Latest News
AASF receives a generous donation from TD Musicounts for Educational Program
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We’re so excited to announce that Archie Alleyne Scholarship Fund has been selected as one of the recipients of the 2022 @MusiCounts TD Community Music Program! Learn more about how MusiCounts and TD are helping communities like ours meet the unique needs of young people: https://musicounts.ca/community22
Brandon Street hosts a Day Camp for AAMA music students from Spiders Web Empowerment Centre
Aug 16, 2022
Music Students and kids from Spiders Web Youth Empowerment Centre in Toronto spent a wonderful day at the Umoja Farm where they participated in a music clinic, learned about farming, went on a nature walk, played games, had a BBQ and were entertained at the end of the day by AAMA teachers. Here's a little glimpse of the event.
Umoja Agri-Culture Program - Student and Adult workshops have begun for 2022
June 2nd, 2022
The Umoja Agri-Culture Program is run at a farm in Everett, ON
Micah Weekes - 2022 Archie Alleyne Scholarship Fund Recipient
June 2nd, 2022
Pianist Micah Weekes our newest recipient is a 18 year-old graduate from Malvern High School in Scarborough. An outstanding musician, Micah has served as keyboardist of the Rosewood Church of the Nazarene since he was 8 year old. He has a background in composing for film and sound engineering. Micah was introduced to jazz two years ago and has been developing at a rapid pace. He will be attending the University of Toronto Music Program this fall.
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Singing & Music Theory Classes at Spiders Web
March 2nd, 2022
Last night Archie Alleyne Music Academy teacher Ted Runcie started the singing and music theory program lat Spiders Web with a group of teenagers who are in Spider's after-school program. The program takes the students through the fundamentals of music and build an solid understanding of music theory.
Bucket Drumming Classes at Spiders Web
Feb 23rd, 2022
Archie Alleyne Music Academy teacher LuvSound taught the first bucket drumming class for the kids at Spiders Web. The course reached the fundamentals of rhythm in a fun way.
William Leathers has been appointed principle trumpet of the Nashville Symphony
Feb 18th, 2021
Archie Alleyne Scholarship Fund recipient William Leathers has been appointed principal trumpet of the Nashville Symphony, following a successful audition in February 2022.
A Canadian trumpet player originally from Mississauga, William is a student at the Julliard School.
He has performed with several orchestras including the combined orchestra of The Royal Academy and Juilliard, in which he played principal trumpet at BBC Proms in 2019, and with The Juilliard Orchestra at Carnegie Hall in 2020, where he played principal trumpet in Mahler’s 5th Symphony. He is a member of a brass quintet, known as Brass22 and he has also performed with the American Brass Quintet.
William has performed across Canada, the U.S., the U.K., and the Caribbean earning awards and accolades as he gained increased notoriety. He has won concerto competitions as a trumpeter and a pianist.
He is the fourth Canadian classical trumpeter to attend Juilliard. William is an inaugural Fendi Vanguard Award recipient at Juilliard and a 2021 Sylva Gelber Music Foundation Award winner. Now in the last year of his undergrad at Juilliard, he was recently accepted into the accelerated BM/MM program. He is a student ambassador and a proud recipient of a Kovner Fellowship at the Juilliard School.
William Leathers is a Bach Artist.
Thomas Francis named Professor at Humber College Music Program
Dec 20th, 2021
Archie Alleyne Scholarship Fund recipient Thomas Francis is one of Toronto's leading pianists well known for his extensive background in jazz and soul-based music. In 2017 he graduated from York University with a masters degree in Composition and September 2021 was named as a professor in the Humber College Music Program teaching a new subject focused on the relationship between jazz and hip-hop called "Hip Hop: A Study of Blackness"
Isaiah Gibbons featured house drummer in new Amazon series "Last One Laughing Canada"
Jan 15th, 2022
Archie Alleyne Scholarship Award recipient Isaiah Gibbons has been a in-demand drummer, producer engineer and songwriter since he graduated from the Humber College Music Program. He was chosen by the late Archie Alleyne to take over the drummer chair for his hard-bop band prior to his passing. His debut with Kollage was on their 2017 release "No Fuss No Muss. Isaiah has been touring with a variety of acts throughout the US and Canada, was in the cast of Disney Channel's series"Rocky Horror Picture Show".
In the world of TV, He was hired by Orin Isaacs to be the drummer in the house band of CTV’s The Launch Season Two. work with incredible musicians and artists, including Bryan Adams, Sarah McLachlan, Nile Rogers.
Christmas Concert for the Kids at Spiders Web
Dec 18th, 2021
Teachers and mentors from the Archie Alleyne Music Academy featuring special guest Jay Douglas performed a surprise Christmas concert for the children and youth at the Spiders Web Empowerment Centre.
Starting in January 2022 the kids enrolled at the centre will be the first group of students that will be receiving free music lessons through the support of the Archie Alleyne Music Academy and Employment and Social Development Canada.
Sagelee Archer - 2021 Archie Alleyne Scholarship Fund Recipient
Nov 25th, 2021
Multi-instrumentalist, singer/songwriter Sagelee Archer was recently presented with the 2021 Archie Alleyne Scholarship Fund Award for Musical Excellence by Brandon Street Community Development Project President Jacques Louidor after her stellar performance at the Commffest Film and Music Festival.
Congratulations Sagelee, we are looking forward to your debut album in 2022.
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Archie Alleyne Scholarship Recipient's William Leathers featured in Julliard School Of Music' promotional campaign
Nov 1st, 2021
2018 Archie Alleyne Scholarship Fund Award recipient trumpeter William Leathers was recently chosen to be featured as part of Julliard School Of Music's 2021/22 promotional campaign in New York City. William is in his final year at
Congratulations William, Looking good!
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AAMA Receives Support from Canada' #1 Jazz Station
Nov 1st, 2021
Canada's #1 Jazz Station Jazz FM91.1 has an annual Christmas Drive during the month of November where they campaign on behalf of a school in the GTA for donations in the form of old or unused instruments from their listeners. After the instruments are received those in need of repair are restored by Long and McQuade then they are awarded to the school.
This year Archie Alleyne Music Academy were fortunate to be chosen as the recipient of these donations.
We truly appreciate this much needed generous gift. A special thanks goes out to JazzFM91.1, their listeners, FedEX and the folks at Long & McQuade