Florence Henderson Leads Voices from Around the Globe in “Green-Themed” World’s Largest Concert® on March 11, 2010
Popular Event Sponsored by MENC: The National Association for Music Education Raises Awareness of the Importance of Music in School, Features School Ensembles from Around the World
RESTON, VA (February 16, 2010) – MENC: The National Association for Music Education will once again present the World’s Largest Concert® (WLC®) in March 2010. The World’s Largest Concert has been a highlight of Music In Our Schools Month® (MIOSM®) since 1985. A sing-along concert linking students around the world through music, the World’s Largest Concert reached an estimated 6 million students, teachers, and music supporters in recent years. This year’s program features themes of environmental awareness, different cultures, and children. The concert is hosted by “America’s favorite mom” of “The Brady Bunch” fame and a Smithsonian Institute inductee as a legendary lady of stage and screen, as well as a vocal advocate for music education—Ms. Florence Henderson.
A DVD of the program, featuring video recordings of school ensembles from around the nation, is available for purchase from MENC. (The school ensembles are listed at the end of this release.) Teachers are encouraged to play the DVD at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Thursday, March 11, 2010, and to invite the rest of their school and members of their communities to attend and sing along. However, the World’s Largest Concert can also be shown at other times during March. The 2010 WLC will not be televised on PBS. Local public access channels may carry the show (check local listings).
“The Green Anthem” is one of the songs featured in this year’s program. The Green Anthem Project, created by music educator, violinist, singer, composer, and clinician Julie Lyonn Lieberman, encapsulates the National Standards for Music Education, incorporates creativity and leadership, and can mobilize communities via their students with easy-to-implement steps towards a greener earth by educating and empowering America’s youth. The Green Anthem Project’s mission is to promote musicianship, creativity and leadership, while benefiting the environment. “I hope that singing ‘The Green Anthem’ will inspire students and their families to generate acts of kindness to Mother Earth through small, everyday green actions within their homes and communities,” said Lieberman.
The 2010 concert program is “America Goes West,” “Beautiful World,” “Children of the World,” “The Green Anthem,” “Horch, was kommt von draussen rein?” “Koinobori,” “The Star Spangled Banner,” and “This Is My Song.” A free 2010 World’s Largest Concert Teacher’s Guide is available online.
Once again, the Hal Leonard Corporation of Milwaukee, WI, provides the vocal and piano accompaniment sheet music, full performance and rehearsals tracks, and lesson plans for use with the concert. The recording of “The Star Spangled Banner” was generously provided by Macmillan/McGraw-Hill, of McGraw-Hill Education, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies. Julie Lyonn Music provided “The Green Anthem” (lyrics and music composed by Julie Lyonn Lieberman).
In keeping with the “green” theme, the WLC DVD packaging will contain certified green components such as certified 100% Green Forestry Practices Board, minimum 10% post-consumer recycled content; biodegradable, recyclable packaging; all vegetable inks; and minimal plastic use.
The MENC members whose school ensembles are featured in the concert are (in order by state):
- Holly Seales, Rehobeth Elementary School, Rehobeth, Alabama
- Tim Nelson and Gail Snyder, Nelson-Wilks-Herron Elementary School, Mountain Home, Arkansas
- Fred Milner, Challenger Elementary School, Nogales, Arizona
- Suzanne Decker, Salt River Elementary School, Scottsdale, Arizona
- Huxsie Scott, Oglethrope Charter School, Savannah, Georgia
- Catherine Pickren, Sugarmill Elementary School, St. Marys, Georgia
- Kerry Knill, Sea Park Elementary School, Satellite Beach, Florida
- Barbara Ashbury, West Melbourne Elementary School of Science, West Melbourne, Florida
- Vicki Szillage, General George Patton School, Riverdale, Illinois
- Elizabeth Kelch, Rockdale School, Rockdale, Illinois
- Sally Hermann, Bains Elementary School, St. Francisville, Louisiana
- David Woolf, Kellogg Elementary School, Hickory Corners, Michigan
- Sharon Pratt, Northeast Lauderdale Elementary School, Meridian, Mississippi
- Elizabeth Dick, Western Reserve Middle School, Berlin Center, Ohio
- Jennifer Bohach, Powhatan Elementary School, Powhatan Point, Ohio
- Gale Winds and Denice Loudon, Las Vegas Day School, Las Vegas, Nevada
- Jan Courtney, Cozy Lake School, Jefferson, New Jersey
- Jan Courtney, White Rock School, Jefferson, New Jersey
- Janine Maletsy, Lakeside Middle School, Pompton Lakes, New Jersey
- Suzanne Piombo, Lenox Elementary School, Pompton Lakes, New Jersey
- Richard Derbyshire, Pompton Lakes High School, Pompton Lakes, New Jersey
- Susan Redvanly, Clarendon Elementary School, Secaucus, New Jersey
- Catherine Leon, William E. Cottle Elementary School, Eastchester, New York
- Diane Hamilton, Elwell S. Otis School #30, Rochester, New York
- Eleanor Nesbitt, Alamance Elementary School, Greensboro, North Carolina
- Cheryl Burford, Clyde Erwin Elementary Magnet School, Jacksonville, North Carolina
- Scott Eggert, Seven Generations Charter School, Emmaus, Pennsylvania
- Carol Froehlich, Howe Elementary School, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Barbara Burns, Carolina Springs Elementary School, Lexington, South Carolina
- Debbie Johnson, Jefferson Elementary School, Kingsport, Tennessee
- Susan Curtis, Westfield Elementary School, Alpine, Utah
- Beverly White, Tye River Elementary School, Arrington, Virginia
- Stephanie Clark, Enderly Heights Elementary School, Buena Vista, Virginia
- Christy Solarczyk, Manassas Park Middle School, Manassas Park, Virginia
- Debra Lindsay and Christopher Riechers, Crestwood Elementary School, Springfield, Virginia
- Leslie Schneider, Valley View Elementary School, Ellensburg, Washington
- Chrissie Goldstein, Immaculate Conception & Our Lady of Perpetual Help School, Everett, Washington
For more information, visit World’s Largest Concert.
MENC: The National Association for Music Education, among the world’s largest arts education organizations, marked its centennial in 2007 as the only association that addresses all aspects of music education. Through membership of more than 75,000 active, retired, and pre-service music teachers, and with 60,000 honor students and supporters, MENC serves millions of students nationwide through activities at all teaching levels, from preschool to graduate school. MENC’s mission is to advance music education by encouraging the study and making of music by all. Since 1907, MENC has worked to ensure that every student has access to a well-balanced, comprehensive, and high-quality program of music instruction taught by qualified teachers. MENC’s activities and resources have been largely responsible for the establishment of music education as a profession, for the promotion and guidance of music study as an integral part of the school curriculum, and for the development of the National Standards for Arts Education. MENC is located at the National Center for Music Education in Reston, VA.
Hal Leonard is the world leader in the music print industry. The company produces sheet music, songbooks and method books for piano, voice and all instruments, as well as band, orchestra and choral arrangements, music reference publications, children’s music products, accompaniment audio CDs and instructional and performance DVDs, all totaling over 85,000 distributed titles. With music education as a major focus, Hal Leonard remains dedicated to providing outstanding educational products for music classrooms everywhere.
