Summer arts program in Santa Rosa flourishes with One City Arts and Mariachi Camp

Two new summertime cultural programs offered through the Wells Fargo Center for the Arts brought beauty and music to children throughout Sonoma County.

The center hosted the inaugural three-week Mariachi Camp and also took over One City Arts, the two-week arts program founded in 2014 by Santa Rosa artist Maria de Los Angeles.

Both camps are offered free of charge by the center’s Education Through the Arts program, with breakfast and lunch provided by Redwood Empire Food Bank.

Held at Lawrence Cook Middle School in southwest Santa Rosa, both camps were at capacity, popular additions to the center’s off-campus programming.

“With the addition of One City Arts and Mariachi Camp to our roster of education and outreach programs, we are excited to be taking more of our work directly to the community,” said Rick Nowlin, the center’s president and CEO.

“And by offering these programs at no charge to participants, we are further deepening our commitment to making arts and education opportunities accessible to everyone, especially underserved youth.”

The center teamed with Jose Soto Jr. to develop Mariachi Camp, the only program of its kind in the North Bay. Soto performs violin with his family ensemble, Mariachi Barragan, and is co-founder of the Mariachi Club at Elsie Allen High School in southwest Santa Rosa, where he was Student of the Year in 2012.

Students learned musicianship and the origins of mariachi, the Mexican folk music deeply rooted in Latino culture and celebrations. The young participants, from fourth through 11th grades, also had an opportunity to play the violin, trumpet and guitar that are the foundation of mariachi music.

The 50 students used instruments provided through the center’s 450-piece Music For Schools instrument-lending library. The program loans instruments to students who otherwise could not afford them, from wind instruments like clarinets and flutes to larger brass instruments like tubas and trombones, all donated by community members.

The budding musicians showcased their new abilities during a performance alongside Mariachi Barragan at Lawrence Cook Middle School, a culmination of the program. They also will perform with the band during Fiesta de Independencia, the sixth annual Mexican Independence Day celebration from ?1 to 6 p.m. Sept. 13 at Wells Fargo Center for the Arts, 50 Mark West Springs Road, in Santa Rosa.

Students from One City Arts camp also had a chance to showcase their skills. A reception and exhibition of their artwork was held at the Wells Fargo Center for the Arts following the camp.

Both camps were led by professionals in their respective fields, something artist Maria de Los Angeles said is especially inspiring.

At One City Arts camp, 50 kids aged 6 to 17 discovered painting, drawing and sculpture techniques from practicing artists, some of them Ivy League-educated like de Los Angeles. At Mariachi Camp, professional musicians introduced youth to the techniques - and the passion - of their cultural music.

De Los Angeles’ two youngest siblings, 6-year-old Jose and 9-year-old Mariana, were among the students at the art camp. The two-week camp ended too soon for the brother and sister, as it did for other youngsters.

“The children love it and they don’t want it to end,” de Los Angeles said. “With Mariachi Camp there’s a lot of crossover. Some of them come to both.”

She is appreciative of the efforts made by the nonprofit center to reach out to Latinos within the community and all underserved children around Sonoma County. She is satisfied that One City Arts will continue to thrive under the center’s direction and is grateful Mariachi Camp was equally successful in its pilot year.

The two programs are the latest within Education Through the Arts, which reaches some 30,000 youth each year, about two-thirds of them from low- to moderate-income households.

Programs are designed to fill the void within school budget and curriculum gaps and expand academic achievement, self-esteem, creativity and communication skills for all students. Programs include Artists in the Schools that brings 50 artist-led workshops to local classrooms, and Missoula Children’s Theatre Residency, a free weeklong camp for burgeoning thespians.

Education Through the Arts also serves adults through professional development for teachers, pre- and postshow discussions and master classes.

Encouraging a love of the arts is a bonus for children.

“While we are thrilled that an added benefit may be to develop future generations of both artists and arts audiences, the fundamental mission is to enhance a comprehensive education through the arts as a way of reaching and engaging students to want to learn more,” said Anne Abrams, a spokeswoman for the center.

For more information about Education Through the Arts, visit wellsfargocenterarts.org/education or call 527-7006.