‘A desperate cry for help.’ 400 busted Philly school instruments revived for Symphony for a Broken Orchestra

by Samantha Melamed on November 15, 2017
Philadelphia Inquirer

Su Spina normally plays kettledrums. But when she went to pick up the instrument she’d be playing in the Symphony for a Broken Orchestra — a new composition for 400 amateur and professional musicians all playing broken instruments from the Philadelphia public schools — her options were limited.

“Would you prefer a violin without strings? Or an autoharp?” Andy Theirauf asked her.

Spina, 22, a recent college graduate who studied music at Franklin & Marshall, said if knocking on a broken violin for 40 minutes is what it takes to get these instruments fixed, she’s in.