Growing Up Maine

200 young Maine voices from 29 languages teach us what it means to be home

want to Bring "Growing Up" to YOUR TOWN?

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WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BELONG?

In today’s cultural climate, immigration is often reduced to headlines and statistics. But beneath the noise are families from many places, united by shared hopes and dreams.

Adults sometimes struggle to see this. Kids don’t.

That’s why conductor Emily Isaacson and composer Judd Greenstein turned to Reiche Community School in Portland, Maine — a school shaped by global migration, where families come from more than 22 nations and 29 languages are spoken. Together, they created Growing Up Maine — a powerful new musical work exploring what it means to belong.

LISTEN - coming soon!

Libretto

Watch - FULL CONCert

Artistic Director's & Composer's Note

ARTISTIC TEAM

Artistic Director/Producer Emily Isaacson

Composer Judd Greenstein

Librettists Reiche Community School

Artists

Suzanne, Sarah, Nancy, Mike, Mark, Kyle, Julia, John, Heather, Carrie, Bill, Bobby Penny Cheese Milk Oompa Loompa Spaghetti, BB, Nike Junior, South Mem, Wasabi, Kaka is the Goat, SS, Angelo Jr, Beezy, Cecilia, Lil Dogs, Two XXX in Smile, This Pseudonym, J Money, Mc Minela Ana Castela, MM Jawline, Paris, Sunrise, Lil JK, Moonlight, Haily, Eclips, Lil JC, Green Fn, Bannana Muncher, Daisy Me Rolling, Uoraia Johnson, Green Copper, Michael, Yoo Girl, Harambe. K., Nadia Queen, Kitty, Vivian New York, New York Mimi, Issa Loobbbbb, Brooke, Moonlight Star, Ice Lulu Spice, Spuc3k1d, Lavender Rumi, Juerdito, Winter Blue, UltraAbdiMastered, Nickyana Joy, + 144 Anonymous

Student Sample Works

PRESS

Maine’s Coast 93.1:
GO SEE Emily Isaacson & Growing Up Maine!

Listen now

Maine Public Radio:

Reporter Heather McDougall interviewed the artistic team of Growing Up Maine for State of the Art, a weekly dive into the Maine arts scene, and asked why they turned to Reiche Elementary School in Portland, Maine for this project, what they learned, and why everyone, everywhere loves pizza.

LISTEN NOW

Front Page article in Portland Press Herald:
Musicians asked Portland kids about growing up in Maine. This Concert is their answer.

Collaborate with us!

Growing Up [Your town]

ABOUT THE COMPOSER

Judd Greenstein is a composer and advocate for the independent new music community in the US and around the world. His works for standout groups such as Roomful of Teeth, NOW Ensemble, and yMusic have reached global audiences and received widespread critical acclaim. As a founder of New Amsterdam Records and the Ecstatic Music Festival, Judd has been a leading voice in developing a genre-fluid musical infrastructure that endeavors to open new channels of participation and representation in contemporary music. Judd’s music teaches its language as it tells a story, with clear musical ideas coalescing into rich structures and tapestries of sound. Much of Judd’s work is built on the contrasts and juxtapositions between the jittery, competing pulses of the New York City streets where he grew up, and the placid landscapes of the rural farmland he now calls home.

Thank you to our project partners and funders