PHOENIX (October 2, 2020) – The Musical Instrument Museum (MIM) is pleased to announce new virtual field trip and Artist Residency offerings for fall 2020 that provide much needed resources for educators across the country. Reimagined online programming upholds the high standards of MIM’s in-person programs and continues to reach and engage with thousands of children in a new learning environment. While nothing can replicate the experience of an in-person field trip or performance, MIM’s innovative and age-appropriate virtual excursions still offer K–12 students opportunities for discovery and appreciation of world music.

Launched in early September, MIM’s virtual programs have attracted schools and districts within Arizona, across the US, and even overseas. In the first few weeks of availability, educators and caregivers who serve a total of more than 475,000 students have already requested access to the virtual programs.

Each virtual field trip video collection includes five tour videos (plus a MIM orientation video), more than 50 minutes of content, an educator guide with standards, and a student activity sheet. The programming invites students to explore musical cultures as they visit virtual tour stops around MIM’s Geographic Galleries and participate in related hands-on activities, such as music making or instrument crafts. Some of the countries and regions children “visit” include Democratic Republic of the Congo, Brazil, Mongolia, and the Northwest Coast of the United States and Canada.

A virtual Artist Residency concert featuring the Phoenix-based Kawambe-Omowale African Drum and Dance Theatre is also available to schools this fall. The concert package contains a prerecorded, interactive, and fun performance, as well as resources for educators and students. It also includes an optional live Q&A session with the artists. The performance offers participants a glimpse of West Africa and examines the African diaspora through drumming, dancing, singing, and storytelling. The performers have studied the music and dance of Mande cultures in Senegal and the Republic of The Gambia, while also learning from master artists in places as diverse as Ghana, Nigeria, and Cuba. Their informative and skillful performance allows students to experience the sights, sounds, and movements of diverse musical cultures.

“For over three decades, Kawambe-Omowale African Drum and Dance Theatre has worked to preserve the culture of West Africa and the diaspora. Partnering with MIM’s Artist Residency Program provides the reach and exposure necessary to allow children around the world to experience and fully embrace new and different cultures,” says Kawambe-Omowale partner Evette Minns.

MIM believes that music is a gateway to understanding people and places, and exposure to a variety of music making, musical instruments, and people fosters an appreciation for diverse cultures. For more details about virtual education programs, visit MIM.org.

Programming for virtual field trips is made possible by MIM’s generous sponsors: The Molly Blank Fund of The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation, Chubb, George & Michelle Yules Fischler, KPMG, Lovitt & Touché, The Moca Fund, MUFG Union Bank, N.A., PetSmart, Rusty and Mary Jane Poepl Foundation, and Jim Widland & Julie Neerken.

MIM is thankful to the Revada Foundation of the Logan Family of Alexandria, Virginia, for their support of the virtual Artist Residency Program.

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About MIM
The Musical Instrument Museum (MIM) enriches our world by collecting, preserving, and making accessible an astonishing variety of musical instruments and performance videos from every country in the world. MIM offers guests a welcoming and fun experience, incomparable interactive technology, dynamic programming, and exceptional musical performances. MIM fosters appreciation of the world’s diverse cultures by showing how we innovate, adapt, and learn from each other to create music—the language of the soul. To learn more about MIM, visit MIM.org.

Find MIM on Facebook: Facebook.com/MIMphx
Twitter and Instagram: @MIMphx

Media Contact
Johann Warnholtz
Media Relations Specialist
Johann.Warnholtz@MIM.org
480.245.6953

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