One of the most memorable moments from my first year in CMW's Fellowship Program was at the spaghetti dinner and concert at the West End Community Center. I remember watching the Phase III students and the Providence String Quartet playing The Kompa Variations together. In the room that night were the Orion String Quartet, the Providence String Quartet, the Fellows, CMW students, and many families and friends of CMW.

When the Phase III students performed side-by-side with the Providence String Quartet, it was a special moment and I think everyone felt it—not just the people playing but everyone who was there could see that there was a special bond between the teachers and the students and their families, and that this community was being brought together by the power of music.

During the course of my two years here, I have had the great privilege of becoming a part of this community. CMW has shown me how music can play an important role in bringing people together. Looking out at all of the families and students and teachers at the final Performance Party, I realized how attached I have become in these two years to all of the people at CMW that have become such a huge part of my life. 

Thank you all for this making me a part of the CMW family!

-Adrienne Taylor, Fellow (08-10)

[Editor: In September, Adrienne will begin an intense one-year fellowship at the New England Conservatory, including a two-month research trip to Venezuela. The Abreu Fellows Program "provides
tuition-free training for outstanding young postgraduate musicians who seek to guide the
development of El Sistema programs in the U.S. and beyond."]

The end of my CMW fellowship has been sneaking up for months. It started around April when my students began to realize that I wouldn’t be their teacher next year – around the same time I realized I‘d have to let each of them go. Then came the “lasts.” the last time I performed with the Fellows Quartet; the last Phase II dinner provided by the incredible Linda Kane; the last Performance Party and potluck; the last picnic. Soon to come: the last staff meeting; the last performance as a member of the CMW Players (at least for now); and finally, the last time we set the alarm and frantically run out of the office.

There are too many incredible memories to name them all. Some of my
favorites were the concert trips I had a the pleasure to chaperon,
including a trip to Jordan Hall at the New England Conservatory
where I attended graduate school. As we walked into the front lobby, I
saw many familiar faces. And when people asked what I was doing, it was
such a proud moment to say “This is my CMW family.” After the concert, I
was able to give them a tour of the historic building and share where I
worked so hard and learned so much.

There is also a stream of moments (Paul helping a young student double knot his laces at the Phase I retreat, Josh helping a nervous violist play through Jingle Bells, etc.) that were beautifully summed up by a friend who participated in the Institute for Musicianship and Public Service (IMPS). After witnessing our students interact over the weekend, he said “I’m amazed by how nice these kids are… even the teenage boys! This is rare!” He was right, this is rare. I’m just so thankful to have been a part of it.

-Jason Amos, Fellow (08-10)

[Editor: After CMW's week-long summer camp in July, Jason will be moving to Boston where, among other activities that he has been lining up, he will join the Boston Public Quartet and their residency at the Chittick School in Mattapan.]

Photos by Astrid

Most of CMW's seniors performed in a special recital that preceded the Performance Party on June 5. Here is the program from that recital:

Prelude from Suite No. 1 in G Major…… Bach
   Kirby Vasquez, cello

The Disturbed (and Happy) Farmer…… Schumann arr. Hernandez
   Christian Hernandez, violin

Chorus from Judas Maccabaeus…… Handel
   Enmy Cabrera, violin

Viola Concerto in G Major…… Telemann
Largo, Allegro, Andante, Presto
   Joshua Rodriguez, viola

Salut d'Amour…… Elgar
   Nkosi Anthony, violin

Concerto for Two Violins, Mvt. 1……. Bach
   Paul Oung and Luis Ortiz, violins

Congratulations seniors! We love you and we'll miss you. Come back and visit!

On May 18, six CMW high school seniors participated in the College Visions graduation ceremony, held at Beneficent Church on Weybosset Street. College Visions, a nonprofit housed at AS220 in downtown Providence, "provides low-income and first-generation college-bound youth in Rhode
Island with the individualized advising and resources needed to enroll
in college."

Through the year-long efforts of College Visions, we are very proud to report that six CMW students are headed to college in the fall: Enmy Cabrera (Guilford College), Luis Ortiz (McDaniel College), Paul Oung (Community College of Rhode Island), Christina Richardson (College of the Holy Cross), Josh Rodriguez (Guilford College), and Kirby Vasquez (Smith College).

Here is a brief video of Kirby describing College Visions and how her experience at CMW is shaping her future:

More photos by Jori in CMW's Flickr account.

As was previously noted on this blog in March, the Governor's proposed budget for 2011 included three major cuts of great of concern to Rhode Island's arts community: eliminating the public art program, eliminating the motion picture tax credit, and eliminating all competitive grants in the arts (a $700,000 reduction that would have practically eliminated all state arts grants, including significantly affecting CMW).

Good news! Following a public hearing in May that featured testimony from many people representing the State's arts and arts education community, the House Finance Committee's proposal, announced last week, does the following:

1.  It restores the State's public art program
2.  It restores the State's film tax credit
3.  It restores all competitive grant dollars that RISCA may award in support of the arts

The total budget package now goes to the House floor, where it is scheduled to be heard on June 3. Once approved by the House, it travels to the Senate for approval, and from there goes to the Governor for his signature.

It's not over yet… It is very important that we thank everyone we asked for help during this effort to restore the State's arts funding. Please contact your legislators and elected officials, thank them for their support, and let them know you support the proposals from the House Finance Committee.

-Heath Marlow, CMW staff

[This information is adapted from an email sent by Randy Rosenbaum, Executive Director of Rhode Island's State Council on the Arts.]

Rachel wraps up the first year of the (CMW-inspired) Fiddle & Dance Project in June. Check out her website and blog.

June 13: Fiddling Celebration and Community Dance (Rachel's student
fiddlers perform at 2 pm, followed by dancing for all!)

Betsy Hinkle, founder of the Boston Public Quartet (a 3-year-old initiative inspired by CMW), is currently seeking a cellist who is dedicated to the following:

1. Rehearsing and performing as committed member of a string
quartet, aiming to perform at the highest artistic level no matter the audience
or venue.

2. Teaching private lessons, small group activities, and
chamber music coaching

3. Working toward fulfilling the vision and mission of the
organization:

Vision:
To create a new model for public music education and performance that brings
together musicians, teachers and families around the shared intention of
student success. At the center of this model is chamber music as performed and
taught by the Boston Public Quartet at the Chittick School in Mattapan and in other Boston neighborhoods.

Mission:
To model and teach self-expression, communication, leadership, and community
development through the transformative power of chamber music.

Please contact Betsy for additional information.

[This year's "Alternative Models" Fellowship Seminar featured
presentations by Aaron and Carole for an audience of CMW staff, Board
members, and participants in CMW's 3rd Institute
for Musicianship and Public Service.]

My Presentation grappled with one of the main issues that I have dealt with in my life as a musician:  Musicians tend to flock to big cities where all the resources and jobs are. This leaves the rural communities–like the ones I grew up in–without many serious professional musicians to share their knowledge. I was always one of the few violinists in my towns when I was growing up, and it was rare to ever find a professional string player coming to visit and do concerts.

My presentation focused on a specific community, although this model could be implemented anywhere. I took the concept of having a Retreat Center for musicians and planting it in an isolated community in Northern Canada. (We're talking really, really Northern.) 

Carole's Music House will be a place where musicians can come to a creativity-inspiring place to work on a project, in turn for teaching lessons, masterclasses and workshops. Performances will always happen throughout and at the end of each residency, and tours to neighboring towns may be involved. The program will thrive on the permanently situated teacher(s) who the artists-in-residence will collaborate with on the teaching and performing aspects of the program.

My mission is: To create a safe environment where learning music and learning self expression become one and the same. Both young and old artists can come to this creative haven. To situate music into the middle of the community so that kids can learn from their early childhood years that music is a gift that they can give to people, instead of it being an unobtainable art form that has nothing to do with them.

When I asked my colleagues if they would be interested in coming to a place like Carole's Music House, the response was an overwhelming "Absolutely!" which proves to me that this dual issue can be solved in this type of way. High quality musicians are interested in coming to rural communities, and a community will benefit from a full time strings teacher who is dedicated to bringing good quality music education and good quality performances to all of the community.

To accompany my presentation, I made a visual of what Carole's Music House would look like in real life, and you can see it here.

-Carole Bestvater, Fellow