On Sunday, June 2, my co-founder (CJ) and I had the pleasure of attending an Azure Family Concert at the Baltimore Hebrew Congregation. Azure Family Concerts are one of the programs put on by the non-profit organization, Our Joyful Noise Baltimore. Similar to The Musical Autist, Azure Family Concerts are sensory friendly. At the concert, there was a trio that consisted of a beatboxer, a piano player, and a viola … [Read more...]
Spring Jam Session Wrap-up and Reflection by Sunny
On Thursday, May 9th, The Musical Autist hosted an Empowerment Jam Session at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts, which is a local venue in Annapolis. The jam session took place in the cafe. Because of this, we had to shorten the jam to 45 minutes due to the cafe’s closing time. There were approximately 20 people at the jam session. The Musical Autist recently purchased small instruments that we could use for … [Read more...]
Sunny Writes: The Importance of Meaningful Programs
I graduated from Maryland School for the Blind in 2007 and then I was placed in a sheltered workshop, where I stayed for eight years. In 2015, I left the sheltered workshop and was introduced to self directed services, which is a program that allows disabled individuals to choose what they do on a daily basis. When I was in the sheltered workshop, I didn’t have the opportunity to work on job skills or do things … [Read more...]
Sunny Writes: 5 Things to Expect at an SFC
Sensory Accommodations: Our sensory friendly concerts provide accommodations for people on the spectrum. These include noise reduction headphones, a sensory quiet room, foam blocks, and scarves. We do not use a house public address system, so the only sound that you hear is coming from the front of the room. Our motto is “hand flapping aloud”. We allow autistic people to move around and vocalize. Autistic … [Read more...]
Winter Jam Session: Recap and Reflection by Sunny
On Saturday, February 23, we had an Empowerment Jam Session at Our Shepherd Lutheran Church in Severna Park. There were about 25 to 30 people in attendance for this jam session. We had a coffee shop atmosphere which promoted a relaxed and social environment. We also had a guest guitarist and bass player join in with us during the session. We sang our opening song, did a 12 bar blues, and formed a drum circle … [Read more...]
Sunny Writes: Making Your Own Choices
There have been many occasions in my life where people have made choices for me. People would make choices for me about what to eat, what to drink, where to go, what time to go to bed, etc. People often assume what I want, rather than take the time to ask me what I want. Assumptions can be a hindrance to people with disabilities because they don’t allow them to have a say. I understand that some people with … [Read more...]