Project Inclusion: Musician Mentoring Program
Project Inclusion is the Chicago Sinfonietta’s groundbreaking mentoring program for musicians of diverse backgrounds who are pursuing careers as professional classical musicians. It is designed to help eliminate the institutional bias that is a barrier to participation for many musicians due to factors such as ethnicity, race, and socio-economic status. According to a study by Dr. Earl Carter of Juilliard, less than 3% of orchestral musicians are people of color. Regrettably, there are very few programs addressing this issue.
Project Inclusion provides promising musicians from diverse backgrounds two-year fellowships with the Chicago Sinfonietta. The fellows receive:
- Full salary for all rehearsals and performances. The fellows perform at every concert during their two-year fellowships and are often hired for other services, further extending both the financial and experiential impact of the fellowship.
- One-on-one mentoring from senior members of the orchestra on topics ranging from concert preparation, to audition advice, to professionalism, and more.
- Assistance in securing work after the fellowship has been completed.
We believe that America’s orchestras should reflect its communities. Our goal for Project Inclusion is to see other orchestras begin similar programs so that the number of qualified, experienced minority musicians competing for and winning seats in orchestras is significantly increased, resulting in the enhanced diversity of all American orchestras.
We are very grateful to the generous sponsors of Project Inclusion and to our college partners including Chicago College of the Performing Arts at Roosevelt University, DePaul School of Music, and the Northwestern University School of Music who help us identify the candidates for this program.
The Chicago Sinfonietta accepts applications from qualified musicians periodically. All applicants must audition. Application eligibility and guidelines for the program may be downloaded from this page.
Project Inclusion Ensembles (PIE)
Due to the limited number (4-6 people) of talented musicians served each year through Project Inclusion, the Sinfonietta launched the PIE program in 2009 to increase the number of musicians being prepared for careers in classical music. The PIE musicians are chosen through a competitive audition process, receive coaching and are rehearsed by Program Manager Renee Baker, and are scheduled to perform at community events throughout the Chicagoland area. Since January of 2010 PIE has performed at over forty community events for over 6,000 people.
The Chicago Sinfonietta is very grateful to the Andrew Mellon Foundation for their support of Project Inclusion.
Download ApplicationTo request a PIE for your community event please contact Jim Hirsch.
