Kithara Project’s Albuquerque program is its youngest. Run in partnership with Maestro Javier Ortega and Valle Vista Elementary School, in Albuquerque’s South Valley, the program welcomes 42 students between the ages of 8 and 11 for weekly guitar classes. The program also doubles as a teaching mentorship program for more experienced, high-school aged students from Albuquerque Academy, where Ms. Leitner is also on faculty. The student body of Valle Vista Elementary is approximately 90% bilingual, thus positioning the program as an ideal “bridge” between Kithara Project’s other programs in Mexico City and Boston. Students also communicate with Kithara Project’s Mexico City students on a regular basis.
