Helping formerly incarcerated men get back into society using music

EAST VILLAGE, Manhattan (PIX11) -- It's all about the transformative power of music in a program called Music on the Inside or MOTI.

It was founded by Alina Bloomgarden ten years ago.

“I started Music on the Inside after I learned that Louis Armstrong was arrested when he was 11 years old and was sent to the Colored Waif’s Home for Boys” Bloomgarden, the originating producer of Jazz at Lincoln Center, told PIX11 News. “He was given his first music lessons there and it really changed his life,” she added.

At a benefit soirée celebrating Music on the Inside, a group called the Moti Reentry Band played for an audience of 75 supporters.

It is made up of formerly incarcerated men, and their mentors, who have been taking lessons while in prison and after their release.

Patrick Morgan is now learning to play bass guitar after serving 18 years for manslaughter. He is also now working full-time as an electrician. “Most of us are lost and cannot find our way,” Morgan told PIX11 News. “But music really helps us and keeps us grounded, balanced and I am grateful for that,” he added.

To the professional musician mentors, they say they get as much as they give from working with incarcerated music lovers and musicians. “People re-entering society, they need all the help they can get,” David O’Rourke, a professional guitarist and MOTI mentor, told PIX11 News. “It feels wonderful to be part of that process. They’re wonderful human beings who maybe made a mistake that shouldn’t be all their life is about,” he added.

One of those formerly incarcerated, Jamol Simon, playing drums and guitar in the MOTI Reentry Band after serving two years for attempted robbery had the most poignant statement.

“When you are in a dark place, you need light,” Simon told PIX11 News. “Music is something to find it. It helped me a lot, a good friend indeed,” he added, with a smile.

Music on the Inside is always looking for more volunteers, donations, and mentors. For more information, go to musicontheinside.org.