Mandy Miles
Keys Weekly
The Bahama Village Music Program started 20 years ago in a storage room beside the stage in the Frederick Douglass Gym.
“We had three pianos and three teachers to give free music lessons to local kids,” said Katchen Duncan, who has been both music teacher and executive director for the past 15 years.
They’ve clearly done something right.
The program has now provided 20,000 free music lessons to 2,000 Key West kids, and continues to help local kids make “joyful noise” after school and throughout the summer. The program, which doesn’t cost the students a dime, offers piano, guitar, violin, voice, ukulele and drum lessons. It also features several choirs, a rock band, a jazz ensemble, a steel pan band and strings group.
“We don’t ask for any income information; it’s all 100% free,” Duncan said. “Some of our kids get off the bus and are there all afternoon three days a week.” Read more >>