Our Story
Many people know the name Milton Okun from the liner notes of classic albums in their record collections. Milt was the producer who brought the sounds of such legendary musicians as Placido Domingo, John Denver, Peter, Paul & Mary, and Harry Belefonte into their living rooms.
What most people don't know about Milt, however, is that he was a public school teacher before he made his claim to fame in the music industry. Milt loved the direct contact with students, but he didn't love the lackluster teaching resources he found available for use in the music classroom.
After Milt founded Cherry Lane Music Group, he launched the publication Music Alive! to bring the freshness and excitement of the music world he knew firsthand into the classroom. Under his watchful eye, a magazine, teacher's guide of lesson plans, and demonstration audio cassette of related recordings were put together in a program that would give music educators ready-to-use class units with the zing and appeal of contemporary musical trends, recording artists, and hit songs.
That was in 1981. Now, almost a quarter of a century later, Music Alive! reaches 400,000 5th to 10th graders across the country, carrying out our two-pronged goal of exciting students with music they love and supporting teachers with pedagogy they trust.
December 1984—Bruce Springsteen
To learn more about Our Mission, click here.
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