Operating in the Bay Area since 2000, it is School of the Getdown's mission to celebrate and promote Black music and to share these cultural traditions with diverse Bay Area communities through performance and educational programs, with particular attention towards youth and the Black community.  

 

School of the Getdown offers a vocal workshop series; private lessons in singing, instrumental music, and music history; lecture performances in schools and camps; masterclasses with visiting artists; an annual summer Youth Arts Camp; and partnerships with community organizations. We produce multicultural and intergenerational concert series, festivals, free community programming, commissioned artistic works, and thematic programming celebrating Black history and Black culture.

 

School of The Getdown is led by Founder and Executive Director Faye Carol and includes a committed Advisory Board, adjunct artists, and a strong event production team. 

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Recent Programming:

10-Week Youth Arts Intensive

School of The Getdown Summer Youth Arts Camp

Black History Month Lecture Perfomacnes for Public Schools

Black Women's Roots Festival

Groovin' High Free Drum Masterclass Series

Blues, Baroque, & Bars Free Community Concerts

Black Music Month Festival

Oakland Black Generations Festival

Faye & The Folks Concert Series

Black Women's Blues Festival

Give The Drummer Some Concert Series

Bernard Purdie Masterclass

Faye Carol Vocal Intensives

Celebrating East Bay's Black Musical Heritage Free Community Concert

Laughs, Lyrics, and Rhymes for COVID Times full-length interdisciplinary film

Instrumental Music Masterclasses

Black History Month livestream musical programs reaching over 30,000 Bay Area youth.