Music Reach has been providing high quality, in-home music lessons for over five years, in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Owners Andre and Laura are always looking for ways to improve the services. And, they noticed something consistent. Parents asked “How do I get my child to practice?” So, for the past two years they have been working a project they call “The Music Reach Treasure Chest” to reward young students for daily practice. At the end of the week after logging on and recording how much they’ve practiced, students are given a key to unlock another entertaining, inspirational and educational experience.
Andre speaks with great enthusiasm and experience when he states, “It only takes one thing to change the way a student thinks about their musical experience. For me, it was the discovery of synthesizers. Hopefully, through The Music Reach Treasure Chest, we can help younger students discover a passion for learning." As the idea continued to develop it eventually became clear that in this age of interactive video games and online adventures that media was the place to start.
Finding the resources to produce a custom animation is very expensive. Andre began researching what might be available to him as a small business owner. Traditional resource building seemed to fall short. Taking out a loan or finding investors is incredibly time-consuming. Then, he came across “Crowd Funding.” Crowd funding has been used for about ten years. Musicians use it to fund tours and albums, filmmakers to produce films and, by inventors to help make thoughts a reality. Andre says, “It is a great way to connect on a personal level with your supporters and for them to provide feedback as your product is produced.” The idea is that you get a lot of people who have an interest in a given project to donate a small amount of money. And through this support, together we can build great products for the community.
What do these generous people get for their money? It depends on the project and how much they spend. The rewards can be as extensive as receiving an all access pass for a concert tour, a screen credit or part in a film, or connecting directly with the creators of the project.
Crowd funding is not just for the infamous, successful performers like Kip Winger from the ‘80’s band Winger and actor Tom Hank’s son Colin Hanks have used crowd funding for their projects. “It evens the playing field for creative types and entrepreneurs,” says Andre, “it gives the power back to the people to fund their own projects, for the project creator to work closely with their fans and for consumers to choose what they want to support.”
The Music Reach Treasure Chest certainly fits into the category of unique and creative. Each time a child unlocks the Treasure Chest, they are transported into a world of the imagination. The kids become characters in a cyber world all their own. They explore musical cultures and instruments from all over the world. They connect with other kids who have earned the right to explore this magical place.
Music Reach also encourages students to share their music making experiences with parents, family and friends. This is a great way to keep students inspired and to bring families closer together. “Music used to bring people together to sing and play instruments, it was the chief form of entertainment before radio was invented. Technology adds a whole new dimension to the learning process.”
Andre and Laura are betting that the power of the people will transform their idea into a mechanism of change. They have put a video up on Indiegogo in hopes that enough people will believe as strongly as they do that learning can be fun, exciting and entertaining. You can view The Music Reach Treasure Chest Campaign at http://www.indiegogo.com/The-Music-Reach-Treasure-Chest
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