Blair School of Music students welcomed Valerie Cordero, executive director of the W.O. Smith Music School, to campus last week for the presentation of a $2,581 donation. The funds were raised through merchandise sales and a series of other events throughout the year, spearheaded by the Blair Council.
“Collaboration with W.O. Smith is a primary focus of the Blair School,” said Dean Melissa Rose. “Our community not only supports the school through fundraising led by the Blair Student Council, but many of our students also serve as instructors there. Each year we look forward to celebrating the joy of music with our partners at W.O. Smith.”
Cordero echoed that sentiment, noting the deep roots between the two institutions. “W.O. Smith Music School is extremely fortunate to have such a strong partnership with the Blair School of Music,” she said. “Blair students are essential to our volunteer teaching faculty and, as this donation shows, to our fundraising efforts as well. It’s inspiring to see philanthropy and volunteerism so present in Vanderbilt’s campus culture.”
Founded in 1984 by William Oscar Smith, the W.O. Smith Music School has opened the door to music education for thousands of Nashville children, offering high-quality instruction at a cost accessible to families with limited financial resources. Students receive their own instrument and are paired with a volunteer instructor, with lessons priced at just fifty cents each.
Each year, dozens of Blair students volunteer an hour of their time each week to teach private lessons in piano, guitar and bass, percussion, brass, woodwinds, strings, voice, and more—continuing a longstanding tradition of service through music.
