Empowerment Through Music (ETM) is an arts in social services program that focus on both prevention and intervention through the delivery of music instruction and positive mentoring for low-income, at-risk and incarcerated youth.  ETM provides positive mentoring and outlets for creative expression for youth who often lack access to these important building blocks.

 

ETM's prevention component is the South Valley Band Project, out-of-school time music classes for low-income middle school students.  In these classes, students learn music theory, harmonics, rhythm and ensemble playing. The classes are offered at Harrison Middle School, in a neighborhood where gang violence is a big problem. Most of the students are not involved in extra-curricular activities and ETM offers them a fun way to learn music in a supervised, supportive environment. The band focuses on popular music. Lead instructor, Jonathan Vieker, notes: "For young students, being able to play songs they hear on the radio can be a gentler introduction to music than traditional school orchestra music." The band will perform for the whole school and parents at an end of school assembly in May.

 

ETM's intervention component is the Juvenile Detention Center (JDC) Program where therapeutic journaling and music technology classes are provided for incarcerated and paroled teenagers.  Most of these youth come also come from poor neighborhoods where violence is a way of life. Through ETM, therapeutic journaling helps young inmates put a voice to their inner feelings.  Lyric writing and music technology instruction then allow them to create songs using Abelton software.  A follow-up program for paroled youth is also part of ETM with music technology classes offered at Warehouse 508, a city run teen arts center. Once off parole, they can continue on at Warehouse 508's Open Studio. At the end of June, a compilation CD will be completed containing the best original songs from the JDC Program. 

 

Using music as the catalyst, the goals of the ETM Program are to: 1) provide an engaging environment for youth to learn music; 2)provide a positive environment to support personal and social growth; and 3)provide the tools and mentoring necessary to relay the message that a better future is possible. The ultimate goal of ETM is to significantly impact these lives through empowerment, self-esteem building and education.

 

A key goal of the South Valley Band Project is to help prevent contact with the Juvenile Justice System. In Albuquerque, 1 in 4 youth live in poverty and 1 in 3 are left on their own after school and during the summer. Low income parents may want child care but are often unable access it. Studies show that when youth are left on their own, the incidence of juvenile crime triples.  And even if these kids don't get into trouble, they are in danger of losing important academic gains. Studies show that youth without healthy activities and stimulating experiences lose an average of 2.3 months of grade equivalency per summer - with cumulative effects over time.  The South Valley Band Project also helps develop interpersonal skills. Vieker says, "At the beginning of the year, we had a collection of individuals. Now, it's truly a group, musically and socially. Students who would otherwise never be friends are now friends and many kids that I thought would never string three words together have become social."

 

At the JDC Program, the intervention aspect of the program is aimed at helping youth refocus their (self) destructive energies; with the long-term goal of reducing future contact with the justice system. The therapeutic aspect of the program is geared towards helping address behavioral health, low self esteem and substance abuse issues through reflective journaling and discussion.

Populations served under ETM are primarily low-income, Hispanic and African American youth, ages 11-17. This past year, ETM served 318 youth.

 

The Empowerment Through Music Program is the only one if its type in New Mexico to provide music-based prevention and intervention programs for at-risk and incarcerated/paroled youth. This distinction was recently recognized by the Mayor of Albuquerque; as the Empowerment Through Music Program will be showcased at a large city-sponsored gala in May.