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Musical Mentors come from all sectors of our community. Many are YPSCA members, while some are non-members who simply choose to donate to the Musical Mentor Program, all fully tax-deductible. YPSCA’s members and donors provide funds to pay for tickets for school children (primarily in grades 3-6) to attend Minnesota Orchestra Young People’s Concerts, for buses to transport the children to Orchestra Hall, and for pre-concert in-school introductions to the music and the concert experience.

Another kind of Musical Mentor support comes from community partners. We welcome community organizations to partner with us in making these programs possible. Some schools seek community grants to offset a portion of the cost of the program. When schools or districts can provide even a small match to YPSCA’s funds, we are able to extend our resources to support more schools.

Become a Musical Mentor 

Be a Musical Mentor and help send a classroom to Orchestra Hall. Musical Mentors annually give a gift of $150 or more to support a classroom from a school that would otherwise not have the economic resources to send students to the Young People’s Concerts. Each $150 gift from a Musical Mentor purchases tickets, pays for busses, and provides an engaging in-school music program designed for the specific concert the students will attend, presented by two professional musicians.

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Our school's elementary orchestra program has grown significantly, in part due to the students' invaluable experience of attending a live symphony orchestra concert.”

School administrator

School Grants

YPSCA provides financial help to send your students to the Young People’s Concerts. All grant applications are annually reviewed in February of each year. Notices of approved funding are announced in March of each year. We accept grant applications throughout the year and may make additional grant awards if additional funds become available.

Apply for a Grant

In-School Music Program: OboeBass!

The Musical Mentor program sends the musical duo of Carrie Vecchione, oboe, and Rolf Erdahl, double bass, to each school participating in the program. These creative musicians, known professionally as OboeBass!, present engaging concert previews to the students, introducing them to the orchestral instruments, elements of classical music and offer stories about music.