Volunteers assist visitors at a Music Village booth during its Block Party community event. The organization relies on volunteers to support programs, workshops and large public gatherings. Photos provided by The Music Village.
By Maksym Hart
InkFreeNews
SOUTH BEND — The Music Village in downtown South Bend continues to expand its programs and facilities as it works to make music education and live performance opportunities available to people of all ages.
The exterior of The Music Village in downtown South Bend. The nonprofit community music center provides lessons, instrument rentals, workshops and outreach programming.
Executive Director Laura Rea said the nonprofit’s mission is creating community through music and reduce barriers that might prevent people from participating.
Located near the St. Joseph County Public Library, The Music Village offers private lessons, workshops, instrument rentals and community events. Rea said the organization also provides tuition assistance and free programming in an effort to keep services affordable.
“We believe that it’s this fundamental part of our humanness to interact with music and to find connection with other people through it,” Rea said.
Rea described live music as an experience that allows people from different backgrounds to share common ground.
“Everybody can find some common ground in music,” she said. “It transcends language and it transcends status.”
The organization has expanded significantly since its early days in the basement of the JMF building downtown. Rea said The Music Village now serves more than 250 students with approximately 30 instructors.
One of its largest public events is the annual block party, which drew roughly 3,700 attendees last year, according to Rea. The festival includes live performances, vendors and activities intended to celebrate the local creative community.
Volunteer Mark Schurr said the event was one of his earliest experiences with the organization after he became involved through discussions about a planned nonprofit recording studio initiative.
“The first thing I ever helped with was their annual block party,” Schurr said. “There were performances by people of all different ages, from kids to seniors.”
Schurr now volunteers weekly at the front desk and assists with organizing donated instruments. He said one of the most surprising aspects of volunteering has been the wide range of people involved in the organization’s programs.
Two Music Village saxophone players perform. The nonprofit offers music lessons, workshops and live performance opportunities for community members of all ages.
“The oldest person, in their 90s, is taking guitar lessons for the first time,” Schurr said. “Music is a lifetime thing.”
Rea said volunteers remain critical to the organization’s operations, especially during large events and free community programming. The block party alone requires more than 50 volunteers throughout the day.
Volunteers also help with workshops, front desk duties and organizing donated instruments and supplies. Community members regularly donate instruments, which are repaired and rented at reduced rates.
“Then they have a group called the Jammers that meets every Wednesday,” Schurr said. “It’s people of all different ages playing all kinds of instruments. It’s just fun to watch everybody at all different skill levels playing together and just having fun making music.”
The organization is also preparing for a major expansion. Rea said The Music Village is adding approximately 4,000 square feet to its facility, including new classrooms and a recording arts teaching studio intended to provide vocational training and recording experience.
Schurr said he hopes the recording initiative will connect with more teenagers and young adults interested in music production careers.
“South Bend does not have a path into some kind of a career in the recording industry,” Schurr said. “That would be great.”
Rea said additional future plans include instrument repair workshops and STEM-related music education programs that explore the science and physics behind music.
“We’re always looking for new ideas or suggestions or things that people want to see us do,” Rea said.
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