It was a year that would teach her the satisfaction of tiny victories in a place where homelessness means that some kids cannot take their instruments home to practice, where chronic asthma forces some to switch from wind instruments to percussion, where the roar of a lunchroom leaves a newcomer stunned.

Ms. Vegter, 25, was there as part of a well-financed experiment by some of the nation’s most powerful musical institutions.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/22/arts/music/22waki.html?_r=1&scp=43&sq=fellow&st=nyt&oref=slogin—–