Education
Since 2011, ONS has provided access to high-quality music education through our free Summer Strings Camp, year round In-School Lessons, and Student performances, welcoming students to learn from the musicians of ONS’s orchestra adn experince the vibrance of a life in the arts.
Summer Strings Camp
In 2011, ONS was asked to pilot a summer strings camp for the Dallas Independent School District, in which students today receive 30 hours of orchestral and sectional rehearsals, theory, and musicianship. The program serves more than 250 students annualy, 90% of whom are Title I students. Students are provided transportation to camp, two meals a day, and an alternative space to spend summer hours safely and productively, while developing the skills, discipline, and appreciation for the musical arts.
Student Concerts
The Orchestra extends its reach to thousands of DISD students each year by providing an opportunity to attend the specially edited
45-minute student performances of our annual productions for free, thanks to our underwriting sponsors. This is often the first live experience of any kind these students have both in the Arts District and with musical theatre, bringing the intersecting worlds of music, history, drama, dance, and languages to life onstage.
Artist Residencies
Starting in 2017, Orchestra of New Spain has collaborated with Yjastros Flamenco to provide Dallas ISD students with the opportunity to immerse themselves in the art of Flamenco. Seeing burgeoning popularity within DISD arts education, this program has taught in schools such as Booker T. Washington, Greiner Arts Academy, Woodrow Wilson High School, Sunset High School, and W. T. White. During COVID-19, the program had to be cancelled, but the students were given 1.5 hours of video instructions to flamenco dances, which were viewed by 8,000 students.
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In 2023, the residency worked with Rumbarroco, providing extensive workshops to over 450 students in Booker T. Washington and Greiner Arts Academy. These workshops sought to expose students to IberAmerican baroque music and have them tap their feet to the rhythmic backbone of Latin percussion. They even got to listen to Laury Gutierrez, playing the viola de gamba, talk about the history of music and associated instruments.
