WASHINGTON — Music has long been a tool to help bring people together.
And here in the nation's capital, there's a program working to make our country's orchestras look more like the nation they represent.
Thanks to master classes at the Kennedy Center from established musicians students are learning the importance of music and representation.
It's part of a national network to foster professional careers in music.
The D.C. initiative just graduated its first class, which included Olivia Tilley.
"I've gotten to meet a lot of other talented individuals who inspire me and who I can also look up to that look like me," Tilley said.
Tilley says she was often one of the few performers of color in the halls she played in until she signed up for the Washington Musical Pathways Initiative.
Now, she will attend Juilliard in the fall.
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