Mary Palmer opened her home to host a recital by Dr. Gary Wolf on Piano and Mati Braun on Violin. Gary Wolf was Distinguished Professor of Music at UCF and he is Professor Emeritus of music at UCF and is Artist-in-Residence in the Music Department of Rollins College. Mati studied at Juilliard in New York City. He was principle violinist with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and he was a violinist with a the New York Philharmonic from 1969-2006. They played Sonatas from 18th & 20th century. Veracini, Mozart, Beethoven & Sibelius. Introducing Beethoven, Mati said, “Beethoven’s music is therapeutic. If I play music at a hospital it would have to be Beethoven. This piece is almost lighthearted although Beethoven was a very serious man.”
Perhaps fifteen to twenty people sat in the living room to listen. Mary collects African drums which added splashes of bright color around the piano. This event was a fundraiser for “A Gift for Music.” AGFM is an offshoot of A Gift for Teaching. Sally Carter the director of A Gift for Music was at the recital to explain the program. This program offers violin lessons twice a week to students in six low income schools around Central Florida. 460 students benefit from the program each year. Third grade students are offered beginning violin classes and fourth and fifth grade students are given the opportunity to continue violin training in advanced classes. The AGFM Orchestra gives advanced students a chance to perform on stage. Students can choose from violin, viola, cello or bass. They rehearse Saturday afternoons and perform several times a year. Students are loaned instruments for home practice. A Gift for Music has touched the lives of over 7,200 students and their families in Central Florida. When a child blossoms and finds a way to express themselves through music, we all benefit. Donations to help keep A Gift for Music running are always accepted.
“What I have in my heart and soul must find a way out. That is the reason for music.”
– Ludwig Van Beethoven
