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Introduction
As a classical pianist and cellist, I have always been passionate about sharing my music with others. I grew up in Tuscaloosa, and at the age of four, I gave my Suzuki Book 1 recital at Capstone Village, since my teacher knew they had a good piano. I don't remember much about that first concert, but something definitely stuck with me. As I developed as a pianist, I had a persistent desire to share music beyond the concert halls used for competitions and recitals, so I began seeking opportunities to perform at local retirement homes.
Early Years
In elementary and middle school, my mom would organize visits to retirement homes with my siblings, playing duets on violin and cello and sticking around to visit with the residents. But it was during the Covid-19 pandemic (my sophomore year of high school) when I truly took ownership of organizing my own outreach concerts. After moving to Birmingham a few years prior, I had already a regular monthly performer at one assisted living home in my area, but because of the COVID-19 pandemic, many activity directors were unsure of how to host concerts safely. When I began to email other locations in an attempt to expand, many did not respond.
However, with perseverance and dedication, I learned that reaching out by phone and developing creative solutions were key. Through a professor at Vanderbilt University, I was able to perform via Zoom for individuals and communities from Puerto Rico to Canada, tuning in on my home laptop and playing everything from Bach to Gershwin.
I gave over fifty piano concerts during the pandemic, and it was during that time when I truly witnessed the impact that music could have on others, especially during such a difficult time.
Starting College
When I came to UA in the fall of 2022, I knew I wanted to continue performing in the community, including back at Capstone Village where I had started my musical journey! I began by organizing my own solo concerts at Capstone Village, but I soon realized that other students were interested in playing there as well. I saw this as a perfect opportunity to use my honed skills in communication and organization to make it easy for any interested student to give a concert at Capstone Village.
I noticed in one of UA’s weekly newsletters that the New College had a grant program called the Levitetz Leadership Program, in which students could apply for seed funding for impactful ideas. I filled out the application, and a few weeks later, I received $1000 in funding! The Levitetz Seed Grant was the catalyst for Concerts for Joy - with the money, I was able to apply for 501(c)(3) nonprofit status, design and host a website, print posters and concert programs, and even incentivize students via a small stipend to participate in the first outreach concerts.
Present-Day
Over the past year, I have developed Concerts for Joy to solve many of the struggles that can arise when performing outreach concerts. For example, to eliminate the stress of having to perform an entire concert, I match students together on group concerts, which ensures a diverse program and means that each student only has to prepare about 10 minutes of music. I’ve also encouraged community engagement as much as possible, from asking students to share a few interesting facts before they play to printing out concert programs with the bio and headshot of each student to facilitate after-concert conversations (explore our website to learn more about how our concerts work and to hear from students and audiences).
I hope to begin expanding Concerts for Joy to include more of the Tuscaloosa community, but regardless of the future, I hope to continue sharing joy through my music and helping others do the same!
-Luke