Music Academy of the West to Host Free Public Masterclass
For Immediate Release February 12, 2007
Contact:
Tim Dougherty
805.695.7908
tdougherty@musicacademy.org
Santa Barbara, CA-The public is invited to observe a masterclass led by pianist Cynthia Darby and violinist Kathleen Lenski at the Music Academy of the West on Saturday, March 10. Ms. Darby and Ms. Lenski will coach four ensembles (15 students total) as they perform compositions by Mozart, Telleman, Mendelssohn and others. The class will take place from 2-4 pm in Lehmann Hall at the Music Academy, located at 1070 Fairway Road in Santa Barbara. There is no cost to observe and free parking is available on campus. A reception will follow in an adjacent patio area.
Ms. Darby has been a guest of several orchestras, including the San Francisco Symphony. Ms. Lenski was first violinist and a founding member of the Angeles String Quartet, which won a Grammy for its recording of the complete string quartets of Joseph Haydn in 2001. She has appeared as a soloist with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Seattle, San Francisco and St. Louis symphonies and was soloist and concertmaster of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra.
The class is part of the Academy's MERIT Extended Program. MERIT Extended students, who are selected upon auditioning for the nine-month enrichment program, participate in one of four chamber ensembles, receive coaching twice a month and take part in masterclasses and performances at the Music Academy throughout the school year. The aim is to provide promising students with an opportunity to expand their chamber music education.
Inaugurated in 1998, MERIT (Music Education Reinforces Intellect and Talent) provides musicians ages 12 to 18 with an intensive two-week immersion in the Academy's Summer School and Festival and mentoring from older Academy students. Directed by Linda Holland and supported by United Way of Santa Barbara County, the Clarence E. Heller Charitable Foundation and Mr. and Mrs. Jon B. Lovelace, the program also operates from September through May as MERIT Extended.
This year's MERIT Extended students are: Dierdre Bernhoft, cello (Ojai); Sheila Bernhoft, viola (Ojai); Dana Christie, bass (Ventura); Blue Dascomb, cello (Solvang); Marie Hebert, violin (Santa Barbara); Leland Hsu, violin (Santa Barbara); Nicole Jahng, cello (Ventura); Stefan Kinoshita, violin (Lompoc); Jessica Kozachuk, flute (Santa Barbara); Nico Moreno, violin (Carpinteria); Seth Noorzad, viola (Goleta); Eric Radkey, piano (Goleta); Kristina Setka, clarinet (Santa Barbara); Sio Tepper, piano (Santa Barbara); and Rachel Yasukochi, bassoon (Ventura).
Applications for the 2007 Summer MERIT Program are now available. For more information, contact Ms. Holland at 687-6875.
Founded in 1947, the Music Academy of the West is among the nation's preeminent summer schools and festivals for gifted young classical musicians. The Academy provides these promising musicians with the opportunity for advanced study and performance under the guidance of internationally renowned faculty artists, as well as guest conductors and soloists. Admission to the Academy is strictly merit based, and students receive full scholarships. Academy alumni are members of major symphony orchestras, chamber orchestras, ensembles, opera companies and university and conservatory faculties throughout the world. Many have established themselves as prominent solo artists. Based in Santa Barbara, the Music Academy of the West presents more than 175 public events annually, including student recitals, masterclasses, orchestra and chamber music concerts, and fully staged opera. For more information, visit www.musicacademy.org.
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