Several organizations in Champaign-Urbana will have the chance to host live musical performances this weekend for the culmination of Music Appreciation Week organized by the Arts Outreach program.

Arts Outreach, one of 15 service projects within Volunteer Illini Projects, uses the arts to benefit people in the community, said director Anna Bashline, senior in communication.

While Bashline stressed the importance of the program’s regular events, she said she has been planning Music Appreciation Week, a new event, since the beginning of the semester.

“This week gives us a chance to use music to make a difference in the community,” she said.

Events for the week began on Tuesday with a music education program for the children at the Center for Women in Transition. It continued on Thursday with performances from the a cappella group, No Strings Attached, at the Don Moyer Boys & Girls Club, and the a cappella group, Guys n’ Dolls, at the Care Center of Champaign.

Bashline said that today at 2 p.m., volunteers from Arts Outreach will have a concert at the Care Center of Urbana.

On Sunday at 2 p.m., an a cappella group, The Xtension Chords, will be holding a performance at the Swann Special Care Center, and at 5 p.m., the Rip Chords are singing at the Champaign County Nursing home, she said.

Alan Chang, senior in business, is president of the Xtension Chords.

“Whenever we have the chance to contribute to the community, we always jump at the opportunity,” he said.

Chang said that because their main audience on Sunday will be kids, the group tried to choose a set suited for a younger age group, including selections from the Lion King.

“Our main goal is to go in, have fun and see where it takes us,” he said.

Jona Abon, activity supervisor for the Swann Special Care Center, described the center as a home for multiple disability kids. Most of the 116 residents are nonverbal and unable to hold conversations, she said.

Abon said Sunday will be the first time an a cappella group has performed for the residents.

“Music concerts entertain the residents and improve their daily living,” she said.

In addition to planning Music Appreciation Week, Bashline said for the past few years, she has been working on developing core programs that currently include after-school arts, art therapy, dance, mini-concerts and a theater program.

While Arts Outreach has a volunteer base of 300 people, Bashline said she has about 60 students who help carry out the programs on a regular basis.

“We get a lot of students who are interested in areas of art but aren’t necessarily music and theater majors,” she said.

On Tuesdays and Thursdays, volunteers create and lead art lessons for six to eight-year-olds at the Don Moyer Boys & Girls Club. Each Wednesday, Arts Outreach also runs a theater program at the club.

David Seguin, freshman in FAA, said he has volunteered at the Boys & Girls Club once a week for the last two months. As a volunteer, he shows kids how to create different crafts and work together.

Seguin said he feels that exposure to the arts is important for the kids at the club because it is a way for them to express themselves.

Arts Outreach volunteers also work with residents at the Swann Special Care Center, as well as several nursing homes, Bashline said.

Bashline said every two weeks, University students hold mini-concerts where they play instruments and sing for nursing home residents.

“They love that time we come in,” Bashline said, adding that once she saw a resident playing along to a classical piano piece on her knees with her fingertips.

“It’s a good example of how much you’re affecting the people there,” she said.

Bashline said she feels it’s important for Arts Outreach to explore and develop new programs, and Music Appreciation Week is a part of that.

“I consider it very therapeutic for everyone involved, both those who serve and those who are served,” she said.