| September 2008 |
Vol. XI, No. 4 |
Fall/Winter Session
The Fall/Winter Session will run this year from Tuesday, September 2, 2008, through Monday, January 26, 2009.
A complete schedule is included in this newsletter, and is also available on the website. Private instruction is offered in piano, voice, saxophone, flute, clarinet, trumpet, violin, viola, guitar, trombone, and other low brass instruments. The tuition for the first lesson in the family is $595, payable in 5 equal installments of $119. Tuition for second lessons in the family is $500, payable is 5 equal installments of $100. Our annual fee for private lessons is $20.00, to cover the costs of scheduling and administration. This will be charged to each student’s account at the beginning of this session. The Center can now accept credit card payments, using Visa, Master Card, or Discover!
Our 18-week Fall Semester will again consist of 17 private lessons and a number of Group Classes in theory, harmony, rhythm, group piano playing, jazz, improvisation, African drumming and small ensemble playing. All registered students at the Renaissance Center will be able to attend any of the one-time Group Classes throughout the semester at no additional charge. Group Classes will be listed in the monthly newsletter and posted in the reception area. Advance sign-up is required.
As usual, we also have multi-lesson group programs scheduled for the fall and winter, and a schedule is included later in this newsletter. Consider all the fun possibilities for music enrichment! Anne Westerman will handle all questions and registrations for these group programs – please call her at 264-0405.
Hellos and Good-byes
Two of our wonderful staff members are moving on to the adventures of college. Emily Ganjei has been keeping us organized and keeping a friendly face at the front desk, but she is moving on to study nursing at the University of Rhode Island. Minnal Packiam has been teaching piano, but he is moving on to study Biomedical Engineering at the University of Connecticut.
Lyn Nagel, a long-time voice instructor, has accepted a full-time teaching position elsewhere in Connecticut, so she will not return to teaching here.
Although we will miss them all, we are fortunate to be welcoming new faces and new talent to our music school. Christina Ruggiero will be staffing the front desk several afternoons during the week, and Kenny Westerman will be teaching piano. They are both entering their Junior year at Pomperaug High School, and have been students at the Renaissance Center for most of their lives!
Broadway Performance!
After a fun summer session, and a great performance of “Aida,” Kenneth Lundquist, Jr. has enthusiastically agreed to teach another group this fall, after a documentary film-making adventure in Africa! He will return by October 2, and begin teaching a 14-week program, which he calls Broadway Performance. The class is still a group singing experience, but Kenneth adds his own style and love of drama to emphasize the performance of characters, in addition to the music.
Concert Opportunities
We strongly encourage students and their families to attend music performances. This is the best way for students to see people perform music as a profession, or because they love it. For this reason, many organizations in the area offer discounts to music students. If you know of others, please pass the information on to us.
Femina Melodia – Fall concert entitled “Sing Peace” will be held on Sunday, November 23 at 7:00 pm at B’nai Israel, 444 Main Street North, in Southbury. If you have never heard this wonderful group sing, visit the Renaissance Center website and listen to excerpts from their spring concert. You won’t be sorry!
Waterbury Symphony Orchestra
The season opens on Saturday, September 27 at 8:00 pm at NVCC Fine Arts Center with a program of “Banned Music” performed in cooperation with The Big Read project (Fahrenheit 451). The Big Read is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services and Arts Midwest.
Maestro Bjaland has selected three pieces for this performance, which focuses on music that was influenced by political forces, or even banned from performance. The program opens with the well-known Hebrides (Fingal’s Cave) Overture of Felix Mendelssohn. Due to the fact that Mendelssohn was born into a Jewish family, performances of his music were not favored in Germany during the time the Third Reich was in power. The Symphony No. 9 of Dmitri Shostakovich was written at the conclusion of World War II, when Stalin and all Russia were anticipating a huge celebratory and patriotic work from the composer. Shostakovich instead produced a delightful, light-hearted, and almost classical sounding work, which was subsequently banned from performance in the country until after Stalin’s death.
The featured soloist for the September 27th performance is a rising star of the piano, Yevgeny Sudbin. Mr. Sudbin will be featured in the Piano Concerto No. 4 by Beethoven. Value tickets are available for $15, and Students tickets for $5. For more information, visit www.waterburysymphony.org.
The WSO joins forces with the Naugatuck Community College Choir on Sunday, November 16th, 2008
Starts at 03:00 PM at NVCC Fine Arts Center for another concert of Baroque music. This festive concert features the music of three of the most prominent Baroque composers: Corelli, Bach, and Handel. The concert opens with Corelli’s Concerto in g minor, which highlights the technical skill and command that is required during the performance of Baroque music and is often referred to as the “Christmas Concerto.”
Dr. Richard Gard, Assistant Professor of Music at Naugatuck Valley Community College and Director of Music at St. Thomas More Chapel at Yale University, will be conducting the Waterbury Symphony and the Naugatuck Valley Community College Choir in the performance of Bach’s Cantata No. 191.
The final half of the concert will feature selections from Handel’s most popular work, Messiah, to include the Hallelujah Chorus. Value tickets are available for $15, and Students tickets for $5. For more information, visit www.waterburysymphony.org.
Students in the News
On Monday, August 18, a group of our most advanced students performed for the residents of Pomperaug Woods, and they were very warmly received, as always. Congratulations to Emily Ganjei and Minnal Packiam (their final performances before going off to college), Sarah Qadir, Christina Ruggiero, and Kenny Westerman. Our violin instructor Seth Uricheck also stepped in and offered a wonderful violin solo to provide variety to the otherwise entirely piano performance.
CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL! ! !
If your name has been left off this list, or you have other news to report, PLEASE let us know.
FALL SESSION PROGRAMS
Broadway Performance -- To sing & act within a theatrical scene means a performer must create a character both vocally and physically. This group workshop for boys and girls will focus on learning and performing the skills & techniques necessary to accomplish this. The course will result in a live performance of selected songs from the musical "Wicked," for family and friends, at the end of the session. All voices and ability levels are welcome.
Time: Thursdays, 7:00 – 8:15 p.m.
Dates: October 2, 2008 - January 22, 2009, 14 lessons (no class 11/27, 12/25, or 1/1/09)
Cost: $225
Instructor: Kenneth Lundquist, Jr.
Piano Lab -- Come experience our digital Yamaha keyboards, which allow a small group of students to experience both private, one-on-one instruction as well as group playing. We encourage this class for young students who are planning independent study on the piano, and we have had lots of fun and success with adults too!
Beginner, adults Tuesdays 1:30 – 2:15 p.m.
Intermediate, adults Tuesdays 2:30 – 3:15 p.m.
Beginner, ages 5 to 7 Thursdays 5:30 – 6:15 p.m. (with parent in attendance)
Beginner, ages 7 to adult Thursdays 4:30 – 5:15 p.m.
Instructor: Estelle Mackenzie
Cost: $140, including materials
Schedule: Eight weeks beginning October 2
African Drumming Circle will return to meeting monthly on Monday evenings from 7:15 to 8:30 p.m. with Jan Gregory. This is a drop-in circle, and open to both adults and older children. Beginners are welcome, and drums are available to borrow. Experience the joyful community that emerges when we drum together!
Cost: $15 per adult per session
Dates this fall and winter: September 8, October 6, November 3, December 1, and January 5
Instructor: Jan Gregory
Femina Melodia -- Join an a cappella women’s singing group which performs in a variety of locations throughout the year. Auditions can be arranged by calling the Renaissance Center.
Director: Jan Gregory
Schedule: Tuesdays, 7:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Cost: $85 for fall season, through concerts in November and December.
