Zumix

CONTACT:

202 Maverick Street
East Boston, MA 02128
617-568-9777 x14
www.zumix.org

Madeleine Steczynski, Founder / Executive Director

DESCRIPTION:

ZUMIX was founded a musician's studio in 1991, near Maverick Square in East Boston--a neighborhood of high risks and instability. The motivating idea was "to build community through the arts"--i.e., to give neighborhood youth, free of charge, excellent training in music composition, performance, and production, as a constructive artistic outlet for strong positive, negative, and conflicted, feelings.

ZUMIX's arts-based community development strategy has been phenomenally successful.

In 2003 its programs served over 350 youths, while its summer live-music concert series attracted a total audience of over 10,000. Since 1997, ZUMIX has outgrown its studio and office facility and now, working with the East Boston CDC, is bidding on a 6,000 sq. ft. city-owned firehouse.

ZUMIX offers five core programs: the Street Program, where participants compose and produce their own music for citywide neighborhood concerts; the Warmth Program, in which young people connect with local seniors to learn popular songs from the past, to perform at neighborhood nursing homes and adult day health facilities; Adventures in Music, which offers music instruction in fun ways; Music Mentors, which provides adult professional mentoring for promising young musicians; and Z-Tech: a 6-month technical training career development program for youth in audio, video, and computer technologies.

Here is an opportunity to help Zumix reach its next growth horizon. What do you say?

(1997: CULTURE: Arts: Community)