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The tones of the piano would sound the same no matter where Deirdre Harder sat inside Cheverly United Methodist Church Nov. 8. Still the 10-year-old made sure she sat in a pew close enough to see New Carrollton's Naoko Maeda's fingers dance across the keys as she played Wolfgang Mozart's 12 variations on a children's standard: "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star."

Maeda, a concert pianist, was the first performer in the "Music at School" concert series, a fundraiser for both the Cheverly Weekday Nursery and Mother's Day Out learning programs.

Created in 1970, the Cheverly Weekday Nursery School is a pre-school serving about 20 children for either a half or full day. Serving about 19 children, Mother's Day Out has run since 1977 and meets twice a week for four hours, giving children their first exposure to a school setting and social interaction with other children. Both programs are housed on the third floor of Cheverly United Methodist Church on Cheverly Avenue.

Originally from Japan, Maeda, 36, has been a concert pianist for more than a decade and composes her own music, including work for The Trio Sakura—of which she is a member—and pieces she arranged for the 2007 National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C.

Maeda wanted to hold a benefit concert for Mother's Day Out to show her appreciation for the work teachers pour into educating her daughter Hinna, 4. Piggybacking on Maeda's idea, Cheverly Weekday Nursery/Mother's Day Out Board Member Kathryn Andrews brainstormed the idea of a longer concert series fundraiser and presented it to the board in September. Hinna is friends with Andrews' 3-year-old daughter, Maggie.

About 35 people attended the concert and raised $370 to be used toward school and art supplies and educational toys in both programs.

Kathryn Andrews said there are many children whose parents have musical talents. Her husband, Charles Andrews, performs in Soul Revolver, a Beatles cover band, and Cheverly Hot Noodle, the Cheverly Community Market's house band. Kathryn Andrews is aiming to have Soul Revolver perform in January.

"Beatles is great stuff for kids," Kathryn Andrews said. "[The band is] pretty well known in Cheverly. It'll be nice to expand from the adults-only group."

Andrews said a Serbian choir performance is also in the cards, and she is working on bringing a jazz pianist and jazz saxophonist to the mix. Mother's Day Out teacher Dorothy Tamai said she has often played classical music for the children during the school day and liked the idea of a series since it would expose the children to different types of music outside songs sung in the PBS show "Barney and Friends."

Maeda said she enjoys how the Mother's Day Out program is hands-on, giving children the time to paint and do art projects to bring home, such as a paper pumpkin man Hinna made last week. Maeda said in her short time there, Hinna has already learned the alphabet.

"She only comes two days a week here but when she comes she learns a lot," Maeda said.

Maeda performed a series of arrangements such as Robert Schumann's "Papillons" and snippets of composer George Gershwin songs such as "Oh, Lady Be Good" and "Swanee." Maeda closed out her performance with "Over the Rainbow" a tribute to Tamai since her first name, Dorothy, is the same as the title character in "The Wizard of Oz." Maeda said she wanted to expose the children to classical music and to show them music can be fun.

Deirdre, a Mother's Day Out alumna, enjoyed Maeda's performance of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" as well as "Over the Rainbow." Deirdre, whose mother, Beth Harder, is a Mother's Day Out teacher, now attends Seabrook's Robert Goddard French Immersion School.

"It was really inspiring because I play the piano too," Deirdre said. "I liked the pieces that she played."

Maimuna Mansaray, mother of Alpha, 3, said her favorite songs were also "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" and "Over the Rainbow." Mansaray said she will definitely come to the next concert and this was her son's first time coming to a performance and sitting still.

"I think it's an excellent idea and the kids are definitely being exposed a lot," Mansaray said.

E-mail Natalie McGill at nmcgill@gazette.net.