At the beginning of the day on our annual all-student retreat, some staff wrote down what we hoped to get out of the day: smiles, new friendships, a stronger sense of community among students, fun. After organizing at the CMW office, we boarded two buses and took off for Canonicus Camp and Conference Center, where we were greeted with a hearty breakfast snack, followed by a day of facilitated games, lunch, hiking, more snacks, and a closing ritual. Name games, acting games, group problem solving, and more. The pictures tell the story best.

On the bus home, two students told me that before the day they didn’t know each other and that now they were good friends. Duets to come?

-Sebastian Ruth, Providence String Quartet

It’s the season for Fellowship Program applications at CMW. With so many wonderful applicants to the program, how do we decide? Obviously, by calling in the experts.

The Providence Quartet (with Minna but minus Frank) will present their "Dvorak in America" program once more later this month, this time as a free community concert sponsored by Connecticut College. Here is an image of the flyer:

One of the age-old traditions of CMW happened today, the Performance Party.

A day of dread, excitement, fear, hope, stress, love, and community. For some, including me, it was a time of nostalgia with the classic favorites such as Lightly Row, Bouree, Minuet No. 3 along with the Phase II traditionals (Lift Every Voice and Sing, Wade in the Water, and We Shall Overcome). It was a great time to reconnect with the families of CMW and see the new generation of musicians showcase their talents.

Admittedly I got a little choked up watching the young ‘uns with the little 1/4 size intruments playing songs that I had once played, especially when my sister pointed out that the Tallis Canon as one of the songs I had butchered as a beginner and that Philana, Joshua, Ruby, Anthony, and Jose did a much better job.

-Carolina Jimenez, Phase II

[Editor’s note: Special thanks to the Paul Cuffee School for helping us out, and to our guests, the Chiara String Quartet, for their incredible musical contributions today!]

I suppose the editors of Rhode Island Monthly magazine were looking to be provocative with the title of this month’s feature article.

It hasn’t been sitting well with CMW folks, especially Josh who says he’ll be posting a letter to the editor on the blog soon. Well, at least the article itself (crafted by Lisa Palmer) is a nice window into some of the complexities of CMW student life.

-Heath Marlow, CMW staff

I’m terribly biased, and I think that means that I get an even more special experience at each concert because of knowing the performers as well as I do. (Is there really any better recipe for experiencing live music?) Last evening’s PSQ performance at Tufts University was powerful, radiant, and entirely from the heart. I enjoyed every minute of it.

-Heath Marlow, CMW staff

Last weekend during the PSQ rehearsal before the Tufts concert, I got a chance to meet Suha, the new face in the CMW family. There was a lot of fuss around the birth of this new 7lb and 13oz. Kareem impersonator (with more hair, granted). With all this news and excitement, I wanted to see  what Suha thought of this whole being alive thing. So, with permission from her parents, I interviewed this up-and-coming little rag-a-muffin.
                  
So, Suha what do you think about your name?

She gargles a bit and stares off into space, trying to seem as though she’s not giving it much thought and nonchalantly answers with a hiccup.

Man, she was one tough cookie.

What do you think about the whole being alive thing?

We can constitute for the fact that absolute power corrupts absolutely, and the world has rebelled against the powers through small insurgencies. Now and then the people are victorious, but only for a time. The real fruit of their battles lie not in the immediate result, but in the ever expanding union of the universe.*

Wow that was deep.

So what do you think of Dvorak?

She scrunched her face up a bit and then burped.

And that was my first encounter with the little baby Suha. I think we have gained a mini-Revolutionist and must cherish her (even if she isn’t, she’s still awesome).

*Inferred by her action of showing me her palm.

-Carolina Jimenez, Phase II

After running out of copies of Jesse’s "Dvorak in America" essay last night at the sold-out Providence Athenaeum PSQ concert/lecture, we thought it would be useful to provide access to a copy that you can download by clicking here: Download dvorak_in_america_notes.doc

A few photos of the Providence String Quartet conducting an "Introduction to the String Quartet" demonstration at the local elementary school in Banff, Alberta earlier this month as part of their rehearsal retreat week.

Photos courtesy of Martin Finnerty at The Banff Centre.

On Friday, January 18, Mark and I proudly made our first appearance in the CMW Workshop circuit. Not only was it the workshop debut of our electroacoustic duo, Mem1, but it was also the first time CMW participants were exposed to one of my favorite composers, John Cage. We performed Cage’s seminal work, 4’33" in which the musicians on stage are directed to NOT play for four minutes and thirty-three seconds.

When I had announced that we were going to perform this piece I saw Minna’s jaw drop open. It was not until then did I realize that this was a potentially dangerous situation: two experimental musicians sitting in a room full of energetic children holding expensive instruments, with us doing absolutely nothing, no matter what happened. As we started the piece, I became somber, staring straight ahead, barely moving (except to start and stop the stopwatch) and appearing as though in a trance (as noted by one of the confused parents). My partner Mark experienced something quite different. I heard more giggling from him than anyone else in the room. He was fully entertained by all the excitement in the room during the piece: strings plucking, nervous shuffling, toilets flushing, "The loudest performance of 4’33" ever!" he excitedly announced to me afterwards.

We were both EXTREMELY impressed with our young CMW audience because THEY TOTALLY GOT IT! I honestly didn’t know what to expect, but their reactions were more than I could have ever dreamed. When I asked if that piece we just performed was actually music, I heard an astounding "YES!" These kids, ages 7-18 mind you, totally understood the theory that there really is no such thing as silence, and that everything deserves to be listened to.

-Laura Thomas-Merino, CMW Cello Fellow

The "Dence Str" (see photo below) had a great weekend in NYC, presenting their "Dvorak in America" program at Peter Norton Symphony Space and the Third Street Music School Settlement.

1. We enjoyed seeing the Providence String Quartet's name in lights outside Symphony Space on the electronic event banner.
2. Jesse warming up backstage before the concert with his 17-page treatise on "Dvorak in America" in the foreground.
3. On stage with bass-baritone (and CMW parent) Frank Ward performing music by H. T. Burleigh
4. Jam session on stage after the concert with teens from the Harlem Children's Zone TRUCE program and teens from The Brotherhood Sister Sol, another wonderful Harlem program that the PSQ visited last January [see blog posting here].
5. PSQ performing Dvorak at the Third Street Music School Settlement where Jessie spent her youngest years as a budding musician.
6. Group shot with Antonin Dvorak, a highlight of Jesse's carefully planned walking tour of Dvorak's life on the lower East Side.