STRATTON — William DeFroscia, Stratton School eighth grader, received the 1,000th instrument, a cello, loaned from The Musary, an organization that lends instruments free to people who desire to play.

DeFroscia started playing violin in third grade at the school. He said that he’s always been interested in the “deeper instruments.” After playing for a year or two, he saw a classmate who had his cello at school who had been taking private lessons. From that point, he had been interested in the cello. 

The Musary was established to pay tribute to John Ryan Pike (their Muse) who believed that music belongs to everyone and encouraged others to chase their dreams. Pike was an accomplished multi-instrumentalist and a magna cum laude graduate of Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Public Communication.

To date, The Musary has reached close to 11,000 aspiring musicians, has lent over 1,000 instruments, facilitated 4,210 instrument borrowing terms and saved musicians over $430,000.

For more information about The Musary, to donate an instrument or to show support, visit www.themusary.org.

Stratton School eighth-grader William DeFroscia receives a cello on loan from The Musary.