Any great music ensemble is the sum of its parts, the elements that concoct a compelling compound on the stage. One local group has expanded upon these elements, incorporating a wide array of instruments and influences throughout its two decades of excellence.
Elemental Music in Santa Monica is celebrating its milestone 20th season for programming in 2023-24, crafting curated after-school ensembles for elementary, middle and high school students. Over 3,000 students have participated in the nonprofit program that emphasizes both learning and community building throughout formative years, with multiple alumni eventually returning to teach classes as professional musicians and educators.
Beginning as part of the Maestro Foundation nonprofit, the program was encouraged to forge its own path, backed by community support to become a separate entity. Elemental’s independence evolved under Executive Director Josephine Moerschel, who was originally a viola teacher before heading up the program in 2009. Moerschel began with around 25 students in the group’s premier class, Elemental Strings, and now works with upwards of 70 students each year, creating two levels of orchestra in the Strings program.
"One of the great things of playing a stringed instrument is that you get to play with other kids right away," Moerschel said of her early experience with Elemental. "That sense of camaraderie and friendship is a valuable one, and so I was delighted to be included in that original group of teachers."
The Elemental Strings season for grades 3-5 consists of learning how to play in an orchestra, with a final unit switching up to focus on playing chamber music, a smaller section which Moerschel notes gives more "independence and autonomy" to the young student experience. The director says that it’s important for the classroom time to build a shared love of music, which requires engaging piece selection.
"I think one of the things that we are most proud of … is that we work really hard to pick exciting, age and level-appropriate repertoire that students can be challenged by, but also master within a fixed amount of time," Moerschel said. "So there’s a real sense of accomplishment for students as they go through the course of their study."
With the string group’s success, Moerschel began hearing from band and choir families that wanted similar opportunities, necessitating an expansion of services. Elemental Music now includes Elemental Band for wind and percussion students, Elemental Choir, Elemental Guitar, the Academy Philharmonic for middle school students and a "prelude program" for beginners in violin, viola and cello. More advanced pupils can now take part in the Chamber Music Institute, giving grades 6-12 a shot at small ensembles like trios, quartets and instrument-specific ensembles.
Class expansion required the right teachers, including Elemental alumni and several Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District teachers. SMMUSD teachers Erin Wells, Jessi Spike Gravelle and Jason Aiello teach the Academy Philharmonic, Elemental Choir and Elemental Strings, respectively, with other coaches from SMMUSD also lending their voices. Having alumni return to the program to aid Moerschel gives the director a "very satisfying feeling."
"It’s such a privilege to get to watch these students grow up," she said. "We are fortunate enough now to be able to stay with students for a very long time … we have a real sense of longevity with an investment with these families and getting to watch [students] grow up is such a special, special gift for all of us."
In addition to its regular slate of concerts, the 20th anniversary will be celebrated at Barnum Hall on March 9, 2024, with a feature of all of the ensemble programs focused on the "shared experience of music making." The Elemental strings and band will combine to make a full orchestra, while a collaboration with Ballet Folkorico Flor De Mayo brings dancers to the stage. For more information on the group, visit elementalmusic.org.
