On Tuesday, December 20, 2022, at 6 PM, the Philadelphia Lullaby Project will have a celebration concert at Teatro Esperanza on 5th and Bristol in the Hunting Park section of Philadelphia. The concert is free and open to the public. The event celebrates a culmination of three years of pairing up Philadelphia parents and caregivers with acclaimed Philadelphia musicians who helped parents create and write songs for their babies.
This is how their website describes the project. “The Lullaby Project, a project of Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute, pairs new and expecting parents and caregivers with professional artists to write and sing personal lullabies for their babies, supporting maternal health, aiding childhood development, and strengthening the bond between parent and child.”
We spoke with Manuel Bagorro, Creative Advisor at Carnegie Hall and with The Lullaby Project of Philadelphia and here is what he had to say about the event and the project.
What is the Lullaby Project?
It is a project whereby a parent or caregiver can think about what they want to say to their child-what hopes and dreams they have for them and put them in a letter. Then, that mom or dad or caregiver sits next to a professional musician and uses what they said in the letter to derive lyrics and work on the music to create a personal lullaby for their child.
How did it start?
It all started in New York City ten years ago in the Bronx with a healthcare partner and a hospital. We asked some of the hospital staff which population they thought might benefit from a creative invitation and they immediately said very young mothers who were having difficulty adjusting to parenthood. With that, the Carnegie Hall team came up with this idea of a lullaby project for parents of children aged between 12 and 36 months.
What has been the response?
It’s interesting. Most parents we invite say, “oh no, I couldn’t do something like that. I’m not musical and don’t have a singing voice.” But gradually they become involved in the process and realize that everybody has ideas of what they want their lullaby to sound like and what they want to say musically to their child. What most surprised us was how despite all the chaos and complexities of raising children, every parent involved with this project showed up and followed through on creating their lullaby for their child to its completion.
What do people do with the created lullaby?
The parents and the child get either a CD or digitally recorded MP3 memento as a keepsake which can be shared in lots of different ways. We also frame the letter that was written for the child. Parents send the recordings to their family in other countries. The multi-generational aspect is important along with how it helps to connect them with other generations even when the person is quite far away. The public can also listen to all the lullabies on our SoundCloud page not only from Philadelphia but also from around this country and around the world.
When did the Lullaby Project start in Philadelphia?
The program started three years ago In Philadelphia with the support from the William Penn Foundation. There are lots of national partners. One of the first people I went to see when we were starting this project in Philadelphia was the Reverend Luis Cortes and Bill Rhoads of Esperanza. It was such an inspiring meeting and exchange of ideas, and it was clear that many of the things that we were trying to do for families were so aligned with how Esperanza works with families. So, Esperanza has been a partner throughout the three years helping us to identify families and assist in conducting some of our sessions in Spanish. They also provide a great venue in the Teatro Esperanza where we’ll be having our celebration concert Tuesday, the 20th of December at 6 PM.
Who will be performing on December 20?
The concert will feature a big band of acclaimed musicians who worked on the project as well as some other professional musicians in Philadelphia who are going to perform about 14 songs along with introductions and stories from the parents to make what I hope will be a beautiful and moving evening. Our hope it is that it also celebrates the artistic quality of all the personal statements of love and nurture from the parents to their children. The musical track director for the show, Ximena Violante, is one of the Carnegie Hall artists that’s been involved with Philadelphia as well over the years so there really is a collaboration that happens, but the focus of this project really is Philadelphia and its families. All children, adults and families are welcome; for more information and free tickets go online www.esperanzaartscenter.us.
For free tickets to the Lullaby Project concert go to: https://www.esperanzaartscenter.us/event/philadelphia-lullaby-project-celebration-concert/
For more information on The Lullaby Project visit: https://www.carnegiehall.org/Education/Programs/Lullaby-Project
To listen to Lullaby Project songs on Soundcloud visit: https://soundcloud.com/user-224023417
For bio and information on Ximena Violante, visit their website at: https://ximenaviolante.com/
