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STAR Program
Students That Aspire to Rock!
  
Blue Bear STAR Bands performing
at Blue Bear Live IV
[photos by: Julie Bernstein]
What began as a modest guitar instruction program evolved into an innovative public school music program and after-school program that serves hundreds of youth in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Blue Bear School of Music's STAR (Students That Aspire to Rock) Program includes two distinct components: Rock Band Ensemble Program, a classroom-based offering, and Digital Audio Production Studio 101, an after-school program. Focusing on instrumental music instruction, music history, live performance, recording and editing, participating students are provided with instruments, lessons, practice sessions, performance opportunities, the mentorship of professional musicians and more. This program represents Blue Bear's commitment to revitalize music education and make it accessible to greater numbers of children and youth in our community.
Blue Bear was approached in March 2006 by the principal of James Lick Middle School due to the unexpected departure of their music teacher mid-semester. To ensure a continuation of an instrumental music program at James Lick, Blue Bear quickly developed a program that fit the needs of the school. Adapting what had been a stringed instrument program to accommodate guitar, bass, drums and percussion, the STAR Program was so successful that Blue Bear was invited to return the next academic year, at which point the program was expanded to accommodate seventh and eighth graders.
Blue Bear then added the Digital Audio Production Studio 101 after-school component to its STAR Program, for students interested in developing songwriting, music technology and production skills, offering it at James Lick as well as Claire Lilienthal Alternative School and Starr King Elementary School. A new partnership with the YMCA after-school program developed for the 2008-09 school year has allowed Blue Bear to expand the number of children and youth that we serve throughout the city.
Fun Fact #1: STAR originally was an acronym for Schools that Aspire to Rock, but the success and popularity of our after-school program, and its inclusion into non-school settings throughout the City, made it necessary to change it to Students that Aspire to Rock in 2009.
Fun Fact #2: During 2008-09, the STAR Program served more than 400 children and youth throughout San Francisco - in the classroom and during out-of-school time - most of whom would not have been able to afford tuition-based music programs.
Fun Fact #3: Each year, several students participating in the STAR Program perform at our annual Blue Bear Live benefit concert. These students have had an opportunity to share the stage with such musical luminaries as Los Lobos, Elvin Bishop, Booker T. and Jackie Greene, among others.
Rock Band Ensemble
The Rock Band Ensemble Program involves active listening, music history, music theory, music criticism, instrumental technique, and practice and performance. Sixth grade students have nine weeks of instruction focusing on the fundamental building block of all music: rhythm. In addition to hands-on drumming, the class covers tempo, dynamics, meter and notation. Seventh grade students have 18 weeks of instruction, and in addition to further developing ear training and rhythmic skills, they begin formal study in guitar, bass or drums. Initially introduced to all three instruments, students choose one after the three-week introductory period. They then participate in focused study that includes instrument care; tuning and playing techniques; major, minor, and pentatonic scales; and chords for guitar students. The course culminates in a live performance. Eighth grade students, who take music as an elective, focus on instrument study, performance and band formation with the goal of learning eight to 12 songs by the end of the school year. Students engage in music appreciation, active listening, and the study of history and theory, and have the opportunity to attend free live musical performances throughout the Bay Area.
Digital Audio Production Studio 101
Digital Audio Production Studio 101 is an innovative, after-school program focusing on original songwriting, music production and recording. Blue Bear instructors provide the expertise and technology necessary to develop participating students' composition, production and recording skills while integrating elements of the classroom program such as active listening, music history, theory and criticism. Students develop their keyboard skills and learn to integrate MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) to augment the composition and production process. Digital Audio Production Studio 101 is designed for students to work in composition teams and use Apple MacIntosh laptop computers and Apple Computer's Garage Band software to write and produce original songs.
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