In a city prized for its live music scene, one musician is working to bring a particular classical music experience to more people throughout New Orleans. A principal oboe for the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Jaren Atherholt relocated to the city right after Katrina. She decided to form some chamber music projects and put on a trio performance in the French Quarter. A teacher at Tulane, Atherholt formed a chamber music program there, soon followed by a chamber music competition as well.
With so many projects centered around chamber music, Atherholt said others encouraged her to form a nonprofit. With mentorship and support from New Orleans women who had founded businesses themselves, including Ashtanga Yoga Room founder and private yoga instructor Melanie Fawer and Earthsavers co-founder Karen Adjmi, Atherholt turned Lyrica Baroque into a 501(c)(3) nonprofit to further serve the community.
Although Atherholt loved playing with the large orchestra of 67 musicians in the LPO, chamber music offers a different experience altogether. Chamber music is smaller, and there is no conductor, so each musician plays a prominent role in the rehearsal and performance. Everyone is more involved in the process of making musical decisions.
It’s so fun to perform music with your friends in that intimate way. Plus, there are opportunities for kids to teach them about confidence, communication, respect, teamwork, and compromise.”
“Everyone is leading and working as a team,” said Atherholt. “It’s so fun to perform music with your friends in that intimate way. Plus, there are opportunities for kids to teach them about confidence, communication, respect, teamwork, and compromise.”
After forming Lyrica Baroque, Atherholt decided to pursue another channel: using chamber music for social emotional learning in schools in a partnership with KID smART, the arts-integration organization. These school programs began with the belief that kids need safe adults in their lives, as well as a means to express themselves.
As Atherholt explained, music is one way to quickly get to the emotions in people. Using custom music arrangements created specifically for these classes, the students can learn to describe the sounds as high energy or low energy, for example. They may also explore the ways in which major chords sound happy, while minor ones are more sorrowful. In this way, students learn about music basics while expanding their emotional vocabulary as well. The Lyrica Baroque team is looking to publish the program in order to offer it in classrooms nationwide.
Lyrica Baroque offers many public performances throughout the year. For instance, the annual NOLA Chamber Fest, co-presented each spring with the New Orleans Friends of Music and the University of New Orleans School of the Arts, includes several days’ worth of performance ensembles, competitions, masterclasses, and more events.
In addition, the organization’s yearly fundraising event, Lyrical Affair, features a lineup of performances from esteemed artists. The October 3, 2023 event will take place at Tchoup Yard.
A free concert at the Christ Church Cathedral each December invites everyone to enjoy a chamber performance in one of the city’s most beautiful spaces. Past performances have included Franz Schubert’s “Winterreise,” a song cycle that’s ideal for the colder months. This year’s annual winter concert will be December 21st at 7:00 p.m.
In addition, the Lyrica Baroque team can support many of the other music programs operating in the city. If another organization is doing amazing work teaching children to read music, for instance, then Lyrica Baroque may purchase music sheets for them and host creativity days. By uniting these communities, all of the programs can do even more to support music education in the city.
Atherholt considers Lyrica Baroque a “yes” organization – if someone calls on them for help with chamber music or arts education in general, they almost always say yes to the request. They are here to help their fellow arts educators.
In addition, public performances of chamber music are an important part of the organization. Atherholt wants to ensure others have the opportunity to experience how artistic excellence can transform someone’s day. Making sure local musicians have the opportunities to share their talents with the rest of the city is another crucial aspect.
“New Orleans has such an amazing, thriving music community. We are so grateful to do this work here,” said Atherholt, who praises the city’s world-class classical music scene.
Get Involved
Donations help support the organization’s classroom instruction, public performances, and the chamber music festival. In addition, volunteers are needed for the upcoming NOLA Chamber Festival this spring. Attending chamber music concerts helps the organization as well. Subscribe to the Lyrica Baroque newsletter and follow the organization’s social media to stay up to date with their upcoming performances.
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