In Sunny's Words: Boston Children's Museum Residency PART III

"...it was extremely touching to see kids so fascinated by my instrument...I was astonished by their boundless curiosity, and I felt as if I could spend hours interacting with them and answering their questions." - Sunny T.

Our first Boston Children's Museum Residency culminated in its final performance on December 8th! In this throwback blog post, Sunny T. (oboe) shares her thoughts and takeaways, after this semester-long journey.

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How do you capture someone’s curiosity?

This was a question that I constantly asked myself throughout the residency. With no prior experience in music outreach - much less music outreach with kids - I struggled at first with my approach to crafting a performance for a younger audience.

The entire residency was a learning process. I started with an adaptation of “Goldilocks and the Three Bears”. In between my first and second performances, I observed a Music and Movement event at the children’s museum - one of the highlights of the residency. From the get-go, the energy in the room that day was amazing and incredibly infectious. The music instructor - who, impressively, played guitar, sang, and jumped up and down all at the same time - brought so much enthusiasm and joy and fun to the class. And the kids really enjoyed themselves!

But what I found the most remarkable was the connection the instructor had with the audience. He really took the time to greet the kids before the performance, and afterwards, he let them play with his guitar and pluck the strings - just imagine how cute that was!

The observation was very informative, and for my second and last performance of the residency, I took what I learned from the observation to give a holiday music themed performance - just in time for winter break!

I incorporated movement into all of my activities, and using the Nutcracker Suite turned out to be perfect. The kids marched along with the toy soldiers to the “March” and tip-toed along with the Sugar Plum Fairy to the “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy.” I taught the kids conducting patterns for the “Dance of the Reed Flutes” and the “Waltz of the Flowers” so they could concentrate on moving their hands - drawing lines and triangles in the air - in time to the music. To conclude the performance, I played “Jingle Bells”: the kids (and their parents) sang, clapped, danced, and conducted, ending the day on a beautifully festive note.

Yet, what happened after my final performance was probably the most memorable moment of the residency. When the performance ended, a couple of kids came up to me to ask about my oboe, and for about fifteen minutes, I stayed there with them, amazed by their seemingly never-ending stream of questions. As a musician, it was extremely touching to see kids so fascinated by my instrument - watching them touch my oboe, press down the keys, hear the keys click open and close… I was astonished by their boundless curiosity, and I felt as if I could spend hours interacting with them and answering their questions.

Finally, it was such a pleasure working with the Continuo team and the educators at the Children’s Museum - special shoutout to Mai, Maia, and Steve - who were so supportive and provided invaluable guidance that helped make the residency a success. And then, I can’t forget the wonderfully bright kids that were my audience! They made performing for them a joy, and I can’t wait to return to the children’s museum.

This residency was truly an unforgettable experience: participating in community outreach has added to my perspective of performing - at its heart, purely and simply a connection between performer and audience.

I’m super excited to continue working with Continuo next year, to continue striving for that connection, and of course, to continue interacting with some of the cutest kids ever! Happy holidays everyone!!

- Sunny T.

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Thanks again to Sunny for being 1) an amazing oboist, 2) an awesome writer, and 3) an invaluable part of the Continuo community! Look forward to our next BCM residency in the spring ~

Through this program, Continuo musicians will participate in a semester-long residency (4 on-site dates) at Boston Children’s Museum, creating learning and performance opportunities emphasizing collaboration and a variety of audiences. To learn more, see Community Performance Series.