Concert Program:
Cross Corners, George Hamilton Green, arr. Erik Meyer
A Piece of My Happiness, Josh Jones *World Premiere

POP Percussion Ensemble
Joshua Jones, percussion

Featured Murals:
Jackie Robinson, David McShane
The Color of Your Voice, Keir Johnston & Ernel Martinez

About Young At Art:
Young At Art is a collaboration between Astral Artists, Play On Philly and Mural Arts Philadelphia.

In this series of virtual concerts, Astral and Play On Philly have joined together to create small groups of chamber musicians of all ages and levels of experience. Each concert pairs works from the Mural Arts collection with a specific instrument group- brass, percussion, woodwinds, harp and strings.

We invite you to join us on a journey of expression and creativity through murals and music.
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    Play On Philly
    The POP Percussion Ensemble features 4th-8th grade students. Students in Play On Philly receive intensive music education as a vehicle for life skills and academic achievement.

    Learn more at www.playonphilly.org
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    Principal Percussion, Kansas City Symphony
    Josh began his formal studies in percussion with the Percussion Scholarship Program under the direction of Chicago Symphony member Patricia Dash, and Chicago Lyric Opera member Douglas Waddell. He earned his Bachelor’s in Music from DePaul School of music and was the orchestra fellow of both the Detroit and Pittsburgh symphonies. In 2020, Josh joined the Kansas City Symphony as Principal Percussionist. Josh has been featured at Carnegie Hall, on radio and television, and has had two short documentaries made about his musical development and experience. He also authored a percussion method book series, “Spatial Studies for Hitting Things”, and writes musical and philosophical blogs on his website, drummojo.com. Josh really enjoys giving back to the community as well as mentoring young musicians and traveling.

    Learn more at www.kcsymphony.org/musician/josh-jones/
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    Mural by David McShane
    David McShane created his design from several different newspaper photos of Robinson. In the original photo, Robinson had his head down and his face shaded by his baseball cap. McShane found another photo, with the face looking up, and used that instead. McShane used an image showing Robinson with his fist raised in the air to symbolize the African American player’s extraordinary achievements in breaking the color barrier in baseball.

    Learn more at www.muralarts.org/artworks/jackie-robinson
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    Mural by Keir Johnston & Ernel Martinez
    The mural design draws from poetry created by community members in weekly Porch Light workshops at Hank Gathers Rec Center between October 2011 and May 2012. The poem on the left side of the mural uses lines and phrases from numerous poems created in workshops while the vivid Kente cloth on the right side of the mural is a translated version of the poem in color-form. In addition to illustrating community-created poetry about strength and resilience, the mural intends to spark dialogue about how a clean environment contributes to a healthy state of mind by incorporating found objects into the actual mural.

    Learn more at www.muralarts.org/artworks/the-color-of-your-voice