Ravinia Family Fun Guide 2019

23 S U M M E R 2 0 1 9 SISTEMA RAVINIA Ravinia has many different music education programs that it brings to schools and communities throughout the Chicago area. We call these our Reach Teach Play programs because we are reaching out to over , people every year to teach themmore about music and encourage them to play music in whatever way is most enjoyable to them. Ravinia’s newest program is based on a method of teaching kids about music called “El Sistema,” which has been very popular and successful in Venezuela. Sistema Ravinia, as we call it, put instruments in the hands of students from the first day they come together as an orchestra. Ravinia, with the support of its Women’s Board, launched its first such orchestra at Catalyst Circle Rock Charter School—the “Circle Rockets”—and it was so popular with the students that Ravinia began a second orchestra at the same school. A Sistema Ravinia orchestra has also been formed for Ravinia’s Lake County neighbors, and its students have given several public concerts, including at Telemundo’s Cinco de Mayo festival in Cicero. Each student is provided their own instrument by Ravinia and receives daily after-school training on their chosen instrument as well as with the full ensemble.