This January, Timbalooloo will be celebrating the opening of its flagship location in Soho designed especially for young children and their families. To celebrate the launch, owner and internationally acclaimed clarinetist, composer, and educator Oran Etkin will host a grand opening concert at City Winery on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018 at 11am, followed by a parade from the venue to Timbalooloo’s Soho location for a special ribbon cutting ceremony.
Winter classes at Timbalooloo in Soho are scheduled to start Jan. 16, 2018 for children ages 4 months to 9 years. In the Timbalooloo Method, instruments come to life and speak through their music. Children learn to express themselves not by having to execute the correct notes, but by making their instruments come alive and actually speak the language of music, adding character, humor, and emotion to the music.
“The Soho location is a homecoming to the neighborhood that started Timbalooloo off,” Etkin says.
In Etkin’s view, this new location belongs to the community and he invites the families of New York City to help shape its growth and evolution. “It is my dream that with the active involvement of parents, children, musicians, and artists, the Timbalooloo Soho space will become a unique bridge between the community of families and the rich and vibrant scene of music, arts, and culture in New York,” Etkin says.
The Soho space will include rare instruments and photos collected from around the world that will be used to tell engaging stories about the Samba,Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, King Louis XIV of France, and the cherry blossom festival in Japan, while leaving plenty of room for the children to fill in with their own creativity.
Founded in 2005 by Etkin, Timbalooloo classes can be attended by parents or caregivers and some, Etkin says, are even created for parents or caregivers to participate in with their children.
Timbalooloo will be located at 131 Varick St., Suite 935 in Soho. For more information about Timbalooloo, call 646-926-1840, email timbalooloo@gmail.com, or visit timbalooloo.com.
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Main image: A group of children learning about instruments and music with Timbalooloo owner Oran Etkin.
Courtesy Timbalooloo
