area, as some of his job titles include Percussion coach for the Winston Salem Symphony Youth Orchestra, substitute player for both the Winston Salem and Greensboro Symphony Percussion Trio, full time performing member of the Piedmont Wind Symphony, member of SUAH African Drum and Dance Theater, and Percussion Tech for Mt. Airy High School.
Enrollment
Currently, the P.L.A.Y. Music program operates at the following schools:
Cook Literacy Model School
Diggs-Latham Elementary
Jefferson Elementary
Ward Elementary
Wiley Magnet Middle School
Enrollment takes place in the fall of each academic year. Classes meet regularly throughout the school year and follow the WS/FCS calendar. Spaces are limited.
Tuition
There is no cost for students who attend 100% Free/Reduced Lunch schools. Tuition cost for other locations is $350 per semester (Fall and Spring). Scholarships and payment plans are available.
Tuition Includes:
- Two 17 week semesters of instruction with highly qualified musicians and educators. Students will receive two hours of instruction per week.
- Fall and Spring semester performances held at the schools.
- Spring semester performance held at a professional venue.
Ready to P.L.A.Y. Music?
To sign up, use our online application below or contact:
Kate McFarland,
P.L.A.Y. Music Program Administrator
336-725-1035 ex. 216
kmcfarland@wssymphony.org
Download and print a paper application (.pdf)
