The creative concept for Music4Life™ was born in the fall of 2007 and is an ongoing program.
Our goal is to put donated and repaired musical instruments into the hands of students who need them, and to ensure strong instrumental music programs everywhere.
We acquire musical instruments from those who understand the important role of music in a child’s life. We work with instrument manufacturers, rental agencies, wholesalers, retailers, and others who have access to serviceable musical instruments. Anyone who loves music and believes in instrumental music education for all children can join the effort!
Music4Life provides donated and repaired musical instruments at no charge to public school districts and encourages them to make these instruments available to students in need.
Why, you might ask? Because research shows that children who participate in instrumental music:
- Tend to have larger vocabularies and more advanced reading skills than their non-music peers;
- Demonstrate different brain development and improved memory over the course of a year;
- Engage areas of the brain that are involved with paying attention, making predictions and updating events; and
- Report the lowest current and lifetime use of dangerous substances, including tobacco, alcohol and illicit drugs.
Read more about the Benefits of Music Education.
We Work with Public School Districts
Music4Life began in 2007 as a program to help kids in Seattle Public Schools. Since then we’ve expanded to help students attending Highline, Shoreline, Edmonds, Everett, Northshore, Bremerton and Auburn Public Schools — comprising more than 166,000 students in Washington state. Because Music4Life is a community-based activity, we guarantee that resources developed in any of those communities are used exclusively for the benefit of kids in those communities, as long as they are enrolled there. Music4Life Chapters comprised of local community leaders help us operate each of our programs.
Accomplishments
During the school year starting September 1, 2015, Music4Life delivered 143 donated and repaired musical instruments valued at $102,323 to our (then) five participating school districts.
During the school year starting September 1, 2016 we nearly doubled our productivity, delivering 277 instruments valued at $169,822 to our (then) six participating school districts. And during the school year starting September 1, 2017, Music4Life has grown further to deliver 2,036 instruments (including 1,725 recorders) valued at $182,817 to our (current) eight public school districts (numbers will be updated after August 2018). (NOTE: Instrument values are “fair market values” as determined by the Music4Life independent preferred vendor experts.
Restored musical instruments have a remaining useful life of three to 15 years. Or more. So, any one of these instruments may be used by two, three or five students.
Thanks to King and Snohomish Counties and numerous Mayors and City Councils within them, “May Is Music4Life Month” is now established as an annual event to help raise public awareness about the ongoing need.
Music4Life is proud to have been presented the prestigious 2012 and 2018 “Friend of Music” awards by the Washington Music Educators Association.
Questions?
Please read our Frequently Asked Questions page, peruse our Basic Information document, or Contact Us if you don’t find what you are looking for, call one of our Chapter members, our Program Coordinators or Co-Founder David Endicott at (206) 409-3275.
