The Fort Worth Music Co-op, founded last year, aims to help local musicians secure dates at area clubs without going through booking agents — letting “the scene book itself,” founder Matt Skates says.

It’s an ambitious, admirable goal, but the co-op has even bigger aims. Through its outreach programs, the Fort Worth Music Co-op wants to help groom the next generation of rock stars, co-President Eric Griffey says.

“We want to put musical instruments into the hands of as many needy kids as possible and provide instruction,” Griffey says.

Partnering with the Fort Worth school district’s nonprofit program Fort Worth After School, which began in 2000, the co-op has arranged with a few local retailers and manufacturers to buy instruments (acoustic guitars, in this instance) at cost.

But the co-op cannot do this alone, so it will hold a fundraising concert beginning at noon today at Lola’s Saloon Sixth.

A $6 cover charge will benefit the co-op's efforts, and the lineup is teeming with homegrown talent, including Whiskey Folk Ramblers, Chatterton, Josh Weathers and the True Endeavors, the Dan Family and Titanmoon.

The co-op will also accept donations of instruments.

While the group is primarily buying guitars for its outreach program, anything from an accordion to a xylophone is acceptable.

The instruction program with Fort Worth After School won’t begin in earnest until mid-March, Griffey says, but the co-op is already working with students at Carter-Riverside High School and will start soon at the International Newcomer Academy.

Local musicians like Daniel Katsuk, Jeff Prince and Andrew Skates are on board as rockers-turned-tutors.

“Once a week, the tutors will teach two students in two half-hour classes per week,” Griffey says. “We’re going to keep doing this every semester.”

As the outreach program finds its footing, it will continue to expand to as many schools as possible. The program will also encompass a variety of instruments, such as horns, violins and possibly piano.

“We have a board in place, so we’re going to start a pretty aggressive fundraising effort,” Griffey says.

“As the scale of what we’re doing grows, so too will the organization. There are a lot of programs that've been cut — at a couple of the schools, they used to offer guitar programs and they’ve cut them — and this is taking the place of those. They won’t get class credit, but the students interested still get to learn.”