In addition to receiving grants from Penn Treaty Special Services, Henrietta Tower Wurts, Union Benevolent Association, the community also helped out with fundraising. Last week we raised $1000+ during our fundraising events! First our students performed at the Rittenhouse Square Tree Lighting and then blew the socks off of Keller Williams at their Holiday Grand Opening Party. On Friday, local artists and bands (Crills Wilson, Best Westerns, Sunset Recorder, Little Light, and Rosa Diaz) gathered to support and raise funds for Rock to the Future at PhilaMOCA.

But we still have a long way to go until we are fully funded for the year! Now Rock to the Future is up for the Pepsi Refresh Grant! We can win $25,000, but need to be in the top 15 ideas. No doubt we have the absolute best program around, but we need you to vote to help us prove it! You can vote every single day from your computer and from your cell phone. Vote online by visiting: http://www.refresheverything.com/rocktothefuture and also text: 110507 to Pepsi (73774). Spread the word, and vote daily!

Curtis Institute of Music will be treating Rock to the Future again to a performance workshop on November 18th! We had such a great time last Spring with graduates Ben Folk and Ryan Seay and are excited to work with Curtis Institute again.

One of the world’s leading conservatories, Curtis is highly selective, with an enrollment of about 165. In this intimate environment, students receive personalized attention from a celebrated faculty. A busy schedule of performances is at the heart of Curtis’s distinctive “learn by doing” approach, which has produced an impressive number of notable artists since the school’s founding in Philadelphia in 1924.
From 4-6pm on November 18th, musicians from Curtis (guitar, violin, and more!) will be performing and holding a Q&A for Rock to the Future students. These highly trained musicians are giving back to the community and are educating young, at-risk musicians

The performance workshop will take place at Rock to the Future located at 2139 E Cumberland Ave 2nd Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19125. If you are interested in attending this special performance workshop please email RocktotheFuturePhilly@gmail.com.

On Friday, October 21st Rock to the Future and Cloud Entertainment invite you to come out to the BRAND NEW ROCK TO THE FUTURE SPACE (2139 E Cumberland St, Philadelphia 19125) to learn more about these important organizations that give back to the community. Rock to the Future provides at-risk, disadvantaged Philadelphia youth with FREE music education and academic assistance. Students learn guitar, bass guitar, drums, or keyboards, form bands, and write original music. They receive daily homework help and attend weekly music and educational workshops. As budget cuts continue to threaten arts programs in schools, these students do not have the opportunity to receive the benefits of music education.

Cloud Entertainment provides local musicians with great local and national events and helps multiple DIY venues and art spaces with music and art events.

The program has just moved into a BRAND NEW location this year and we want you to come check it out!
Many people put a lot of hard time and work into making this a great place for children to learn and for local Philadelphia based events to be created. Thanks for local design company Marguerite Rodgers Ltd. and local artists: Kristyn Fayewicz, Eric Remer, Eric Kennedy, & Jesse Rinyu for designing a colorful and exciting mural that provides a back drop to the Rock to the Future performance and rehearsal stage.

COME TO THE OPEN HOUSE ON OCTOBER 21ST FROM 4-8PM!

THERE WILL BE:
-HOURLY PERFORMANCES FROM RTTF STUDENT BANDS
-PERFORMANCES FROM LOCAL SONGWRITERS
-FREE REFRESHMENTS
-Q&A WITH RTTF STAFF AND CLOUD ENTERTAINMENT
-MEET AND GREET

Come see what we are all about!

Rock to the Future has had the great pleasure of working with Melanie and Jesse from Marguerite Rodgers Ltd. design company and local artists Eric Remer, Eric Kennedy, Jesse Rinyu, and Kristyn Faywicz to design our new located on the 2nd floor of St Michael’s Church in Fishtown.

Melanie and Jesse provided wonderful probono design advice to help us create a bright, comfortable environment!

We are also proud to announce the addition of a large mural to our new location! With artwork completed on a volunteer basis by Eric Remer, Eric Kennedy, Jesse Rinyu, and Kristyn Faywicz, this canvas completes the backdrop of our performing arts stage. These locals artists collaborated over a course of a week to complete the mural earlier this month. Complete with rockstar spacemen, sci-fi creatures singing rainbows of music, and not-so-scary monsters playing guitar, this colorful piece is a great example of local artists creating and giving back to the community.

Please visit us on October 14th for an open house to see the entire location and see exactly what Rock to the Future is all about!

Do you want to learn guitar, bass, keyboards, or drums? Do you want to attend a fun, educational program for FREE?

Rock to the Future is now accepting new students for the 2010-2011 program year! We will be accepting up to 12 new students for this coming year. The deadline to apply is August 6th – but we will accept applications until the program is filled. So if you miss the deadline – please still turn in an application! Requirements: Applicants must reside in Philadelphia , come from a low- to moderate income household, and be between the ages 9-14. Musical experience is NOT necessary! Visit our APPLY page and/or contact RocktotheFuturePhilly@gmail.com for details!

Check out this article from The Fishtown Spirit about our program: http://spiritnewspapers.com/rock-on-philadelphia-p1584-113.htm

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ALSO, this Saturday is Rock and Read Fest – presented by Cloud Entertainment! Harry and the Potters along with other family friendly wizard rock bands and great local band Mischief Brew will perform at Bookspace (1113 Frankford) from 2-10pm Saturday July 30th. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Rock to the Future. This is sure to be an exciting and fun event!

Rock to the Future students had their final showcase at World Cafe Live on June 5th! We made over $1,100 and there was an audience of 100+ for the students! THANK YOU for your support!

Students performed an amazing 1.5 hour show with songs from Elvis, Paramore, and everything in between. And even more amazing, the showcase was featured on the 11pm CBS news.

Also, thank you to amazing local bands Grandchildren, Creeping Weeds, and The Grand Nationals. Incredibly talented local bands, you should definitely check them out.

And check out Grandchildren’s performance!

Want to know what Rock to the Future is all about? Watch this short documentary (under 15 minutes!) to see Rock to the Future in action. In a giving mood? Recommend this video to your friends and help us raise $50,000 for our 2011-2012 programming year! You can even visit the “Donate” page on our website 🙂

Very exciting news! Rock to the Future students had the great opportunity to work with local celebrities Algernon Cadwallader and Hop Along. The students will be featured on both bands upcoming full length albums due out later this year! Check out some of the recordings below:

Interested in having our students perform on your next album? Contact us!

The Deli Magazine Presents Jason Anderson (K Records), Joe Jack Talcum (Dead Milkmen), When I was 12, Ghost/Light, and Boy With Robot!! All performing this Saturday, May 14th to benefit Rock to the Future! Also, music from DJ TRPKPR!

The event will take place at Circle of Hope 1125 s Broad Street (Broad and Washington). All ages! And only $6!

Doors are at 5:30pm, and the first band will begin at 6pm.

Win:
10 Show Pass for R5 Productions Shows
Artic Monkeys, Ben Harper, and Reel Big Fish Tickets from The Electric Factory
Brunch for 2 to the Four Seasons
WMMR Studio Tour and Sit-in on the morning show
Gift certificates to Cantina, Dos Segundos, PYT
Drum and Guitar Lessons
Recording Time at Headroom Studios (Joe Reinhart)
Printing from Fireball Printing
+ More!!!

Thank you to all the wonderful local businesses who donated items!

This is going to be an amazing event! All proceeds benefit Rock to the Future!

Also, if you are able to volunteer to help with the raffle, food table, or door for 2 hours, please let me know- RocktotheFuturePhilly@gmail.com! You will receive free entry and a Rock to the Future tee shirt!

Check out the event HERE

Although this isn’t related to Rock to the Future, I thought I should let everyone know about this great local musical I saw at World Cafe Live this past Sunday! Support local musicians!

Written by Adam Janos (Philadelphia/NYC), “Go Phone Yourself” is a witty, modern musical about relationships and love. Nearly the entire musical takes place inside of a gutted upright piano that opens from the top and has a window in the front. And while most plays request you shut off your cell phone during the performance, “Go Phone Yourself” requests you text/call-in anecdotes, descriptive nouns, and information from your past relationships so that each performance is tailored for the current audience.
Featuring: Adam Janos/piano, Mary Beth Alexander/violin and vocals, Joel Clark/male lead/guitar, and Anita Britteau/female lead/vocals. Directed by Gabriel Harrell.

I apologize for the dark footage! Check out our YouTube page for more videos from the production!