Kathryn Drake

Suzuki Violin Teacher

Archives for August 2017

Camp: Teaching Music Appreciation

by

music appreciation 2

One of my favorite things to do is zoom down the highway late at night, driving exactly six miles over the speed limit, and blast the best, most epic classical music of all time. I crank the volume, pump up the bass and sing along as best as I can.

The epics I blast include

  • Mozart’s Requiem
  • Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto
  • Schubert’s Death and the Maiden
  • Shostakovich Symphony No. 5
  • Beethoven Symphony No. 7 (or 5, 4, 9 etc)
  • Glass’ Koyaanisqatsi
  • Mendelssohn’s Italian Symphony
  • Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring
  • Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet
  • Berlioz’ Symphonie Fantastique
  • Mussorgsky’s Pictures at and Exhibition, and the
  • Bach B minor Mass.

This list could go on and on and on.

I feel like it is in these moments, when I’m driving too fast and signing too hard, that I am expressing unbridled love for amazing works of art.

Belting by myself in the car feels quite different than the reflective, still silence we expect at classical music concerts. In some ways I feel that my appreciation of these wonderful pieces comes not from the refrained live concerts but from my frenetic, guttural reaction to them as I blast them on the highway. I am able to appreciate them in concert because I’ve allowed myself to respond to them naturally in the car. I let my excitement flow by singing, shouting, exclaiming, and anticipating.

My good friends have seen (tolerated) me doing this on many a car rides, and they know exactly how excited I am by pieces that are in some cases hundreds of years old. But if those friends had been sitting next to me at a classical music concert, they might not know just how wild I am about Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Schubert, et. al.

So, of course, one of my favorite things I did at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp this summer was teach the music appreciation minor. I had the privilege of sharing my unbridled excitement for works that some students had never even heard before. [Read more…]

Camp: Attention Getters

by

attention getters

If there is anything summer camp should be, it is fun. But nothing kills a fun mood like being shouted at to be quiet, sit still, and pay attention. Yet that was exactly what we expected from our campers at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp — silent, still attention — for emergency situations, announcements, and concerts.

In order to direct the attention of a large group of people we developed a robust toolbox of positive attention getters. They are ways to mobilize young people without saying, “SHHHH!” or requiring the speaker to be louder than 175 campers at once.

I’ve listed my favorites below.

Get their mouths moving…

[Read more…]

An Update: Summer Camp

by

I’m sitting in the darkened Camp Bernstein hut as the sun rises outside, listening to NPR and writing this update. There are few moments here at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp that one can truly feel alone, and breakfast security is one of those times. The entire camp is at breakfast, save the few counselors who have been held back in the unit for “security.” It is mostly just a time to clear one’s head and answer phones if necessary.

I wrote a blog post every day in June, but took a break from daily writing in July in August in order to soak up as much experience as possible while at Blue Lake.

With only six days of camp left, I want to start putting my learned experiences down on paper. I want to go through the process of reflection, summary, and thematic discovery. I also just want to write down some of my favorite memories about camp.

Living on camp, in the middle of the forrest with limited access to electronics and the internet, with constant connection to music and young people, has been an incredible growing experience for me. Here are a few things I’ve learned (in no particular order). [Read more…]