From the grandeur of the United Palace Theater to the streets of Corona Queens, Sistema inspired programs are booming in New York City. This week we had the chance to visit both the Harmony Program in Washington Heights and the Corona Youth Music Project in Queens. While these programs differ in size and resources, their mutual goal of providing access and opportunity to New York City youth unites.

At Corona, President and CEO and Abreu Fellow ’10, Alvaro F. Rodas spoke about the challenges of starting a music program from scratch and the many different hats one has to wear as the founder of an organization. Though he is a percussionist, some days he is a conductor because that’s what is needed. Other days, he is a grant writer, because that’s what is needed. The flexibility and dedication it takes to build and sustain an independent music program is immense, and Alvaro and his team at Corona show no exception to this. To learn more about Corona Youth Music Project and the Harmony Program visit http://www.nucleocorona.org and http://harmonyprogram.org