WE SHALL OVERCOME: Music & Equitable Healing

With racial inequity at the forefront of our national conversation, this event is co-presented by Project STEP and Longwood Symphony to highlight the disproportionate effect of COVID-19 on communities of color and to celebrate these organizations working on the frontline for social justice and healing. This virtual gathering will include performances featuring Project STEP and Longwood Symphony musicians, a presentation from healthcare leaders working for equity, and a Q&A with some of the artists.

This is a complimentary event. Donations are welcomed and encouraged.
All gifts equally support the important work of Longwood Symphony Orchestra
and Project STEP. Gifts are fully tax deductible.

Keynote Presentation: “Impact of COVID-19 on Communities of Color & Equitable Healing” with Dr. Augustus White & Dr. Mark Gebhardt

Augustus A. White, III, MD, PhD was the Orthopaedic Surgeon-in-Chief at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston, MA, for 13 years. Today, he is the Ellen and Melvin Gordon Distinguished Professor of Medical Education, Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at Harvard Medical School (HMS), former Professor of the Harvard/MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology and former Advisory Dean of the William Augustus Hinton Society at HMS. He currently serves as the Director of the Culturally Competent Care Education Program at HMS. Throughout his career, Dr. White has committed himself to issues of diversity, and is nationally recognized for his work in medical education and issues of health care disparities.

Dr. Mark C. Gebhardt is an orthopaedic oncologist with an expertise in pediatric bone and soft tissue sarcomas and benign musculoskeletal tumors. He treats adults and children with sarcomas at Boston Children’s Hospital and the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. He has served on the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) Board of Directors and as Chair of the Board of Specialty Societies, Director of the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery, Chair of the ACGME Residency Review Committee for Orthopaedics, Chair of the Orthopaedic Committee of the Children’s Oncology Group, and was a past-President of the Connective Tissue Oncology Society, the Musculoskeletal Tumor Society, and the Association of Bone and Joint Surgeons. He has been a great supporter for women in orthopaedics and named four female Division Chiefs. There are two female Professors in the orthopaedic department. He won the AAOS Diversity Award in 2018. Dr. Gebhardt is the Longwood Symphony Orchestra principal clarinet, and has served as the LSO Chair of the Board of Directors twice.

Special Guests:

Dr. Lisa Wong, violin, Longwood Symphony Orchestra is a pediatrician, musician and arts education advocate. Wong is a co-founder of the Arts and Humanities Initiative at Harvard Medical School and Boston Arts Consortium for Health (BACH). She serves on several boards, including Conservatory Lab Charter School, New England Foundation for the Arts, A Far Cry ensemble and the Boston Public Schools Arts Advisory Expansion Board. She is a co-author of the National Academies of Science, Medicine and Engineering, co-authoring its seminal white paper on the role of Arts and Humanities in STEMM in higher education. Dr. Wong joined the Longwood Symphony Orchestra, the orchestra of Boston’s medical community, in 1985, and served as LSO’s president for 21 years. During her tenure, she helped create LSO's signature “Healing Art of Music Program” which has benefited over 50 medical nonprofits in the greater Boston area through musical concerts and collaborations.

Alex McCray, Board of Directors, Project STEP, is an experienced leader in the nonprofit/philanthropic sector, including having served over the past 25 years as a funder, program manager, development professional and marketer. Currently, McCray serves as the Senior Director of Programs at Philanthropy Massachusetts and has previously served on both the funder and direct service sides of the sector, mostly in youth, educational and arts and cultural institutions. In 2017 McCray joined the Project STEP Board of Directors where he serves on the Fundraising and Marketing Committee and the Strategic Plan Implementation Committee. He also serves as a Board Member of Massachusetts Nonprofit Network; Equity Action Advisory Council Member, Rhode Island Foundation; and as a Bowdoin College Prospective Student Interviewer. McCray is also a Big Brother with the Big Brother, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern MA.

Dr. Michael L. Barnett is Assistant Professor of Health Policy and Management at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and a primary care physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Dr. Barnett received his MD from Harvard Medical School and completed a residency and fellowship in primary care and general internal medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Dr. Barnett’s research focuses on understanding and improving the health care delivery system with a specific interest in the opioid crisis, nursing homes and studying innovative models for health care payment and care delivery. His research has received best research of the year awards from the Society of General Internal Medicine and AcademyHealth and is featured regularly in national media including the New York Times, National Public Radio and CNN. He is an Associate Editor at Healthcare: The Journal of Delivery Science and Innovation, the official journal of AcademyHealth, and a recipient of a Career Development Award from the National Institute on Aging. Dr. Barnett plays oboe with the Longwood Symphony Orchestra, where he is also the Chair of the Board of Directors.

Project STEP Musicians:

Dalilah Mostoslavsky, violin, is a senior at the Boston Latin School. Dalilah auditioned into Project STEP in 2017 and currently studies with Lucia May. She is a member of New England Conservatory’s Youth Philharmonic Orchestra (YPO). Dalilah serves as a student mentor at Project STEP and meets with younger students to help them develop musical skills. Dalilah plans to study Mechanical Engineering and Comparative Literature after graduation.

Nathan Theodore, viola, is a junior at Watertown High School. He currently studies with Michael Zaretsky of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and was a semifinalist in the 2017 SEC Concerto Competition. At the age of 13, Nathan auditioned into Benjamin Zander’s Boston Philharmonic Youth Orchestra (BPYO) and has performed throughout Europe and Brazil. He has performed in various masterclasses and recitals including a solo performance for Rebecca Young, New York Philharmonic Associate Principal, viola. Nathan joined Project STEP through the Kindergarten FOCUS program in 2010.

Xavier Ip, cello, is a sophomore at Buckingham Browne and Nichols School in Cambridge. He auditioned into Project STEP in 2018 and currently studies cello with Mark Churchill. He is a member of New England Conservatory’s Youth Philharmonic Orchestra (YPO) and a student of BEAM (Bridge to Equity and Achievement in Music), in which Project STEP is a proud partner of the initiative. Xavier has performed in various masterclasses and recitals including a solo performance for cellist Johannes Moser.

Project STEP:
Since 1982, Project STEP (String Training Education Program) has provided talented young musicians that identify with historically underrepresented groups in classical music with comprehensive music instruction. We envision a world in which the classical music profession reflects the racial and ethnic diversity of our communities.

Longwood Symphony Orchestra:
The mission of Longwood Symphony Orchestra (LSO), the orchestra of Boston’s medical community, is to perform concerts of musical diversity and excellence, while supporting health-related nonprofit organizations through public performances.

Nationally recognized for its musical quality, innovative programming, and unique model of community engagement, the orchestra’s members are primarily healthcare professionals from Boston's leading hospitals and universities, including doctors, medical students, research scientists, nurses, therapists, and caregivers--many of whom pursued music studies before turning to medicine.

Project STEP and Longwood Symphony Orchestra are supported in part by grants from the Boston Cultural Council administered by the Mayor’s Office of Arts and Culture, and the Mass Cultural Council. Project STEP is also supported by the National Endowment for the Arts and by generous support from Tracy W. Barron and Persis Barron Levy of the Willow Tree Fund.