Looking for something fun and beneficial for your kids? Look no further than the Winston-Salem Symphony’s “Discovery Concerts for Kids!” Designed to entertain and delight young people, these concerts are affordable, accessible and fun and are a wonderful way to introduce classical music to kids of all ages.
As a mom and/or dad, you’ve probably heard about all the studies that show that music is important for the development of young children. It helps with language acquisition, math skills, listening skills, self-esteem, creativity—the list goes on and on. The Winston-Salem Symphony’s Discovery Concerts are a terrific way to integrate music into your child’s life.
The Symphony works hard to keep the Discovery Concerts entertaining, and they include plenty of chances for wiggly kids to move in their seats in time to the music. The concerts are about one hour long, perfect for short attention spans, and incorporate guest artists that fit the theme of each concert, such as dancers, magicians, musicians with a comedic bent, and more, who help entertain the kids.
An hour before each show there are a variety of pre-concert activities. There is always an “Instrument Petting Zoo,” which is a chance for kids to touch and even play instruments, and other activities that are geared to entertain and provide an educational element. The activities are tied into the theme of each concert.
The first Discovery Concert for Kids of the season, “Music Explorers! Discovering Music Around the World” is on Sunday, January 13th at 3 p.m. (but be sure to come at 2 p.m. for pre-concert fun) at Reynolds Auditorium in Winston-Salem, and will be conducted by Assistant Conductor Jessica Morel. It will feature a variety of music from around the world and popular guest artists, “Paperhand Puppet Intervention,” which is a puppet theater company known for creating original large-scale puppets, masks, shadow puppets, as well as performing stilt dancing.
In the spring, you won’t want to miss Prokofiev’s delightful Peter and the Wolf, which will have two shows, one at 2 and one at 4 p.m. on Sunday, April 7th at Brendle Recital Hall on the campus of Wake Forest University. Assistant Conductor Jessica Morel and the Symphony will be joined by the Winston-Salem Festival Ballet and Estelle Bajou, who will narrate. In addition, you will hear Viet Cuong’s The Wild Woods, which was written specifically for the Winston-Salem Symphony! Since there are two shows, the activities will take place between the performances from 3 to 4 p.m. in the lobby.
Tickets for the Discovery Concerts for Kids Series are $7 for children, ages three to 12 (ages two and under, free) and $18 for adults. Tickets can be purchased by calling the Symphony Box Office at 336.464.0145 or online at WSsymphony.org.
