Raising money to get a student a flute...ideas?

Arianna · Post by **Arianna** » Wed Apr 21, 2010 7:23 am

Hey,
I am teaching a very gifted student right now, but her family cannot afford to buy her a flute. She is using a school instrument now, but I wonder what will happen when she graduates. I was thinking about trying to do some sort of benefit concert or something.

Any ideas? Has anyone ever tried anything like this? She wants to major in music, so I wanted to try to raise between $3-6k to get her a good flute. Any one who is a teacher may understand this statement...some people have that certain something, soul, to their sound and interpretation. She does! I see a lot of potential there, especially since she plays on a icky flute right now.

Let me know...I don't even know if I can do this!

pied_piper · Post by **pied_piper** » Wed Apr 21, 2010 9:46 am

In addition to the fund raising that you mentioned, you might check to see if she could qualify to receive a grant of some sort. Perhaps some sort of matching grant could be obtained where your fund raising efforts are matched dollar-for-dollar.

A Google search for "grants for musical instruments" shows that there are numerous grants available. Some are for institutions only, but for some, individuals may qualify.

For example, the NAMM, the International Music Products Association (formerly National Association of Music Merchants) lists a number of different grants that are available to support music.

http://www.namm.org/initiatives/namm-foundation-grants

Another possible source to consider may be local or state arts commissions, churches, and other charitable organizations. Sometimes, these types of organizations will provide aid for disadvantaged youth. Anyway, those are a few things that you might explore.

flutepower · Post by **flutepower** » Wed Apr 21, 2010 12:18 pm

Perhaps you could suggest for the girl to get a small part time job
somewhere - like baby sitting. I'm not sure about this - but
aren't their music scholarships she could apply for? That would
save a lot of money for college, and she could put that saved money
to buy a reasonable flute.
~Melissa

Arianna · Post by **Arianna** » Sat Apr 24, 2010 7:31 pm

Well...scholarships are great...but she needs to pay for tuition. I don't think she is going to get much help from the parents. She is in a big family. She has been applying for scholarships. There are just sooooo many people out there. I don't know. She is going to get a job. But, come on, making minimum wage as a high school kid...gonna take a long time to save up for a flute and college!

fluttiegurl · Post by **fluttiegurl** » Sun Apr 25, 2010 12:38 pm

I have helped students try to raise money for instruments before and to be honest, it is extremely hard and sometimes not as rewarding as you ma think. A benefit concert is a great place to start. If she is serious though, working to pay at least part of it should be a requirement.

The worst part is the fact that many music majors do not follow through and that is a lot of money and work to put into a flute that may or may not be used to its full potential. My suggestion is to just try to get her something that will get her in (a basic flute will be better than nothing). After that, if she really wants this, she will find a way. I have had students who took jobs and even student loans for flutes while in college. If she can get a grant, great, but she needs to understand that if she accepts something like that it is a HUGE commitment. I only suggest using caution because in the two cases that I have actually helped students buy flutes, they did not follow through. I even gave a high school student flute and after she quite band (yes, quit), she decided that she should not have to give the flute back. Now it sets in a closet somewhere, probably destined for a pawn shop. She was a great kid with a lot of potential. Lesson learned.