Heartstrings Kids is an epic neo-folk music & mindfulness series offering a sense of peace, community, and fun for children and parents alike, created by The Heartstrings Project. During this cozy class and concert series, families will journey together to a new music festival each week, featuring original music and family favorites. So hop on our tour bus, don’t forget your backstage passes, and we’ll see you at the show! 

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HEARTSTRINGS TRIO

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Luke

Luke Wygodny is a multi instrumentalist singer-songwriter, professional actor & lifetime educator. Born and raised in Chicago, Luke grew up living & breathing music. At a very young age, Wygodny found peace through his cello where he trained in classical music through the Suzuki method. As he got older he found himself jamming on his dads beat up old Yamaha guitar and he’s been writing songs ever since.  Luke has toured the country as both an actor in Broadway shows as well as with his folk band The Heartstrings Project. As a teacher, Luke was one of the founding members of the Musical Tots program at New York Kids Club. He has led songwriting workshops at multiple Montessori schools, Breathe Festival in Indiana, Kerrville Music Festival in Texas & an ongoing Heartstrings Kids Songwriting retreat in Costa Rica. He received a Bachelor of Fine Arts at Syracuse University & is a co-founder of Heartstrings Kids. It’s Luke’s greatest responsibility to honor each student's individual journey, and gift the next generation with the tools needed to be open enough to love themselves & find confidence within. 

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Marina

Marina Pires is a trilingual singer-songwriter from Brazil, Broadway’s latest newcomer, and a proud co-founder of Heartstrings Kids. She learned to read music playing the violin and through her early-childhood arts education and fell deeply in love with the collaborative aspects of theatre, creative storytelling through song, and the physical freedom of dance. Her passion and desire to educate come from her own experiences bridging her cultural and language barriers through music. She believes children from all walks of life can connect with one another and learn empathy and acceptance through sharing song. She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre and has been acting professionally since 2012. She has taught improv, musical improv, songwriting, vocal performance, and music in several after-school outreach programs in NYC, as well as professional workshops nationally and abroad. She credits the universal language of music with her passion for human connectivity and global community. She is set to play “Jasmine” in Disney’s Aladdin on Broadway in 2021 and can’t wait to bring together her love of music education and performance with Heartstrings Kids. 

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Elias

Elias Wygodny is a certified Mindful Educator, Yoga Teacher, Master Energy Healer, and Lucid Body Acting Instructor. Elias has taught Mindfulness-Based practices to students, teachers, psychologists, and families in cities around the world. In 2014 Elias began teaching in Private/Public Education, in corporate and governmental spaces, in Fitness & Recovery Centers, and at The University of Michigan, where he graduated as a Bachelor in Fine Arts. His mindfulness practice has completely changed how he works as a professional actor, sculptor, teacher and musician. Growing up, Elias faced many challenges in education. He was always ‘outside of the box’ and struggled with emotional regulation difficulties at a young age. At that time, mindfulness and music education were not shared as modes for social-emotional wellbeing. As a co-founder of The Heartstrings Project and Heartstrings Kids, Elias is determined to bring compassionate education to young minds and hearts, especially for those who may be a little ‘out of the box’.