Ruth was an idealistic senior at Brown when he decided to set up a long-term residency in Providence’s West End, a neighborhood of restored Victorians next to rows of seedy three-families. He had gone to Brown to major in music, but also to take up educational philosophy.

“I was interested in what effect music could have on kids,” he said. “I knew I wanted to continue to play string quartets, yet was very interested in this way music can have an effect on people, and how to create an education that really focuses on how a person’s world view changes with the experience of music.”

Board president Karen Romer, former associate dean for academic affairs at Brown, met Ruth at Brown and said he stood out.

“I spent my professional life at Brown where there were a lot of inspiring people around,” said Romer, “but Sebastian is a very special person.”

It so happened that about the time Ruth was thinking of establishing a resident inner-city quartet he heard a National Public Radio broadcast about a Pittsburgh potter named Bill Strickland, who ran an arts program for neighborhood kids out of his basement. Soon it became obvious Strickland was not only teaching classes in pottery, but acting as a mentor for kids who had no other constructive outlet.

The idea struck Ruth: Wouldn’t it be intriguing to set up a string quartet in the middle of a neighborhood and see what happened, and invite young people to take part?

At first he thought the project might be viewed with suspicion, as just another Brown experiment foisted on a poorer neighborhood. But his fears weren’t confirmed. Shortly after the program started, he walked into the West End Community Center and asked if he could give free classical music lessons. The reply was a resounding “yes.” Even more encouraging was the enthusiasm of kids who sat spellbound listening to Ruth and friends play Mozart. They were quick to sign up for lessons.

Kids are not pushed to become professional musicians, though. The idea is more to instill a sense of discipline and confidence in participants, although some will no doubt take up music as a profession.

“The goal,” said Ruth, “is to trigger their imagination and see what’s possible in their lives.” If a child has successfully spent six or seven years learning to play a cello, that person might see that it’s possible to accomplish any dream, even studying “bugs in South America. That’s a project they could follow through on.”

Students also might want to use their enthusiasm to go to college and return to work on issues in their neighborhood, said Ruth.