Music Equals

Contact our Program and Outreach Manager, Domanie Billinghurst-Schadek, to find out more about how to get involved as a participant, program partner, instructor or volunteer.

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About Music Equals

Our mission is to provide accessibility and excellence in music education to our community. Music Equals develops and delivers programming accessible to everyone, regardless of skill, age, financial status or geographic location. We collaborate with the community, designing programs based on discussions with our partners to ensure our programs meet the needs of participants. In addition to providing music opportunities, our programs build social connections, enhance creativity and expression, and teach transferable skills that support academics and quality of life.

Our diverse programming provides access to opportunities that would not otherwise exist for our most vulnerable and at-risk populations. Music Equals brings music to our community through music education and live music performances. We work within the existing structures of each population, offering high quality and innovative musical experiences that meet their unique goals. This includes making music, learning about music, and enjoying music as an audience member. Our partners include schools, community centres and other not-for-profit organizations.

We hope our community programs will inspire participants to begin a lifelong musical journey and instill a love of learning that will translate to many other successes in their lives.

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Music Equals community partnership programs

Music Equals community partners

Our current Music Equals partners are:

• Big Brothers Big Sisters Winnipeg
• Churchill Health Centre in Churchill
• Clifton School
• David Livingstone School
• Fort Garry Community Centre
• Inkster School
• King Edward School
• Luxton School
• Machray School
• Mall of the Arts in Thompson
• The Portsmouth Retirement Residence
• St. Josaphat Selo Vila apartments
• Strathcona School
• U-Turn Parkinsons
• West End Cultural Centre
• William Whyte School

Our partners come from diverse backgrounds and have unique circumstances and goals while facing barriers to accessing musical or artistic opportunities. We work with each partner to understand what makes their community special, then develop programming with them to meet their needs. We create space for everyone wishing to be included so they can all experience the transformative power of the arts. We support our partners by subsidizing or funding programs for their community, finding creative ways to use the resources they may already have and empowering them to build on foundations we create. If your organization or community is interested in partnering with Music Equals, please contact our Director of Programming & Fund Development, Domanie Billinghurst-Schadek, at outreach@mcma.ca.

Music Equals community impact

What our students say

“I can express my emotions in a way I can’t with words.”

“I hope my Dad will buy me a fiddle so that we can play together at home too”

What our partners say

“The music program has helped increase students’ confidence and connects them with the school because it’s something they enjoy participating in. The increase in attendance rates also increases their academic performance because they are receiving a consistent program on a daily basis.”

“During a day of severe weather (snow storm) when many of the city’s events were shut down, the COTE Community Support Worker suggested to students that the music instructor may not make it to the program. However, they protested and began setting up instruments anyway, advocating for the importance of their program and saying that missing a session was not an option. The instructor ended up arriving and the program was facilitated as usual, but these are students who do not commonly raise their voices to advocate for their own programming and doing so was wonderfully unusual.”

What our teachers say

“As musicians, we’re in a privileged position – we wield the ability to elicit emotions in others with our music. We all have our own unique-to-us life experiences, but music can become that commonality that draws us together… I also think sharing the stage with other performers helps with building a kinship and camaraderie with fellow musicians. Sharing the stage with students, I hope I can share with them my performing experiences to provide guidance and mentorship in their own performing pursuits.”

What our audience says

“ Before today, I hadn’t seen my brother so lively and engaged in years. Thank you so much for bringing this to us, it was like he was his old self again. Please promise to come back!”

“I was so impressed with how knowledgeable the instructor was in how he tied together historical, cultural, social, and political factors into the evolution of the music. His enthusiasm and speaking from the heart were so endearing…It far surpassed my expectations. Turned me into a Brazilian music fan…something I had never contemplated before.”