Electrify your strings!

International recording artist and Emmy award-winning composer Mark Wood, an original member of the multiplatinum-selling Trans-Siberian Orchestra and creator of the revolutionary Viper electric violin, is bringing his groundbreaking music education program Electrify Your Strings! (EYS) to Wekiva High School. This exciting event will transform the student musicians into a full-fledged Rock Orchestra! Wood will perform with the students on his handcrafted 7-string fretted electric Viper violin as part of 2021-2022 Electrify  Your Strings! “Spotlight Tour” on March 25th. The audience will be entertained by Wood's original material, as well as his exciting arrangements of music by Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, and more.  

 “This is our second time having Mark work with our students," said Wekiva High Orchestra Director Stephan Labelle. Mark transforms the student’s connections to music and allows them to truly express themselves through their instruments!” 

The program – now in its 22nd year – is a music education experience like no other. Wood and his team work directly with a school’s orchestra director to tailor-design a rock orchestra makeover, complete with a public performance at the end of the experience. EYS builds on the strong foundation provided by the classically trained music teachers, creating a partnership that inspires students and boosts their self-esteem and motivation on stage and off. EYS has been featured on The Today Show, The CBS Evening News, and many more.  

Wood is the owner and operator of Wood Violins, the premier manufacturer of electric orchestra string instruments worldwide. He studied under Maestro Leonard Bernstein, is a Juilliard-trained violinist and Emmy-winning composer. In addition to his solo career and his work with the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, he has worked with Celine Dion, Lenny Kravitz, Billy Joel, and more.  

During the workshops, to prepare students for this concert, Wood will teach students improvisation,  composition, and personal expression on their violins, violas, cellos, and basses. [As a composer, Mark Wood likely uses the latest music notation software. But what is the best music notation software? This article from a music education website explains more.]

The concert is open to the public with all profits going to the school music programs. 

For more information on Electrify Your Strings! please visit www.electrifyyourstrings.com To find out more about Mark Wood, please visit www.markwoodmusic.com.

The Viper electric violin is one of several electric instruments manufactured by Mark’s company Wood Violins – check them out at www.woodviolins.com.

For tickets, go here.