Center for World Music

World Music in the Schools celebrates the culmination of a partnership with the VAPA Foundation thanks to the inaugural Prebys SPARX Award. 50 San Diego teaching artists, including three CWM artists, completed a training in Social-Emotional Learning through the Expressive Arts Institute. They incorporated these techniques in residencies at 25 San Diego Unified schools.

CWM teaching artists incorporated art forms outside of their usual specialities! Sophie Bell’s ukulele students crafted their own visual neighborhood to accompany songs about welcoming others, Juan Carlos Blanco’s and Angelica Cardona’s Cuban dance students created their own paper crowns to wear in their carnaval performance, and Quin Herron’s Irish singing students wrote a play inspired by songs and stories from Ireland.

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🚨 Last Call 🚨

Join us THIS FRIDAY for an extraordinary evening of Bulgarian village music with master musicians Ivan and Tzvetanka Varimezov—renowned interpreters of a deeply rooted and highly sophisticated vocal and instrumental tradition. This performance offers a rare opportunity to experience the expressive range of the gaida (Bulgarian bagpipe) alongside intricately ornamented vocal styles shaped by centuries of regional practice.

This program invites audiences into the cultural, historical, and social contexts that inform these traditions, with a post-concert conversation offering further insight into the music and its transmission.

Tickets are nearly gone—reserve your seat by purchasing your ticket today.

📅 Friday, April 17
🕢 7:30–9:00 PM
📍 Mingei International Museum, San Diego

Enjoy a free concert of classical Persian music at Del Mar Library featuring master musician and CWM teaching artist Kourosh Taghavi.

Through the delicate tones of the setar and the poetry that inspires his work, Kourosh weaves a captivating performance of improvisation, storytelling, and musical dialogue—inviting audiences into a meditative and emotionally rich journey through one of the world’s great musical traditions.

This event is made possible by the generosity and support of the Friends of the Del Mar Library.

WHEN: Tuesday, March 24, 2026, 5:30-6:30 PM
WHERE: Del Mar Branch Library
HOW MUCH: FREE

Did you hear? We have another fabulous concert this Friday! Witness a rare performance of the music from Turkmenistan at the . 🎟️ Tickets to purchase linked in the bio!

RAFFLE ALERT: Win a Phoenix Getaway!

We're thrilled to announce an extraordinary raffle at our upcoming concert:

Oghlan Bakhshi: The Bardic Traditions of Turkmenistan
March 20, 2026

🎁 Grand Prize ($950 value):
✨ 2 tickets to the Museum of Musical Instruments in Phoenix—home to rare artifacts from around the globe, including the dutar featured in our concert
✨ 3 nights of luxury accommodations in downtown Phoenix (generously donated by American Football Association Ventures, LLC)

How to Enter:
Purchase raffle tickets at the concert
$5 for 1 ticket | $20 for 5 tickets
Cash or Venmo accepted
Winner announced during the event (must be present to win)

Why Enter?
Experience the world's music at an inspiring museum
Enjoy a luxury stay in vibrant downtown Phoenix
See a dutar among hundreds of instruments worldwide
Support world music education—100% of raffle proceeds benefit our programs

This is your chance to win an incredible getaway while supporting authentic global music education in our community. See you March 20!

This is your chance to win an incredible getaway while supporting authentic global music education in our community. See you on March 20!

We've made some new friends in Phoenix!

World Music in the Schools teaching artist Máirtín de Cógáin performed with multi-instrumentalist Pete Polansky at the Musical Instrument Museum (MIM) in Phoenix this week. As all our education initiatives, the program included lively music, history, language, and geography.

The special field trip assembly, enjoyed by over 200 students from Phoenix area schools, supported a new partnership between the MIM and CWM. The museum’s permanent collection of instruments from around the world is beautiful, and their mission closely aligns with our own educational goals. If you’ve never been, you owe yourself this treat!