For the Port Washington School District’s music and art teachers, it was a chance to not only talk the talk, but walk the walk.

Or, in this case, perform at a recital and display their artwork.

“Myself and many of our teachers had participated in similar events in different districts,” district director of Fine Arts Kevin Scully said. “When the idea was presented to the art and music faculty it was enthusiastically received and we set a date and began making plans.”

The recital, which was held March 30 at the Paul D. Schreiber High School auditorium, was the culmination of a year in planning, Scully said.

Scully said the idea for the recital was brought up by a couple of the teachers.

“The event was on a completely volunteer basis and teachers had complete freedom to present the art and music of their choice,” he said. “This was the first year and all who  participated had a wonderful time.”

“There is nothing that motivates students more than modeling what we want the students to learn,” he added. “We do this every day in our classrooms and it was great to have an opportunity for our students to hear and see the same outside of their school day.”

As attendees entered the auditorium, they had the opportunity to view an exhibit of various faculty artwork representing different styles and genres. 

“The art work was extremely eclectic and expressed the individuality of each of the tremendous art teachers who participated,” Scully said. 

Teachers were on hand to greet parents and their students and interpret their works of art. 

When it was time to take their seats, guests were treated to series of songs performed by different faculty ensembles covering a wide range of musical tastes, including Renaissance period recorder selections, Jazz standards and even classic and contemporary Rock n’ Roll. 

“It was interesting for the students to see their teachers perform and give such a tremendous performance,” Scully said. “I think many of them were pleasantly surprised, not necessarily how talented their teachers are, but how much they have in common in terms of interests, whether it was a particular painting or sculpture students related to, or a song they performed on stage.”

“This was a special evening out for our community members and the students were very excited to see their teachers’ creative talents on display,” Port Washington School District Superintendent Kathleen Mooney said. “The enthusiasm the students had for their teachers throughout the performances was very gratifying to see. Many parents in attendance shared with me how inspired their children were to pursue their own music and art interests as a result of experiencing the unique talents of their teachers. I thank Mr. Scully for coordinating this wonderful event and of course, thanks to all of the contributing teachers for volunteering their time and effort toward another memorable moment in the Port Washington Schools.”