In the final part of our series profiling members of Carnegie Hall's ING New York City Marathon team, and the people and
communities their efforts support, we meet Adams Holman and learn about
Margo Sorace and her class at Frank Sinatra School of the Arts in
Queens.
Choir Director Margo Sorace's class at Frank Sinatra School of the
Arts is made up of special-needs students. Last year, her class
participated in Carnegie Hall's Perelman American Roots, studying African American
spirituals, drawing musical links between slavery, the Civil Rights
Movement, and today's gospel music.
To prepare the class for writing a spiritual of its own, Margo taught
a lesson about mottos. When she asked what the students tell themselves
to get through the day, a young man blurted out, "Survive the Day."
That is what became the class motto, as well as the title and theme of
the spiritual that they wrote. The class was thrilled when it got to
perform "Survive the Day" in Zankel Hall last spring.
"Carnegie Hall has given more to more students than I could have ever
imagined," Margo said. "Music gave my kids a needed boost in
self-esteem, a sense of accomplishment, and a memory that will never
fade. It's been the experience of a lifetime—what a dream come true."
Adams Holman, Assistant Managing Editor at Carnegie Hall, vividly
remembers his first piano lesson. He was a nervous five-year-old, unsure
of what to expect as he walked through the door of his teacher's
studio.
He had no idea that this experience laid the foundation for one of
the most important aspects of his life—music—leading to him studying
classical piano performance at Tulane University, followed by a master's
degree in musicology from Yale, leading to a career in music.
Adams runs for Carnegie Hall to help give students everywhere the
same access to music that the students at Frank Sinatra School of the
Arts enjoy and that has been so influential to him.
Support our New York City Marathon team on Carnegie Hall's crowdrise
page ›.