Organization Detail

We believe every child can change the world! Founding Director Clara Hardie provides coaching for music teachers aiming to expand studio diversity, access, & inclusion while nurturing students as changemakers. YV’s six-week virtual Course of Action "Growing Equitable Music Studios" is one example. One-on-one coaching is another. ​

Our lab studios in Detroit and Marquette, Michigan are:

– Teaching youth ages 3-18 to play violin using the world-class Suzuki method, improvising & social justice pedagogies to nurture resilience, innovation, collaboration & higher-order thinking skills.

– Striving towards racial and economic justice, both as a community of people and a non-profit, through our practices inside and outside of the classroom.

– Collaborating with local artists during Place-based Music Celebrations. Guests facilitate non-classical genre workshops and write NEW music alongside students, culminating in a performance & album. This develops positive cultural identities in our students as residents of their cities and citizens of the world!

– Making quality arts education accessible to low-income families since 2010. YV’s founding students were all part of an afterschool art therapy organization within a soup kitchen in Detroit. Today, 100% of YV students benefit from our mixed-income, multicultural classroom environment.