The StayInMay Festival believes in the transformative power of the arts. Arts education improves the lives of both young and old alike. Through the arts we experience the full range of humanity and engage in a universal language which permits communication across geographic, economic and social boundaries. To show students how their lives are enriched through participation in the arts, The StayInMay Festival works and partners with other performing arts institutions, educators and schools, legislators, parents, community and business leaders, just to name a few. The StayInMay Festival sponsors extraordinary programs that inspire and motivate students while providing new and innovative educational opportunities for music students and their teachers. We know the arts can inspire, encourage and change young lives. Step by step, event by event, program by program, we are making a difference in our community and beyond.

The Aizuri String Quartet performed two interactive assemblies for over 950 middle and high school orchestra students at Golden Gate High School. All of the orchestra students from seven middle schools and five high schools attended these programs. Later that day the quartet shared their expertise through several masterclasses with two local high schools string quartets. These extraordinary educational programs present high quality world culture programs that inspire and motivate students while providing interactive sessions for music students and their teachers.

Our goal is to show students how their lives are enriched through participation in the arts. By bringing students and teachers together with visionary and passionate individuals and organizations in the arts we have an opportunity to inspire and impact the lives of young people. Formed in the Fall of 2012, the Aizuri Quartet is a culmination of years of music-making between its members, from their studies together at The Curtis Institute of Music and The Juilliard School, to their collaborations at storied chamber music festivals like Marlboro, Caramoor and the Ravinia Festival’s Steans Music Institute. Individual members of the quartet have won top prizes in such competitions as the Primrose International Viola Competition and Astral Artists National Auditions, and have collaborated with renowned artists Pamela Frank, Miriam Fried, Richard Goode, Kim Kashkashian and Mitsuko Uchida, among others.  The educational programs of the Aizuri Quartet were a brilliant addition to the StayInMay Festival Education Program and were presented in partnership with the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia.