Project Title:
Putting Diversity to Practice: Increasing the University/Community Influence of MSUM’s Multicultural Music Ensemble
Project Director and Other Associated Faculty and Staff:
Kenyon Williams, Asst. Professor, Minnesota State University Moorhead, Contact: willdrum@mnstate.edu, Tel.: (218)477-4610
Project Design:
Building on a previous CTL grant, this project allowed the Fuego Tropical ensemble to expand its influence both on campus and in the community. This multi-cultural ensemble seeks to educate students about Afro-Caribbean culture and music.
Project Evaluation and Outcomes:
During the 2004-05 year, the project brought Ruben Alvarez, a Latin jazz artist, to MSUM in order to conduct master classes and give performances. During his visit, he worked directly with over 150 MSUM students and 9 faculty. His concert attracted over 380 attendees from the community with an overflow crowd of 50+ standing. Fuego Tropical used the songs and techniques taught by Mr. Alvarez to give concerts which were attended by over 1,600 persons. In Spring, 2005, the Ghanian Master Drummer Sowah Mensah was invited to MSUM to provide Africa music instruction and performances. Over 60 persons attended his workshops and approximately 450 persons attended his performances. Evaluations were conducted in the form of surveys distributed at performances and the event received an average rank of 9.5 on a 10 point scale.
Lessons Learned, Dissemination and Sustainability
The grant directly impacted the lives of 150 student participants and provided multicultural education for over 2,500 MSUM students and community members. Although some costs did exceed budgets, these concerns were alleviated through additional grants which provided for the success of the endeavors. While the grant focused on experiential learning, many students participated in collaborative projects outside of class. For example, many students tailored their research around material explored in the ensemble. The community embraced the events as well. The one negative outcome was the lack of interest among many in the Fargo-Moorhead minority community. The project director tried to outreach to the community but it appears that the community is waiting and watching to see if MSUM is sincere in its cultural outreach efforts.
