What was your favorite thing about summer camp?

“Playing my violin”

“Climbing up the waterfall”

“Playing capture the flag”

“The swim meet”

“Costume night”

“The talent show”

“The treasure hunt”

“The food!”

These were snippets of CMW students’ responses upon leaving our Summer Camp week with the Chorus of Westerly at Ogontz Camp in New Hampshire. 

My own favorite thing about camp this year was getting to jump into a summer camp that had a long history of successful summers, but was open —and interested—in continuing to change and improve every year.

This year, the Chorus of Westerly’s collaboration with Community MusicWorks was part of the change. CMW students jumped into the mix as cabin counselors, as field day competitors, as leaders of the evening reflection before taps, and as talent show performers.

For 7 days, students practiced, worked on chamber music, rhythm & improvisation skills. The group created a new ensemble piece inspired by the soundscape of our environment: one where we could hear crickets, birds, thunderstorms and waterfalls throughout the day and night.

Jessenia, a CMW student serving on our Board said,

“Meeting new people is one of the best parts of camp. I have made new friends and I hope to keep in touch with them. I also realize that I underestimated our younger CMW students. They’re amazing musicians, and they even taught me how to have fun and enjoy the childhood I have left! I have had so much fun and even though I wasn’t even aware I’d be a counselor, I came to love the job and the girls in my cabin. Ogontz has taught me that even the people you least expect, can become like family.”

It was magical to see a full-blown overnight summer music camp in this 8th year of CMW’s own summer camp programming. I’m looking forward to seeing how this unique collaboration between two fantastic organizations grows from here. 

–Rachel Panitch, CMW Summer Camp leader and Fellowship Alum

All photos graciously shared by the Chorus of Westerly!  To see more photos (and videos!) check out their Facebook Page.

The MusicWorks Collective hopes you can join us for the first concert of Season 20!

For our first performance of the season we are very excited to offer a program featuring three living composers!  This program includes a reprise of 12 Moods, composed by our dear friend Jessie Montgomery and originally commissioned by CMW in 2015 to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Civil Rights movement.  Written for 2 string quartets plus double bass, the piece takes inspiration from Langston Hughes’ Ask Your Mama: 12 Moods for Jazz and as one might expect is beautifully evocative of both jazz music and a wide variety of moods.

The newest iteration of our Fellows Quartet will be making their debut with Entr’act by Pulitzer Prize winning composer Caroline Shaw, and members of the MusicWorks Collective will come together as a string orchestra to perform Christopher Theofanidis’s energetic and breathtaking Visions and Miracles.

Such a program is a rare treat for performers and audiences alike.  As often happens, these pieces have become dear to our hearts the more time we have spent working on them, and we are looking forward to sharing them with you.

We look forward to seeing you there and beginning our 20th Season together!

Community MusicWorks Season Opener
Sunday, September 18, 2:00 PM
RISD Museum, Grand Gallery

Caroline Shaw Entr’act  (performed by the CMW Fellows Quartet)
Christopher Theofanidis Visions and Miracles
Jessie Montgomery 12 Moods

Reception to follow

Season Opener Concert Preview
Saturday, September 17th, 3:00 PM
Touisset Community Club
Hosted by Rick & Jacque Russom

Please RSVP to Katie Sklar at ksklar@communitymusicworks.org if you would like to attend this Preview concert. 

Welcome to the twentieth season of Community MusicWorks! As we round the corner of two decades, we recommit to the original vision of this organization and celebrate the tremendous growth in a community of musicians, alumni, audiences, and families.

 John Dewey, in his 1934 Art as Experience, argues that there is a vital need to “restore continuity between the refined and intensified forms of experience that are works of art, and the everyday events, doings and sufferings” that are daily life. His work was to understand the true origins, and therefore meanings, of art, and to separate those from the museums, concert halls, and other institutions of art to get back to the very nature of what arts experience is. Dewey concludes that we need to remember the essential link between art and everyday life.

 In many ways, this has been the undertaking of Community MusicWorks over the past two decades—musicians working to restore continuity between concert music and everyday experience, practicing their art form in communities where their roles as educators, performers, composers, and neighbors all add up to a larger whole.

 In our work, however, there is the risk of seeing art as only instrumental to another end—art helps kids in school, or it contributes to a sense of place. These are important effects of arts experiences, to be sure. But it is critical to remember that the experience of knowing ourselves, of having a space for reflection and emotional resonance is the experience of art.

 In our twentieth season, we undertake experiments that link artistry and community. Our concerts will range from performances in grand halls to the corner taqueria. We’ll present a range of music, from spirited new works by contemporary composers Carolyn Shaw, Jessie Montgomery, and Christopher Theofanidis; to our annual fall Bach concerts; to the winter concerts of new music; to a reprise of Fantasia, a salsa-inspired concerto that will bring back musicians and alumni from our twenty years in a celebration of our community.

(see our Calendar for details about all these upcoming events)

 We will also celebrate this milestone by having CMW musicians appearing around our city in twenty pop-up concerts. Stay tuned for these wonderful collisions that restore continuity between concert music and the everyday.

And finally, our ensemble name. Over the evolution of our organization, we have seen many iterations—from the early days of one, two, then four musicians being resident in our community, to the decade of the Providence String Quartet, to the expanded forces represented by the CMW Players. In this twentieth season, as we recommit to the vision of a collection of artists making their work together under the mission of Community MusicWorks, we rename the faculty musical ensemble: the MusicWorks Collective.

 Music works for community, for making meaning, for bringing people together, for restoring continuities between art and everyday life. We look forward to celebrating continually, all season long!

–-Sebastian Ruth, Founder and Artistic Director

photography by Stephanie Alvarez Ewens

Every day of the week the Daily Orchestra Program is given invaluable support by regular mentors, including local musicians, CMW alumni, and current CMW students.  Logistically speaking we would not be able to have the DOP without this essential support!  Even more importantly, our mentors deepen our students’ overall experience.  They serve as role models and friends to our students, learning and playing music alongside them in orchestra and in individual practice throughout the week.  Recently I asked Ruby (a current CMW cello student and Phase II member) about her experience mentoring with the DOP.   Here is what she had to say:

Lisa: How long have you been mentoring with the DOP?

Ruby: I’ve been mentoring at the Daily Orchestra Program for 2 years now, starting in my sophomore year of high school and continuing through my junior year of high school.

L: What does your mentoring work involve?

R: Mentoring involves working with individual students in practice sessions and working with the orchestra as a whole. It involves setting up and taking down the orchestra room,  helping with tuning instruments, and supporting the overall flow of orchestra time. Individualized practice is a bit different in the sense that it is a more intimate learning setting. Students are with us either one-on-one or two-on-one at times. We help them practice not only their orchestra music but also scales and a solo piece if they are working on one.

L: What’s your favorite memory from your mentoring experience?

R: My favorite memory from my mentoring experience would have to be when one of my mentees, Steven, earned his way to getting to take his instrument home over the weekend. I had been there almost the whole week, helping him stay on task so that he could remain on his best behavior throughout the week. I was very proud to hear that he did in fact get to take his instrument home and wanted me to know that he had done it. I knew that he could all along, but getting to witness it was very uplifting and was a very proud moment.

L: How has mentoring helped you to grow as a musician?

R: Through mentoring I was able to combine my passions of working with children and playing music. It has helped me grow greatly not only as a person but also as a musician. Through the program I am better able to read other clefs and tune instruments by ear – all skills that before the Daily Orchestra Program I could only ever imagine being able to do. I have also been able to enhance my sight reading, since I was not as familiar with all of the music that the students got to read and play everyday.

L: Has it changed your idea of what makes a musician?

R: I feel like I have always had my own idea of what makes a musician but going through this mentoring experience has helped me add to that idea. Specifically, I now feel that a musician is someone who gives back and helps others with not only music but with anything.  A musician is also someone that can learn from those on other levels, not just those above them.

L: How has this experience changed or contributed to your overall experience at
CMW?

R: Mentoring at the daily Orchestra Program has enhanced my overall CMW experience to the fullest. I have gained new skills and many lasting memories to add to my collection. Mentoring at the Daily Orchestra program has made my musical experience all the better.

The Daily Orchestra Program is so grateful to Ruby and to all of our mentors for their dedication and thoughtful time spent with our students this year!  Our mentors make our DOP community very special.  Thank you, mentors!! 

–Lisa Barksdale, Resident Musician

Community MusicWorks congratulates Fellows Hannah Ross and Clara Yang, who sent us a note upon graduating this past week:

As we reach the end of our two years of the Fellowship Program at CMW, we are feeling very grateful yet bittersweet about leaving. It’s been a rewarding and valuable experience working for CMW, and we feel like we gained a lot from being immersed in the many different aspects of the organization. Happily, we are both remaining in the area pursuing personal and musical endeavors, and we look forward to continue being part of the CMW family!! 

Best of luck, Hannah and Clara!

The violinist  takes the stage, filled with nervous excitement. She has prepared for this concert for countless hours. She smiles at the crowd before her, and the audience leans forward in anticipation. She puts her bow to the instrument, takes a deep breath, and nods to the pianist. 

This image could describe a performance by any one of Community MusicWorks’ eight outstanding Resident Musicians, or four accomplished Fellows, or one of our 155 committed students. While these musicians all have a different connection to CMW, they share a common bond of musical curiosity, hard mental and physical work, and encouragement from their colleagues and teachers.

And they have YOU, supporting them through your applause at our concerts and your thoughtful donations to CMW.

Make your online gift to CMW today.

As we look toward the end of our 19th season and our final lessons, coachings, conversations, and concerts, I hope you will reflect on what you love about our musicians and consider making a gift to CMW this spring. Your donation plays a central part in every performance – from the practice room to the performance stage, from the first rehearsal to the resounding applause.

We cannot make our music without you.
Thank you for supporting our work, for being part of our audience, and for listening.

With gratitude,
Katie Sklar
Individual Support Manager

P.S. The school year, CMW’s season and our fiscal year end on June 30. Your gift this spring will support our final lessons, coaching, and performances and will help us prepare for our next season – our 20th!

Photos by Stephanie Alvarez Ewens

See more photos of our Year-End Student Gala here.

Community MusicWorks congratulates alum AlexisMarie Nelson, who will attend The Boston Conservatory at Berklee this fall. Here, Alexis reflects on her ongoing connection to CMW and the experience of meeting a new pal, Yo-Yo Ma, in April. 

In the spring of 2005, my grandfather pulled into a community car wash fundraiser on the West Side of Providence. As his car was being washed, he made small talk with another man who was also waiting there. Who would have known that this conversation between my grandfather and Sebastian Ruth all of those years ago would have led me to Community MusicWorks, one of the most influential parts of my life? And ultimately, to this point: preparing to attend The Boston Conservatory at Berklee in the fall.

CMW has truly helped form me into the person that I am today, and not only as a musician (even though that was a big part!)  I learned how to set goals for myself in lessons and really apply myself while practicing at home. I was able to become a strong, informed member of the community at the same time that I was improving my technical skills and expanding my repertoire. At CMW I discovered my love for chamber music AND social justice. I became a member of amazing musical ensembles, and also a family.

Growing up, I had always known I wanted to do something to change the world. By the time I was in my early teens my sights were set on doing so through music. After graduating from high school and spending three years working in early childhood education as an AmeriCorps member and a teacher assistant, my vision for the future had shifted once again. It is now my goal to find a way to combine my love for working with the world’s youngest citizens with my passion for music. I’m still not sure how I’d do that yet (which is totally okay!), but I’m hoping these next four years will send me in the right direction! I’d also love to continue to be an active chamber musician because that is where my heart lies.

In April, I had the privilege of attending a convening on Cultural Entrepreneurship in New York with Sebastian. I spent the day listening and interacting with artists and innovators who were doing exactly what I hope to do: make a social impact. While there, I was able to speak with Yo-Yo Ma (omg) about my own observations of the day. I realized that there is so much that goes into being an artist who wants to make a change in the world. One has to have such strong intentions and well thought out goals within their artistry and beyond to really make the impact they hope for. It really made me think about how much thought, time and devotion goes into a program like CMW every day. This is something I will keep in the forefront of my thoughts as I move forward on my own journey.

Looking back at my time as a student of Community MusicWorks, I have so much to be grateful for. Some of my closest friends and greatest experiences have come from CMW. The staff have always been so supportive and caring of each and every student and I still feel that warmth every time I visit the office or attend a concert. I’d like to say a special thank you to Jesse Holstein, who was my private teacher, mentor and confidant from my first day in 2005, and who I can still call on to this day. Community MusicWorks has and will always be a part of me, and I hope to spread the spirit of the program with me wherever I go. I can’t wait to see where this journey takes me.

AlexisMarie Nelson

On the evening of Tuesday May 31st, The Quartet of Happiness joined Community MusicWorks students and staff for the final Workshop of the school year.  It’s difficult to label exactly the type of workshop these four gentlemen from Boston gave – a workshop that defies description.  Everything began simply enough, with an introduction to their instruments (a jazz combo of drum set, double bass, tenor and alto saxophone).  The opening number started off as a pleasant lullaby duet between the tenor sax and bass. Soon, however, the alto and drummer seemed to become anxious. They suddenly interjected a brief but raucous line of music, interrupting the lullaby.  From then on the lullaby devolved into a furious duel between the two duets, culminating with the two contrasting moods of music combined as one!

From that point on we knew this was no ordinary workshop. The Quartet of Happiness continued for the next hour with a series of performances and performing activities which engaged and involved the audience. They played music, including a piece designed to create the sounds of randomly scanning through channels on the radio. They took volunteers for on-stage competitions, with the audience as the judge. They made us break out into hysterical laughter and in quite the climax made everyone scream with terror as one of them morphed into a monster and proceeded out into the audience!

The Quartet of Happiness certainly captured the attention and enthusiasm of us all.  I happily watched as my students laughed together, sang along, and even shrieked with glee during the high points of the performance.  We are all so grateful to The Quartet of Happiness for giving us such a fun and imaginative concluding workshop of the school year!

—Lisa Barksdale, Resident Musician

Join us in congratulating Aiden, a CMW violist for 10 years, on his graduation from the program. Josie Davis talks to Aiden about his experience at CMW and future plans.

How old were you when you started lessons at CMW?
I was 7 years old when I started lessons at CMW.

What is your favorite CMW memory?
My favorite memory about CMW is the bug opera. We got to eat cooked bugs before going to see a bug opera…literally.

How has music and CMW shaped your life?
CMW has kept me busy and doing something productive that has given me countless opportunities, like going to New York and playing with my Phase 2 family.

Can you tell us about a favorite performance experience?
My favorite performance was the Fantasia performance in New York because it was the first time I traveled for a performance with Phase 2. And I honestly feel like I have never gotten closer to people that fast until that trip. I feel like they are truly family thanks to that performance.

What are your plans after graduation from CMW?
I plan to go to college for studio arts and continue working.

How do you think music will play into your life in the future?
Music has already taught me very valuable skills that I can now take into the world like how to mentor and teach other people. And many public skills like how to perform and talk in front of a crowd. And, of course I will still keep practicing the skills I have learned here in CMW on how to play the viola. I might continue to perform.

Please join us for music and food as we celebrate the end of the year, our graduating seniors, and all of our students’ hard work at the End-of-Year Student Gala!

Tuesday, May 24 at 6pm
Providence Career and Technical Academy
41 Fricker Street, Providence

As we enter the countdown to the end of the school year we are getting ready to congratulate our graduating seniors and wish them farewell.  Today’s post features the third in a series of interviews with our graduating seniors.  (click here if you missed part 1! or part 2!)   Today on the blog CMW Fellow Josie Davis talks with senior violin student Orianda about her time at CMW.

How old were you when you started playing the violin with CMW?

I started playing violin in December 2014 when I was fifteen.

What is your favorite CMW memory?

My favorite CMW memory was working on the end of the year performance with the All-Play day ensembles. I remember looking around the room and seeing how concentrated everyone was, and committed to the parts they were playing.  It was also a fun experience to meet other CMW students and practice as a group.   

How has music and CMW shaped your life?

Music and the performing arts have played a big role in my life. It has made me more driven and has allowed me to perform and meet amazing artists in the community. While I haven’t been playing violin for as long as a lot of students who are part of CMW, in the short period of time that I’ve been a part of the program, I have improved so much in my sight reading and musicianship. Being part of the CMW community has made me better not only in violin but has helped me become a better guitarist and bassist.

What are your plans after graduation?

After graduation I plan on enrolling full time at Rhode Island College to pursue a career in Music Education so that I can work with young, aspiring artists like myself. I feel that I still have a lot to learn and that’s why I want to continue music instead of stopping after I graduate.

How do you think music will play into your life in the future?

Music will always be a big part of my life no matter where I am. I hope to continue to learn while working with other musicians.  I’m not sure whats going to happen in the future but I’m sure of one thing and it’s that music will always be part of my life especially as I go into college.

Please join us for music and food as we celebrate the end of the year, our graduating seniors, and all of our students’ hard work at the End-of-Year Student Gala!

Tuesday, May 24 at 6pm
Providence Career and Technical Academy
41 Fricker Street, Providence