MUSICOPIA INC
For a Well Played LIfe
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Musicopia Orchestra
The mission of the Musicopia String Orchestra (MSO) is to inspire in children a lifelong love of music, provide a pathway and the tools to achievement and success, and transform lives and communities. Founded by Musicopia in 2005, the MSO program is based on the philosophy that participating in serious, long-term musical endeavors can have a transformative impact on students, encouraging discipline, teamwork, and personal and creative development.
MSO serves students throughout the greater Philadelphia region with three levels of ensemble: Musicopia Young String Players (MYSP), Musicopia String Orchestra, and Musicopia Chamber Orchestra. All MSO students rehearse every Tuesday with a core faculty of passionate and committed teaching artists, preparing for their performances and participating in special projects and collaborations with guest artists or groups. In addition to the weekly full orchestra rehearsals, supplemental activities provided may include intensive chamber coaching for advanced students and various collaborations with guest performers.
Gift of Music
Donate an instrument. Change a life.
Every child should have the opportunity to play an instrument. It makes children smarter. It makes them happier. Unfortunately, many families just can’t afford instruments. That’s where we…and you…come in.
Help Musicopia support in-school music programs by donating an instrument! We accept all instruments and the market value of your instrument is 100% tax deductible. There is a particular need for string, wind and low brass instruments, especially violin, cello, bass, flutes clarinets, trumpets and saxophones.
Musicopia partners with local repair shops to repair all donated instruments. If you have a piano to donate, we ask that you also donate the cost of moving the piano, and Musicopia will happily pay for the cost of tuning.
Residency Programs
Musicopia’s residency programs provide an in-depth experience of music and related arts. Participants can range from dedicated music students to those who have never even held an instrument. All residency programs can be custom-tailored to fit the needs of the teacher and workshop participants, including those with special needs. Our musicians are very flexible and welcome opportunities to collaborate.
Musicopia Drumlines
Musicopia Drumlines is an after-school percussion program with the goal of inspiring participants to:
Develop world-class music fundamentals, reading, and listening skills
Inspire a love of music and cultural pride that will last a lifetime
Learn crucial life skills such as discipline, self-confidence, teamwork, and an aspiration to push themselves to further accomplishments
Percussion has the unique power to engage students with no musical experience; our programs are successful because we center curriculum and pedagogy on their needs. Members consistently demonstrate high academic achievement, increased school attendance, and reduced disciplinary incidents. Musicopia Drumlines ensembles have won competitive titles and performed widely at parades, private venues, and professional sporting events.
With no cost to participants, the program is open to 3rd – 12th graders of all skill levels and is currently comprised of six ensembles.
Philadelphia Music Alliance for Youth
Philadelphia Music Alliance for Youth (PMAY) Artists’ Initiative is a project that supports 5th-12th grade students from underrepresented communities and low-income households to pursue their dream of becoming a professional classical musician. The PMAY Artists’ Initiative offers young musicians financial support to make lessons, music classes, youth orchestra participation, and summer music camps affordable. As a PMAY artist, students attend free college and career preparation workshops, and PMAY teachers and staff work with each family to ensure that each musician has an instrument and a strong plan in place for acceptance into a conservatory, college or university majoring in classical music.
PMAY was established to address a major issue in American classical music. Fewer than 5% of musicians in professional American orchestras are African American or Latino, and the number of South Asians, Pacific Islanders, American Indians, and Alaskan Natives are similarly low. Yet the cities that support these orchestras are racially and ethnically diverse. Philadelphia is the first city in the nation to address diversity in classical music on a city-wide level and aims to change the face of classical music throughout the country.
Musicopia is proud to collaborate with this group of amazing organizations and individuals.
Where we work
External reviews
Videos
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback, The people we serve tell us they find data collection burdensome
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
MUSICOPIA INC
Board of directorsas of 11/28/2022
David DiStefano
AIIR Consulting
Term: 2021 - 2025
Staci Wilhelm
J. G. Wentworth
Catherine Broh
MGA Partners Architects
Brian Camfield
Primera Engineers
Danielle Kalish
Comcast
Charles Shupe
Radnor School District (Retired)
Leslie Donnell
Razelle Frankl
Professor Emerita, Rowan University
Jeffrey Freedman
Jeffrey M. Freedman, Esquire, LLC
Lynne Millard
School District of Philadelphia
Joshua Cruz
Musicopia Teaching Artist
Joseph Batory
Retired Superintendent
Jacob Elich
Columbia Business School, MBA Candidate
Manish Gorawala
Tri Force Consulting
Remi Jardel
Mazars
Carly Keeny
Comcast
Rhonda Moore
DCP Teaching Artist
Greg Offner
Entrepreneur
Len Weiser
White Horse Village
Arthur Chiu
LANXESS Corporation
James E. Cauley, Jr.
School District of Philadelphia (Retired)
Aalyah Duncan
Alist & Co., LLC
Richard M. Gordon IV
School District of Philadelphia
Tom Valvano
Grant Thornton LLP
Dr. Dennis W. Creedon
School District Superintendent (Retired)
Scott Fast
Day & Zimmerman Maintenance and Construction
Kelley Arredondo
Erickson Living
Tim Kardish
Gerard Daniel Worldwide
Ebony Lee
2U
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
Disability
Equity strategies
Last updated: 06/02/2021GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.