Meadowmount School of Music 2022 is performing in person, June 25 – August 13

Meadowmount School of Music is a summer program for young string players founded by legendary violin teacher Ivan Galamian in Westport, NY, in the Adirondacks, which has helped shape some of the world’s most distinguished musicians, including Yo -Yo Ma, Itzhak Perlman, and Joshua Bell.

This summer, “The Original Boot Camp” marks its 78th year with its first fully in-person session since 2019 and two new executives at the helm: Executive Director Mark Hayman, former Executive Director of Young Concert Artists; and Artistic Director Janet Sung, International Violin Soloist as well as Head of Strings and Violin Professor at DePaul University School of Music and Artistic Director and Founder of Chamber Music Chicago (and Meadowmount alumnus) – both appointed in 2021.

The 2022 Meadowmount session will take place from June 25 to August 13. During this period, approximately 175 young violinists, violists and cellists, aided by a roster of faculty and visiting artists drawn from the highest ranks of the music world (see below), engage in a program of study and intensive practices designed by Mr. Galamian to achieve, in his own words, “one year of progress in seven weeks”. During these seven weeks, the school’s campus in Westport, New York, becomes an active concert center, with three to four performances per week by students, faculty, and guest artists in the Edward Lee Concert Hall. and Jean Campe of Meadowmount.

This year, the school has expanded its public concert offerings to other venues in the Adirondacks region, as well as The Violin Channel’s digital concert hall. Meadowmount also initiated a partnership with the local school district and purchased a historic home to establish a base in the town of Westport. And renewed efforts to fund scholarship opportunities have already resulted in the Gurrena Scholarship, a grant worth $50,000 for a Meadowmount student.

“Although so much in the world has changed since Meadowmount opened in 1944, the school’s philosophy and practice have not changed,” said Janet Sung. “Ivan Galamian has created an environment and structure that allows young musicians total immersion, without distraction, in their studies. His original model based on “slow rhythm, fast progression” offers the opportunity for a transformative experience for musicians, and continues its tradition through the lineage of our teachers and guest artists – almost everyone who teaches at Meadowmount has also studied here, myself included!”

“We look forward to enabling more people to experience the musical riches of Meadowmount – bringing new audiences to on-campus concerts and expanding community engagement, and with greater exposure through The Violin Channel,” said Mark Hayman. “With a new Board of Trustees, artistic and administrative leadership, we have a renewed commitment to growing our institution, whether it’s the beautiful campus, our historic legacy, or expanding support for students with increased scholarships and scholarships. .”

The school offers a strong program of public concerts which take place in the 500-seat Edward Lee and Jean Campe Concert Hall in Meadowmount. Programs featuring students performing solo and ensemble works take place Wednesdays and Fridays at 7:00 p.m. and Sundays at 5:00 p.m. Concerts by guest artists, also featuring faculty and sometimes students, are scheduled on select Thursdays at 7:00 p.m.

Meadowmount’s expanded public offerings this year in the Adirondacks region include concerts at venues such as The Grange Arts and Community Center in Whallonsburg, NY; the Depot Theater in Westport, NY; Westport Library; the 1874 Schroon Lake Boathouse theatre; East Branch Friends of Arts in Keene Valley, NY; and Ballard Park, Westport, NY.

Also new in 2022, six Wednesday night concerts will be broadcast live on The Violin Channel’s digital concert venue, VC Live. (See the full concert schedule below.)

Institutional Growth: New Board Leadership, Ivan & Judith Galamian House, School District Partnership

The Meadowmount Board has a new Chairman, Hans Jørgen Jensen (succeeding Earl Carlyss), and a new Member and Treasurer, Caroline C. Croen, who is Vice Chairman, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of the WNET Group – and a old Meadowmount.

Additionally, with a grant from the Judith J. Galamian Trust, Meadowmount has purchased a historic home in the town of Westport that will be used for faculty housing during the summer term and for special events throughout the year. Newly named Ivan & Judith Galamian House, the 1830 residence on Stevenson Road will give the school a base in town, a 15-minute drive from campus.

Beginning this summer, Meadowmount will partner with the local Boquet Valley School District, collaborating on summer and after-school programs, and providing students and their families with concert tickets.

Meadowmount kicks off its 2022 session with the announcement of a new annual scholarship. Established in memory of David A. Barnebl, an avid music lover, by his wife, Linda Gurrena Barnebl, the Gurrena Fellowship will provide funds for one year of education, concert and management support, as well as living expenses , with a total value of $50,000, to an outstanding student named at the end of the session. Linda Gurrena Barnebl aims to “support and encourage exceptionally talented students to achieve abundant success in their professional careers by continuing to pursue their careers with vigor and passion, particularly in chamber music, without the burden of financial constraints”.

This year’s Meadowmount faculty, led by Janet Sung, who will also be teaching, includes violinists Kikuei Ikeda, I-Hao Lee, Gerardo Ribeiro, Ann Setzer, Ivan Ženatý; violists Molly Carr (assisted by pianist Anna Petrova) and Jutta Puchhammer-Sédillot; and cellists Hans Jørgen Jensen and Julia Lichten, all of whom train their instruments individually as well as ensemble chamber music; and Steven Rochen, cello, who will conduct the chamber music. Almost all faculty members are in residence for the full seven-week session, which is unusual for summer music schools.

The 2022 guest artists, who offer master classes, one-to-one lessons and perform for and with faculty and students, are violinists Philip Setzer and Paul Kantor; violist Matthew Lipman; cellists Hai-Ye Ni, Thomas Mesa and Thomas Landschoot, and the Aizuri Quartet. Additionally, composer, violinist and Meadowmount alumnus Jessie Montgomery will give a virtual masterclass. Meadowmount also features a collaborative piano staff of six artists.

When he founded the school in 1944, Ivan Galamian, the legendary violin pedagogue widely regarded as the father of classical string playing in America, created a routine and method of practice and study that has become recognized as fundamentals for success by an alumni roster that includes some of the greatest artists of our time. The basis of the approach is focused practice: students, aged 13 to 30, practice for four hours in the morning, with each hour divided into 50 minutes of play followed by 10 minutes of rest. A break for lunch is followed by another hour of practice in the afternoon, as well as private lessons, chamber music rehearsals, master classes with guest artists and career development workshops, which for the first time this year will include sessions on live concert streaming and work. with the management and administration of the artists. The weekend schedule includes area excursions and a Sunday morning hike, and there are special events such as auditions for the NPR radio show From the Top and a talent show. There is a health and wellness staff of specialists who offer free Alexander Technique, yoga and guided meditation services; Physiotherapy and massage services are also available. And Tuesdays always feature “Pizza and Game Night.”

All of this takes place on the bucolic 240-acre campus of Meadowmount which, in addition to the 500-seat concert hall, includes a 100-seat performance space, chamber music rehearsal booths, dormitories and a main house. landmark that was the home of the Milhollands, a family playing a prominent role in America’s civil rights movements of the early 20th century.

Before Meadowmount, violinist Joshua Bell had never practiced his instrument for more than an hour a day. “Some of the most incredible musical moments of my life” happened at school, he says. “I can’t even imagine how many things that are part of me now are things that all started in Meadowmount.” And violinist James Ehnes said: “Sometimes I think of the incredibly short period of my life that I was actually there. Four summers, seven weeks each summer, and only six weeks the first summer. And yet, so many things changed for me as a musician and as a person at that time.” Learn more about what elders have said about Meadowmount.

Founded in 1944 by legendary violin teacher Ivan Galamian, Meadowmount School of Music is a seven-week summer program for young violinists, violists and cellists whose intensive study and practice approach has helped shape some of the greatest artists of our time. Musicians ages 13 to 30+ from around the world gather at the school’s campus in the Adirondack Mountains in upstate New York to hone their musical skills with, in the words of M Galamian, “a particular spirit that fosters a total focus on excellence in performance music”, aided by a faculty of renowned artists.

The stellar lineup of alumni over the school’s 78-year history includes Itzhak Perlman, Yo-Yo Ma, Pinchas Zukerman, Jaime Laredo, Lynn Harrell, Kyung-Wha Chung, Ani and Ida Kavafian, Joshua Bell , James Ehnes, Rachel Barton Pine, Alisa Weilerstein and Jessie Montgomery. Meadowmount alumni are well represented internationally among soloists and chamber musicians, leading performers in major orchestras, and distinguished teachers.

With an enrollment capacity of 200 on the 52-building, 240-acre campus, the school maintains an intimacy that provides personal attention and fosters camaraderie among students. Many former students of the school return as faculty members, ensuring the continuity of Meadowmount’s teaching tradition. The list of teachers which over the years has included Gregor Piatigorsky, Josef Gingold, Isaac Stern, Leonard Rose, Sally Thomas and Dorothy DeLay, recently featured cellist Hans Jørgen Jensen and violinists Ann Setzer and Kikuei Ikeda – an unrivaled lineage in the field.

www.meadowmount.org