Director of the Little 5 Points Music Center, Phil Sims, writes in with details about the Center’s August expansion to Decatur.

Decatur is quickly becoming a mecca for arts and arts education, welcoming in August the opening of the Decatur Music Center— the second location in a growing network of community music schools in Atlanta. Located on E Howard Avenue, next to the Decatur School of Ballet, the Decatur Music Center offers music lessons, classes, summer camps, educational workshops and performance opportunities for children and adults interested in classical, jazz, rock, folk and experimental music, as well as musical theater and video production. Currently, more than 350 students, beginners through pre-professionals, are enrolled at the organization’s start up location in Little Five Points.

Led by music educators Phil Sims and Diana Orozco, nearly all members of the Music Center’s faculty hold music degrees from accredited institutions, and many hold advanced degrees from some of America’s leading conservatories and schools of music, including the Eastman School of Music, Oberlin College-Conservatory, Manhattan School of Music, and Florida State University. Most faculty members also maintain active careers as performers and/or composers.

Performance and collaboration across studios and disciplines are key to the learning experience at the Music Center, and the faculty bring not only the latest educational tools to the studios, but also their own experience making music in the rapidly changing field of cultural production. Rather than a formal recital or competition at the end of the school term, Music Center students are nurtured to develop a genuine musical practice and to share the fruits with both the school and wider community. Students meet one-on-one with their private instructor, but tuition also includes group classes, workshops, and small ensemble rehearsals. Students are also offered ample opportunities to perform in a variety of stylistically and age- appropriate venues and contexts.

“We are extremely excited to be a part of the vibrant arts and arts education scene developing in Decatur,” said Sims, who has taught in several university music degree-granting programs, most recently on the faculty of Emory University. “As we’re starting to push the capacity of our buildings in Little 5, we’re also pleased to lighten the load a little for our students and their parents– with many making the trek to Little 5 from Decatur in afternoon traffic, this seemed to be the perfect place to expand.”

Since its inception two years ago, the Music Center has developed collaborative programming with an impressive list of organizations, including the Atlanta Ballet’s Centre for Dance Education, Grady High School, the Kingfisher Academy, the Montessori School of Dunwoody, and the Center for Pan Asian Community Services. Similar relationships will be sought in Decatur. The Decatur Music Center will also provide space for local and regional visual artists to display their works, part of the Music Center’s philosophy of encouraging dialogue and collaboration across different art forms.

For more information on the Decatur Music Center’s extensive programs and classes, or to register, visit www.DecaturMusicCenter.com or call Director Phil Sims at 404-614-0466.