Meet the Arts
Experience high-quality youth and family programming for regional schools and families.
Contact mta@potsdam.edu for booking.
36th Season
Instrument Petting Zoo
October 17, 2025
The Stearns-Cottrell Instrument Petting Zoo is a biannual showcase of musical instruments for elementary school students in the region. Students are given the opportunity to try different instruments hands-on to learn how they work, how they sound, and their personal preferences so that they are prepared to select a musical instrument to learn in school. Since its founding in 2000, the Zoo has acquainted thousands of local children with instrumental music and has offered applied music education experiences to students at the Crane School of Music.
Open to regional schools and homeschooled students. Contact CPS to inquire.
Fall Crane Opera for Schools
October 30, 2025
The award-winning Crane Opera Ensemble presents TBD production.
Regional schools are invited to see the production at a special showing just for students. Contact CPS to inquire.
Instrument Petting Zoo
March 20, 2026
The Stearns-Cottrell Instrument Petting Zoo is a biannual showcase of musical instruments for elementary school students in the region. Students are given the opportunity to try different instruments hands-on to learn how they work, how they sound, and their personal preferences so that they are prepared to select a musical instrument to learn in school. Since its founding in 2000, the Zoo has acquainted thousands of local children with instrumental music and has offered applied music education experiences to students at the Crane School of Music.
Open to regional schools and homeschooled students. Contact CPS to inquire.
Spring Crane Opera for Schools
March 24-27, 2026
The award-winning Crane Opera Ensemble presents TBD production.
Regional schools are invited to see the production at a special showing just for students. Contact CPS to inquire.
PAST PROJECTS AND EVENTS
Oceanophony
A collaborative project with the Orchestra of Northern New York, this performance of Bruce Adolphe's Oceanophony for narrator and chamber ensemble was recorded live for the children of St. Lawrence County.
Kenneth Andrews, conductor; Chip Lamson, narrator; John Lindsey, violin; Marie-Élaine Gagnon, cello; Emily Wood, bass; Brian Dunbar, flute; Julianne Doyle, clarinet; Carol Lowe, bassoon; Timothy Sullivan, percussion; Julie Miller, piano
February 2025 Instrument Petting Zoo
On February 28, 2025, CPS welcomed 146 students from three local school districts to the SUNY Potsdam campus for the Stearns-Cottrell Instrument Petting Zoo. With the guidance of music education students at the Crane School of Music, visiting students had the opportunity to try many wind, brass, string, and percussion instruments. The Zoo culminated with an hour-long concert showcasing these instruments on-stage.
Want to learn more? Check out this video from SUNY Potsdam and hear from students who planned and presented the Petting Zoo.