Chamber Music Conversations and Make Music Philly: Open to All Adult Musicians This Friday

Lessons and classes for the 2012-13 season may have ended, but music at Settlement continues this week. Join us on Friday, June 21 at the Mary Louise Curtis Branch for Make Music Philly, a free day of music across Philadelphia on the longest day of the year. Our contribution to this day of music is Chamber Music Conversations, spotlighting our Adult Chamber Players program and chamber music faculty, but adult amateur musicians of all kinds and in all genres are welcome.

3:30-5:30 PM: Informal ensemble sessions for chamber music, jazz, folk, rock and Taiko drumming - play or sit in and observe

5:30 PM: Wine and cheese reception for all guests in Field Recital Hall; performance hour featuring soloists and ensembles in PNC Bank*Presser Recital Hall

6:30-8:30 PM: Informal sessions continue

Bring an instrument and take part in ensembles playing all of the following genres, or come be a part of the audience and meet like-minded adults who share your love for music. You do not need to come with an instrument to enjoy the evening with us and to learn about Settlement's programs.

-Chamber music: anything from duos or piano trios to string quartets or wind quintets, depending on instrumentation available. The Adult Chamber Players program, established in 1992, has been a staple of Settlement's adult programming at the Mary Louise Curtis, Wynnefield and Willow Grove Branches. One program member recently reflected on several years spent playing and making friends through Adult Chamber Players.

-Rock and folk music: It's been a big year for guitar at Settlement, with our newly launched Adult Rock Band program at several branches and the continuing popularity of group lessons for beginning adult guitar students. This Friday, classic tunes and modern-day favorites are all welcomed!

-Jazz: Adult Jazz Bands were active this year at the Mary Louise Curtis and Germantown Branches, and there's a new one starting at the Wynnefield Branch in the fall. Winds, brass, guitar, bass, percussion, piano -- the genre known as "America's classical music" embraces all sorts of instruments.

-Taiko drumming: One of Settlement's most popular adult program, our Taiko drummers were featured during our contribution to the 2013 Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts. The drums are big, and the music can be loud and intense, but Taiko can be a vigorous workout as well as a calming, meditative experience. This is one you won't need to bring your own instrument for!


Also, look for a live demonstration by Kyo Daiko, our Taiko ensemble formed through a partnership with Shofuso Japanese House in Fairmount Park, at 30th Street Station at 8 AM on Friday! Catch it on your way or take a detour to check it out. It'll be the kickoff to a day full of music across the city. We can't wait!

A moving experience: Adult programs and chamber music at Settlement

For some insight on musical opportunities for adults at Settlement and the connections they make as a result, we turn the blog over to Anne Hopkins, cellist and member of the Adult Chamber Players program for three seasons. Her dedication goes way beyond getting together to play every other week.

I heard about Settlement's Adult Chamber Players program several years ago when I lived in Hershey, PA, two hours away. Too far away, I thought. But I drove to the Willow Grove Branch for a "courtesy" session, thanks to the wonderful program director, Marka Stepper. I thought I owed it to myself to go to this one time, knowing that it was much too far away for anything regular. I arrived after the two-hour drive, played quartets -- Beethoven, Mozart, Mendelssohn -- and I was hooked.

The Willow Grove Branch, one of three sites for the Adult Chamber Players program

I signed up for a season, knowing that this meant a two-hour commute each way every other week. The great thing about Settlement's Adult Chamber Music Program is that you get to meet other people who love playing this kind of music. I signed up for a second season, and in the afternoon met with a group of three new friends to play quartets. Each session made for a very long day, but I remember so well driving home late, tired and happy, enjoying the sunset as I headed west towards Hershey. The next year, I signed up again, and in addition to my afternoon group, I met up with others at my friend Linda's house the night before to play chamber music. It was wonderful. Sleeping on a couch at my daughter's house, on the other hand, wasn't so wonderful.

An Adult Chamber Players ensemble rehearsing at the Willow Grove Branch

For my fourth season, I signed up for a coached group in the afternoon. Marka, the program director, is also a violist, and she served as our embedded coach. We played a Mendelssohn quartet, going over the piece in depth and with incredible sensitivity to nuance. It was a powerful and very rich experience. It was during this year that I began to talk with my husband about maybe moving to somewhere near Willow Grove so that I wouldn't have a long commute (and wouldn't have to sleep on a couch) and could meet more often to play chamber music with my new friends. Well, it so happened that we found a house that we liked in Wyndmoor, 15 minutes from the Willow Grove Branch, bought it, sold our house in Hershey, and moved here in May.

Thanks to the other musicians I met at Settlement, I have so many opportunities to play -- every day, if I could manage it. In short, I'm a big fan of Settlement and the Adult Chamber Players Program. Next year I want to play in all the Settlement programs in the Philadelphia area!

Learn more about Settlement's adult programs at Chamber Music Conversations, an open house and evening of music for adult musicians, on June 21 at the Mary Louise Curtis Branch. Bring your instrument and we will organize an ensemble for you, whether you play classical, jazz, rock, or folk music, or come be a part of the audience and meet like-minded adults who share your love for music.

Settlement's Open House, Saturday June 8, 10 AM to 1 PM

Settlement's 2012-13 school year comes to an end next week. After the Annual Concert on Sunday, there's one last week of lessons and classes before students and teachers alike head off for summer camps, festivals and well-earned vacations. Before we send everyone off for the summer, we hope to get to know some new people first at the annual Open House, held tomorrow, from 10 AM to 1 PM, at all of Settlement's branches.

Students and faculty will be performing and leading demonstrations, and staff and volunteers will be on hand to answer questions about all of the lessons, classes and ensembles offered both this summer and year-round.

A full schedule of events at each branch is available here, but from all of the events packed into just three hours at each branch, here are a few selected highlights:

-Suzuki play-in at the Mary Louise Curtis Branch. We've talked about the Suzuki teaching method here before, now come see what has made the Suzuki program at Settlement such a popular choice for very young musicians and their parents.

-Cello-bration at the Willow Grove Branch, including a performance by a cello ensemble, coached by Christine Danoff, of Villa-Lobos' Bachianas Brasileiras. It's a sneak preview of Sunday's Annual Concert, too.

-Performances by student jazz and rock bands, coached by Mark Forchic, at the Germantown Branch. It's been a year of tremendous growth for jazz ensembles at Settlement, and Mark's ensembles have been performing far and wide.


-Voice recital featuring students of Susan Rheingans at the Kardon-Northeast Branch

-A demonstration of Percussion Construction, a percussion class where children ages 5-7 play alongside their parents, at the Wynnefield Branch.

-Demonstrations and performances by Children's Music Workshop students at the Camden School of Musical Arts. CMW provides an introduction to music theory, notation and musical development -- a great way for young musicians to learn music fundamentals before starting on an instrument.