VMTA Summer Newsletter 2022

Summer

Newsletter

June 6, 2022

President’s Message

Many Thanks

Today, I want to take a few minutes to recognize our wonderful VMTA board of directors and give them the thanks that they are due. For the past two years, these dedicated teachers have gone above and beyond the call of duty to ensure that you and your students could still participate in quality music programs. Through their efforts, we were able to shift to an online Spring Festival and an online state Conference while the pandemic raged throughout the state, restricting in-person gatherings and performances. These events already take many hours of planning, and our board members and committee chairs never complained about their extra work and even helped each other by offering their various levels of technological knowledge. It has been my honor as VMTA President to witness the selflessness, commitment, and collaboration from them.

Today, as we look forward to a more “normal” year, we hope that the hardest times – in terms of the pandemic – are behind us. The students are already asking for the events that they most enjoy, such as BBVMTA’s Monster Concert. The teachers will also benefit from attending a sure-to-be fabulous state conference in October. (Read more about that elsewhere in this issue.)

The last two years have taught us that we all need to be more creative, more resilient, but that we can rise to the challenge of keeping music education and VMTA events viable and engaging.

I hope that you will take advantage of all that VMTA has to offer you and your students. And I hope that when you see a VMTA board member, you will say “Thank you for all of your efforts.” I know I will!

-Laurel Ann Maurer

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2022

VMTA Calendar

October 22

VMTA Fall Conference

Richmond Library

November 13, 2022

Fall Ensemble Festival

Richmond Library

Fall Ensemble Festival 2022

Do you remember the first Fall Ensemble Festival in 2019 and the second just last fall? VMTA is again offering this performance opportunity for students. Pianists are often asked to accompany singers or instrumentalists. Collaboration between musicians is both fun and educational opening up a new dimension in music making. The next Fall Ensemble Festival is scheduled for November 14. 2022 (late afternoon) at the Richmond Library. The Ensemble Festival is a great way to build skills for accompanying.

Friends and family members of a student who studies with a VMTA member are invited to join in. Chamber music, solo instrumentalists accompanied by students, piano duets, and piano trios are examples of music to be performed at the Festival. Memorization for this concert is not required.

Teachers may enter 15 minutes of music for the performance and may add more if time allows. A fee of $5 per student or $10 per family will be charged. The VMTA Board is excited to continue this new venture.

Students who participated previously enjoyed the challenge of a different experience. No memorizing and group participation make this more enjoyable for students.. If you have students interested in performing, please contact Marie Johnson at 879-8863 or mdjkiln@gmail.com.

VMTA Board Members

President:

Laurel Maurer

802-881-9153

laurelflutemaurer@yahoo.com

Immediate Past President:

Marie Johnson

802-879-8863

President-Elect:

TBD

Secretary:

Samantha Angstman

sammy.angstman@me.com

Treasurer:

Sarah Williams

802-223-5307

sarah5432@gmail.com

Conference Chair:

Patty Bergeron (interim)

802-878-9873

pcberg86@gmail.com

Non-Competitive Auditions:

Lilly C. Ramsey

802-879-7425

cldkramsey@comcast.net

Competitive Auditions:

Linda Buermeyer

802-439-6469

lindux@tops-tele.com

Certification:

TBD

Newsletter:

Jina Smith

802-318-1776

jws682@gmail.com

Membership:

Patricia Cleary Bergeron

802-878-9873

pcberg86@gmail.com

Web Publicist:

Sarah Williams &

Patty Bergeron

Composer Commissioning:

Michael Sitton

802-839-8336

michael.sitton1@gmail.com

SAVE THE DATE!

VMTA Fall Conference:

October 22, Richmond

We are excited to announce that after a lengthy pandemic hiatus, the VMTA Fall Conference returns as an in-person event on Saturday, October 22, at the Richmond Free Library. We anticipate also making it possible to view the conference sessions online. Make a note of the October 22 date, and look for further details soon regarding registration, how to submit students as potential masterclass performers, and options for viewing the conference sessions online during and/or after the conference date.

The conference will showcase two wonderful guest presenters.

Dr. Kathryn Sherman NCTM, whom some of you have seen in virtual MTNA presentations already, has agreed to present a workshop and offer a masterclass. Dr. Sherman directs the piano pedagogy programs at The Crane School of Music at SUNY Potsdam and has presented workshops, performances, and masterclasses nationwide. Her workshop, “Building a Bridge: Curriculum Development Through the Elementary Levels,” will open the conference at 10 AM, and will be followed by a masterclass. Details about how to submit student participants for the masterclass will be announced later.

Abby Halpin, physical therapist and performance coach for musicians of all kinds, will present a workshop that will be helpful to all teachers and performers. She has recently relocated to Vermont and we are thrilled to be able to include her valuable presentation in our conference. She has shared her work with musicians and teachers in many presentations/demonstrations, and will be presenting a workshop this summer for the National Association of Teachers of Singing. Abby is a former student of our own Patty Bergeron. Her physical therapy practice, Forte Performance & Physical Therapy, serves musicians in Vermont and nationwide via virtual and at-home sessions. You can find more information about Abby at www.forteperformancept.com and on Instagram at @forteperformancept.

Abby is still finalizing specific topics to cover in her workshop, and is considering various topics based on feedback from teachers she has worked with: Shoulder Tension: reducing tension for unencumbered playing; Posture Myths: avoiding posture pitfalls; and Warm-Ups: using movement to maximize performance and reducing discomfort. She invites VMTA teachers to help her finalize the workshop; if you find any of these topics especially appealing, or if you have another movement-related topic to suggest, please send your comments to Patty Bergeron (pcberg86@gmail.com) and she will share them with Abby.

Join us on Facebook! Please check out the latest VMTA programs and news on the Vermont Music Teachers Association Facebook page!”

click here

Do you patronize a music store? Piano tuner? Instrument maker? Are they a VMTA sponsor? (See ads in this newsletter). If not, could you mention our sponsor program to them and let a board member know about them? Sponsors receive publicity to the market they are trying to reach-teachers, students and their families. Their support of music education in Vermont will also help their business.

UPCOMING SUMMER CONCERT

New York City based

Concert Pianist Sohyun Ahn

will be performing at Island Arts Center

on the 15th of July.

Sohyun Ahn offers a program of Mozart and Debussy, Described as "an absolute master" by New York Concert Review, and heralded as an "amazing pianist” in an “excellent and memorable performance" by the Classical New Jersey Society, we welcome her premiere appearance in the Champlain Islands of Vermont. She will be joined by local Vermont pianist Eun Hee Park in a piano 4-hands selection.

From liner notes for Dr. Ahn's Bach Goldberg Variations: "Her playing exhibits a crystalline clarity, insightful nuance, and dynamic breadth."

Piano Music Magazine, Korea: "Such a gifted virtuoso, wonderful performing the emotional storm ... with the perfectly balanced elegance."

Date and Time: Friday, July 15, 2022, 7 PM to 8:15 PM.

There will be no intermission.

Location: Island Arts Center, 1127 US Rt 2, North Hero, VT 05474

Tickets: $25.

https://www.islandarts.org/event/sohyun-ahn-piano/

CONSIDER BECOMING

A PART OF THE VMTA BOARD!

Volunteers are needed to serve on the VMTA board! We currently need to fill the following positions:

President-Elect, Conference Chair, and Certification chair.

Come and join our wonderful group of board members and see how your organization works!

SPRING FESTIVAL 2022

The VMTA held its annual Spring Festival on Saturday, March 26th, 2022, at Trinity Baptist Church in Williston. This was our first live Festival since 2019. Despite Covid concerns, we had 39 students participate from the studios of 6 teachers: Samantha Angstman, Patty Bergeron, Linda Buermeyer, Marie Johnson, Lilly Ramsey and Jina Smith. We'd like to thank members Sarah Williams, Michael Sitton, Ed Darling, Lisa Goodrich and Art DeQuasie for their help with judging and monitoring each of our hour-long sessions. We'd also like to thank sponsors Allan Dan, Rose Kinnick and the Geoghan Company. Without all of their help, this event would not have been possible. Thanks to all! We look forward to planning Spring Festival 2023.

-Lilly Ramsey

VMTA Professional Development Scholarship Fund

The VMTA Board voted several years ago to establish an annual professional scholarship fund, making a limited amount of money available each fiscal year (July 1 - June 30) to VMTA members only, for personal, professional, or educational purposes. Currently a cap of $750, total, has been set for each fiscal year. Once this amount has been reached, the fund is exhausted until the following fiscal year. Members are eligible to receive assistance once in a three-year period, and may apply any number of times.

Members may access an application from our website on the "members only" page by clicking here. This application will include questions such as a description of the proposal, the amount of money requested, purpose, goals, and time frame. The completed application must be sent to the VMTA President at laurelflutemaurer@gmail.com for the next fiscal year and normally must be received by May to be awarded July 1. Because we are past the deadline this year, we are extending the offer to Sept 1-15 of this year (i.e. September of 2022 to be awarded for October 1 - June 30, 2023). The award can be split between a maximum of 2 members for a given year. In the event that more than 2 applications are received in that period, a committee will be used to choose the 2 applicants to receive the award. If accepted, money would be held in escrow, awarded retroactively, following receipt of documentation of completion.

Please note: if applying for scholarship monies to reimburse a program spanning two fiscal years and the monies for the first of those two years is already awarded, a VMTA member may choose to enroll in that program and, submit a second application along with other members on the earliest date in the following fiscal year with the understanding this means there is no guarantee the money will be awarded.

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MALL PLAYATHON DONATION DELIVERED

On April 15,

Patty Bergeron deliverd $3200 worth of Visa gift cards to the social worker that works with the patients of the children’s oncology unit at the UVM Medical Center. Patty explained that these cards were possible because of the generous donations from the music students that played at the VMTA Play-a-thon that took place at the University Mall on the weekend of January 28-30. She was incredibly moved when she heard this. During this time (Covid), it has been hard on these young patients. The VMTA donation is greatly appreciated!

Member News

Please Note:

There is a button on our website to donate! Spread the word to local businesses or individuals who may wish to support our organization.

"The music is not in the notes, but in the silence in between."

-Mozart

Elaine Greenfield...

...reports a busy season. May 27^th and 29^th were performances of concerts celebrating the release of the new CD, Ravel Compared. It was wonderful to be before appreciative audiences again after the pandemic hiatus. More concerts throughout the northeast are scheduled in the coming months. Elaine also returns to teach at Adamant’s Traditional Session this summer, after its two-year closure. Dates are July 16-August 5^th. Greenfield Piano Associates has been as active as ever, holding monthly classes over Zoom, with attendance from throughout the U.S. Classes in person have partially resumed as well. Annual recitals take place Wednesday, June 1, 7pm, live performance, at Richmond Free Library, and Saturday, June 4^th, 1pm, over Zoom, with recorded performances by all participants. We look forward to, hopefully, returning to a more “normal” routine in the fall, which now includes the addition of Zoom technology, gained through our pandemic experience.

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VMTA Website: vermontmta.net