On Friday, May 9 2014, nearly 100 singers from four older adult choirs in San Francisco’s Mission District joined their voices together for a live recording at Community Music Center. “A Summit of Older Adult Choirs” brought together two choirs from Community Music Center in partnership with senior centers with two Community of Voices choirs.

Community Music Center’s older adult choirs, Coro Solera (at Mission Neighborhood Center) and Coro de la 30 (at 30th Street Senior Center), sing primarily in Spanish and also perform in English and Tagalog, performing regularly throughout San Francisco.

The Community of Voices Choirs at Mission Neighborhood Center and Centro Latino de San Francisco are participants in a research study that examines whether singing in a community choir is a cost-effective way to promote health and well-being. The study is a partnership between Community Music Center, the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) and 12 San Francisco Department of Aging and Adult Services (DAAS) senior centers. The study is funded by a grant from the National Institute on Aging to UCSF (R01AG042526).

For information on the choirs or to book a performance, visit www.sfcmc.org.

To listen online or download the CD, visit Community Music Center’s Soundcloud page.

To purchase a hardcopy of the CD, visit Community Music Center’s Mission District Branch at 544 Capp Street, San Francisco, CA 94110.

Community Music Center would like to thank the Aroha Foundation for their support of this project.

Community Music Center is a San Francisco-based nonprofit founded in 1921 with the mission of making high quality music accessible to all people, regardless of financial means.

The post Now Available: CMC’s Summit of Older Adult Choirs Recording appeared first on Community Music Center.

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Abajo en Español

PR Contact:
Sonia Caltvedt, Marketing Director
Community Music Center
(415) 647-6015 x75
scaltvedt@sfcmc.org

(SAN FRANCISCO, CA, November 6, 2014) — On Friday, December 5 and Saturday, December 6, Community Music Center (CMC) will present its popular Mexican Christmas musical, La Posarela, at the Brava Theater. Since its debut eight years ago, performers and audiences of all ages have come to love this bilingual community production and modern take on the Christmas story.

La Posarela blends the Mexican folk traditions of Las Posadas and Las Pastorelas with music, social commentary and humor. On Mary and Joseph’s journey to Bethlehem on Christmas Eve, a mischievous devil and his sidekick try to prevent them from finding “posada” (shelter). A light-hearted fight between good and evil begins when two angels with attitude intervene. This year, the production will address the issues of immigration and gentrification in the Mission District, CMC’s home since 1921.

A cast of over 70 will perform traditional and holiday music from across Latin America and Spain along with original music sung in Spanish and English. Community Music Center’s Children’s Chorus, Latin Vocal Workshop, Solera Singers, 30th Street Chorus, and Mission District Young Musicians Program will be joined by special guest artists. Martha Rodríguez-Salazar will lead the production as Musical and Artistic Director and Hugo E. Carbajal will be the show’s Theatrical Director. Script writer and actor Carlos Barón will star as “the devil.” Musical arrangements are by Chus Alonso, Miguel Govea and Tregar Otton.

Each of the performances will be followed by a Mexican holiday fiesta, with tamales, atole (a traditional drink made from ground corn) and a piñata for the little ones in the audience.

Community Music Center is planning an Indiegogo campaign to support the performances. The goal of $5,000 will offset the cost of adding a third show at Brava, and allow more of the community to experience La Posarela.

Performance Information:

Dates/Times:
Friday, December 5 at 7:00pm
Saturday, December 6 at 3:00pm and 7:00pm
Location:
Brava Theater Center
2781 24th Street, San Francisco CA

Tickets:
$5 advance at the box office or at www.brava.org
$7 door (space permitting)
General Admission

About Community Music Center:
Community Music Center is a San Francisco-based nonprofit organization founded in 1921 with the mission of making high quality music accessible to all people, regardless of their financial status. CMC is the Bay Area’s oldest community arts organization and San Francisco’s largest provider of free and low-cost music classes and concerts. During the 2013-14 school year, over 2,400 students of all ages, ethnicities and income levels enrolled in CMC programs and over 19,500 people enjoyed musical performances at no or low cost. Learn more at www.sfcmc.org.

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En Español:

PR Contact:
Sonia Caltvedt, Directora de Marketing
Centro Comunitario de Música
(415) 647-6015 x75
scaltvedt@sfcmc.org

Espectáculo “La Posarela” Celebra la Comunidad y Entrega un Mensaje Social

(SAN FRANCISCO, CA, 6 de noviembre, 2014) — El Centro Comunitario de Música presenta La Posarela, su popular espectáculo navideño mexicano en el Centro de Teatro Brava el viernes 5 y sábado, 6 de diciembre. Desde su debut hace ocho años, esta producción popular bilingüe reúne participantes y público de todas las edades para celebrar la temporada de Navidad con un show musical que le da una perspectiva fresca al cuento de Navidad.

La Posarela combina tradiciones mexicanas de Las Posadas y Las Pastorelas añadiendo música, comentario social y mucho humor. Este año, la producción entablará temas de inmigración y de los grandes cambios sociales y económicos que han afectado al distrito de la Misión, donde se encuentra CMC desde 1921. Cuando José y Maria viajan a Belén justo antes de la Nochebuena, un diablo travieso y su ayudante intentan evitar que encuentren posada. Una divertida lucha entre el bien y el mal se desencadena cuando dos ángeles con mucha personalidad intervienen en la trama e invitan al público a unirse a su lucha contra el mal.

El reparto de más de setenta participantes de todas las edades interpretarán música original y tradicional navideña en inglés y español. El Coro de Niños, El Taller de Música Vocal Latina, El Coro Solera, El Coro de la 30 y el Programa de Jóvenes Músicos de la Misión de CMC estarán acompañados por invitados especiales. Martha Rodríguez-Salazar encabeza el show como Directora Musical y Artística y Hugo E. Carbajal será el Director Teatral. El escritor del libreto y actor Carlos Barón le da vida al “diablo.” Los arreglos musicales son de Chus Alonso, Miguel Govea y Tregar Otton.

El show es para todo el público y estará acompañado de una fiesta mexicana al terminar, con tamales, atole y piñata para todos los niños.

El Centro Comunitario de Música está planeando una campaña en Indiegogo para apoyar las presentaciones. La meta de $5,000 cubrirá el costo de agregar un tercer show en el Teatro La Brava para que así la comunidad tenga más oportunidad de presenciar La Posarela.

Información del espectáculo:

Viernes, 5 de diciembre a las 7:00pm
Sábado, 6 de diciembre a las 3:00pm y 7:00pm
Brava Theater Center
2781 24th Street, San Francisco CA
$5 Entrada General

$5 por adelantado en la taquilla o en www.brava.org
$7 en la puerta (cupo limitado)

Acerca del Centro Comunitario de Música:
El Centro Comunitario de Música es una organización sin fines de lucro en San Francisco, fundada en 1921 con la misión de proveer música de alta calidad a todas las personas, sin importar su estado financiero. CMC es la organización de arte más antigua del Area de la Bahía y el proveedor más grande de conciertos y clases de música más económicas de San Francisco. Durante el año escolar del 2013-14 más de 2,400 alumnos de todas las edades, etnicidades y estados financieros se inscribieron en programas de CMC y más de 19,500 personas disfrutaron de actuaciones musicales gratis o con costo mínimo. Aprenda más en www.sfcmc.org.

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By Anh Le

Community Music Center’s Children’s Chorus will perform this Sunday, November 9, at 1:00 p.m., at 544 Capp Street.

I had the chance to hear the children of the Chorus and their teacher, Beth Wilmurt, rehearse for their concert this week, and it was a joyful experience.

Beth Wilmurt states, “The concert is a sharing with family and friends the culmination of the music we have been working on this quarter. We sing the songs as well as give the audience a window into our process by sharing some warmups and breaking down the songs into harmony and then putting them back together.”

“I do a lot of international folk music mostly. This quarter we are singing two very famous songs that I have never taught in the 12 years I have been teaching choir – The Sound Of Music and Somewhere Over The Rainbow, both from musical theater. The kids really connect to the lyrics, and both songs are stretching their ranges.”

Beth Wilmurt is also rehearsing with the children to perform in CMC’s annual Christmas production of La Posarela in collaboration with CMC’s teacher Martha Rodriguez-Salazar. La Posarela will be performed December 5th and December 6th at the Brava Theater.

The Children’s Chorus is for children from 8 to 12 years old. Beth Wilmurt says that many kids stay with her all four years.

An exuberant and passionate teacher of music and musical theater, Beth Wilmurt shares, “I want to give the singers a safe and fun environment to explore their voices and their connection to songs. Drawing mainly from folk music repertoire, we experiment with harmonies as well as story telling, [expressing ourselves] with our voices and bodies.”

Watching the children rehearse with their teacher at CMC’s Concert Hall was a deeply moving experience. The joyful expressions on the children’s faces, and the brilliance of their voices, are a real gem to behold.

Anh Le has been affiliated with the CMC for many years. His son, Minh Jeffrey Anh Le, was in the Children’s Chorus, and he and his son sang in the CMC’s first production of La Posarela under the direction of Martha Rodriguez-Salazar and Beth Wilmurt. Growing up at the CMC, and playing the Violin, the electric Bass, and Jazz Music, Minh Jeffrey is now attending Oberlin College.

The post The CMC Children’s Chorus: A Sparkling Gem appeared first on Community Music Center.

Introducing violist and super marketing intern, Joshua Urrutia! Joshua initially came to CMC through the Mission District Young Musicians Program. Through his Service Learning class at Urban High School, he has also been spending an afternoon each week supporting the work of CMC this term. Through music making and volunteering, Joshua truly has become part of the Community Music Center family.

CMC: When did you begin playing music?

Joshua: I started playing the violin in the 3rd grade, and by the time I was in middle school, I was taking lessons three times a week. I went to school at Kipp San Francisco Bay Academy in the Fillmore District and I studied with Loretta MacBride. She was amazing! She picked songs that were really relevant to us. We were mostly kids of color, so we played songs like “We Shall Overcome,” and “Lean on Me.” In 8th grade, she suggested I switch to the viola because it was a better size for me, and the spacing was more comfortable for my fingers. I tried it out and liked it a lot! I liked the deeper sound, and the experience of playing vibrato on the viola.

CMC: Tell me about how you got involved with CMC?

Joshua: Once I went to high school (I go to The Urban School in the Haight), my mom suggested that I look into lessons at CMC. It is just up the block from where we live. The Mission District Young Musicians Program (MDYMP) played a concert at the Mission Neighborhood Center auditorium, where I met MDYMP director, Martha Rodriguez-Salazar. She suggested I consider the program, so during the summer before Freshman year, I had an audition with Martha and Chris Borg. Luckily I wasn’t aware that Chris was both CMC’s Executive Director and a professional viola player! It went well and I’ve been in the program ever since.

CMC: What motivates you to go to MDYMP rehearsals on Saturdays?

Joshua: It’s both the people and the music. I had always listened to Latin music, but I really learned how to appreciate it by learning about it deeply in the MDYMP.

CMC: Tell me about what it’s like to play in La Posarela?

Joshua: It’s really exciting! It’s on my mind a lot this time of year. I used to get pretty nervous about it, but not anymore. I’m the only viola player, but I’m one voice in a large group of musicians up there. It’s fun to be a part of a musical production – as it unfolds, there is no going back to do anything over again, you just have to enjoy being in it and keep going! It’s cool to be near the actors and to understand the connection of the music we’re playing and the storyline. There are a lot of hours of rehearsal to prepare, but they go by fast. I think that when I play music in general, time goes by really fast!

CMC: I hear that you got involved in an adult string ensemble at CMC as well. What’s it like to play with people outside of your age group?

Joshua: Playing in a chamber ensemble keeps me on my toes. I’ve noticed that time flies during these rehearsals, too. It’s interesting to play in a group that is primarily strings, and with people at different levels. I like that you have the option of being a leader in a small ensemble, or of blending with the group.

I love the variety of music that I get to play, too: I’m playing music from all over Latin America with the MDYMP, and in the string ensemble I’m playing pieces by Brahms and Hindemith. Cuban music flows organically and is really fun to play. Classical music feels more structured, but it sounds really amazing when you are all playing it well together.

CMC: What is it like to study with CMC’s Executive Director, Chris Borg?

Joshua: Chris is a really good teacher. He has a great way of building up to things and creating a structure that helps me excel at whatever I’m working on. He has helped me make a connection between what happens when we study music and real life situations. We talk about things other than music, too – life in general and the choices we make. He’s just as much a mentor as he is a teacher.

CMC: Tell us about what it’s like to demonstrate string instruments in CMC’s instrument petting zoos.

Joshua: It’s been really fun to volunteer at CMC’s instrument petting zoos. There is nothing like watching someone pick up the violin or viola after a really long time and hearing them say, “Wow, I need to do this again!” A lot of adults who used to play as kids realized that they “still had it” when they picked up an instrument. There is also nothing like watching a child produce a sound on an instrument for the first time.

CMC: Do you have any musical goals you want to share?

Joshua: I want to explore different types of music. Lately at Urban we’ve been playing a lot of Tchaikovsky, which I’ve really liked. I also like Debussy’s works for piano, and anything by Piazzolla! Hearing Latin influences in classical music is really fun. Music is all connected!

CMC: Thanks for helping us out as an intern at CMC! What have you learned about life in the nonprofit world?

Joshua: I’ve really enjoyed volunteering at CMC. I always knew CMC existed, but didn’t know how much work went into what happens here. It makes me appreciate it all even more. The MDYMP, La Posarela, the chamber music group… Volunteering here has made my experience as a student better.

It’s really great to be a part of the CMC community, too. It’s fun to see some of the same students, teachers and staff every week. Like when I’m playing music, I lose track of time whenever I walk over to CMC!

CMC would like to thank Joshua for sharing his energy and his expertise with CMC this semester – it’s been so much fun to have him here!

The post Meet super intern Joshua Urrutia appeared first on Community Music Center.

Fall has been a busy time for CMC’s Older Adult Choir Program. Solera Singers and the 30th Street Chorus have performed for Grantmakers in Aging, Senior Corps’ Foster Grandparents and the San Francisco Symphony’s Dia de los Muertos event. They have Thanksgiving performances coming up at the Richmond Senior Center and the Western Addition Senior Center and holiday performances at OMI, 30th Street Senior Center, Bayview and Mission Neighborhood Center. Visit www.sfcmc.org for more performance information.

We are now enrolling for the following choirs:

• 30th Street Chorus at 30th Street Senior Center
• Solera Singers at Mission Neighborhood Center
• Senior Voices of the Community at Western Addition Senior Center
• CMC Choir at Centro Latino de San Francisco

For more information, call 415-647-6015.

The post CMC’s older adult choir program continues to grow – now enrolling! appeared first on Community Music Center.

PR Contact:
Sonia Caltvedt, Marketing Director
Community Music Center
(415) 647-6015 x75
scaltvedt@sfcmc.org

[SAN FRANCISCO, CA, December, 2, 2014]— National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Chairman Jane Chu announced today that Community Music Center is one of 919 nonprofit organizations nationwide to receive an NEA Art Works grant.

Community Music Center is recommended for a $20,000 grant to support our Young Musicians Program (YMP). The YMP is a free, award-winning program that engages economically and/or educationally disadvantaged students, especially local Mission District youth, with a comprehensive, standards-based curriculum. Each year approximately 100 students, ages 11 – 18, benefit from individual lessons, music theory and ensemble classes, contact with master artists, and community performance opportunities. Music styles are wide-ranging, including Latin, Jazz, and Classical music. The YMP emphasizes diversity in all aspects (teachers, students, styles, and approaches), and collaboration with community partners.

NEA Chairman Jane Chu said, “I’m pleased to be able to share the news of our support through Art Works including the award to Community Music Center. The arts foster value, connection, creativity and innovation for the American people and these recommended grants demonstrate those attributes and affirm that the arts are part of our everyday lives.”

Art Works grants support the creation of art, public engagement with art, lifelong learning in the arts, and enhancement of the livability of communities through the arts. The NEA received 1,474 eligible applications under the Art Works category, requesting more than $75 million in funding. Of those applications, 919 are recommended for grants for a total of $26.6 million.

For a complete listing of projects recommended for Art Works grant support, please visit the NEA website at arts.gov. Follow the conversation about this and other NEA‐funded projects on Twitter at #NEAFall2014.

About Community Music Center:
Community Music Center is a San Francisco-based nonprofit organization founded in 1921 with the mission of making high quality music accessible to all people, regardless of their financial status. CMC is the Bay Area’s oldest community arts organization and San Francisco’s largest provider of free and low-cost music classes and concerts. During the 2013-14 school year, over 2,400 students of all ages, ethnicities and income levels enrolled in CMC programs and over 19,500 people enjoyed musical performances at no or low cost. Learn more at www.sfcmc.org.

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The post Community Music Center Receives National Endowment for the Arts Grant to Support Its Young Musicians Program appeared first on Community Music Center.

San Francisco Chronicle reporter Marisa Lagos wrote a wonderful feature article about Community Music Center’s deep roots of service in San Francisco and our exciting plans for the future. It appeared on the cover of the Bay Area section of the Sunday, November 30 paper.

Read Community Music Center a constant amid Mission District change on SFGate!

Photo: Brant Ward for The San Francisco Chronicle

The post San Francisco Chronicle: “Community Music Center a constant amid Mission District change” appeared first on Community Music Center.

David Swartz grew up surrounded by music, thanks to his father, who was a leading promoter of big band jazz music in Sarasota, Florida. As a child, David not only heard concerts by Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Buddy Rich and Stan Kenton, he also had a chance to meet the legendary bandleaders and talk with them about music. Inspired by these encounters, David studied drumming and played in his high school marching band and in the symphonic band at the University of Florida.

Posing with Count Basie as a young boy

All three of David’s kids studied music growing up and David’s love of music has continued throughout his life. Now working as a wealth manager at Merrill Lynch, David enjoys playing drums in a popular cover band based in Marin County. He also attends concerts whenever he can, finding particular enjoyment in Community Music Center’s Concert with Conversation series (presented at CMC in partnership with San Francisco Performances) because of the opportunity to hear world-class artists perform in an intimate setting and talk about their craft.

David joined the board of Community Music Center this past summer, and is delighted to be involved with an organization that has been making high quality music accessible for nearly 100 years.

“I am proud to support the incredible work of CMC. Knowing that CMC provides scholarships and financial aid to over two-thirds of its 2,400 students each year – that inspires me to talk with my friends and colleagues about making a donation or becoming a volunteer. I can tell them that their gift or service has an immediate impact and helps provide the gift of music to a child that otherwise would not be able to afford lessons.”

The post Meet new CMC board member and jazz lover, David Swartz appeared first on Community Music Center.

CMC gift certificates come in any amount and make for one amazing gift!

Ask a registrar in person, via email or phone to purchase your gift certificates.

Happy holidays!!!!

Fine print: Students need to register for the quarter (or the number of lessons remaining in the quarter). If the certificate partially covers the cost of lessons, the student will pay the remaining balance.

The post CMC gift certificates are here for the holidays! appeared first on Community Music Center.

We are now in the final hours of our Indiegogo Campaign and are very close to reaching our goal! Will you consider a donation?

Testimonials:
How profound! CMC really does put “Community” into its Music Center.
What a beautiful experience. I found it inspiring as an artist as well, and it has me wondering how I could make this a model in my own music and in new projects.
Christmas starts for me when I see ‘el diablo’ in La Posarela!

El diablo conspiring with lil’ devil

Three wise men (a little lost)

Baby Jesus is born!

The post La Posarela 2014 a great success! Final hours of Indiegogo Campaign… appeared first on Community Music Center.

Thanks to San Francisco Performances, acclaimed jazz trumpeter Sean Jones gave an improvisation master class for CMC’s adult jazz ensembles in November.

Some of you may remember Sean Jones’ Concert with Conversation here at CMC last March with pianist Adam Shulman. Jones’ very personal, relaxed style of playing and interacting with our audience was just beautiful. He is a true master artist and educator.

Jones’ master class focused on improvisation. He first walked us through his process for learning a solo as an improvisation tool. It started with picking out a solo that you really enjoy listening to, then learning to sing it, learning to play it by ear, writing it down, analyzing it, pulling out ideas that you like, and applying them in real time. It’s easy as that (wink, wink)!

Students taking turns improvising

After he went through this technique, students improvised for Jones and he gave feedback. It was an amazing opportunity to learn from a highly skilled musician and soloist. We all hope for future visits!

Sean Jones is a firebrand musician who is known for the emotional depth of his trumpet playing and composing. He is inspired by hard bop and particularly influenced by the music of legendary trumpeter Miles Davis. Sean Jones was featured on the 2007 Grammy Award-winning “Turned to Blue” from Nancy Wilson and was lead trumpeter in the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra under the direction of Wynton Marsalis. As a bandleader, Jones has released six albums under the Mack Avenue Records label. He’s also toured Europe with Herbie Hancock, Marcus Miller and Wayne Shorter.

The post Trumpeter Sean Jones gives improv master class for CMC’s adult jazz ensembles appeared first on Community Music Center.

Irene Chagall has taught CMC’s Music for Children class for over 30 years.  On January 29, 2015, an interview with her appeared in the New York Times about her documentary, “Let’s Get the Rhythm.”  The film is about hand-clapping games that girls play around the world and is Chagall’s very first. It will be screened at the Dance on Camera festival at Lincoln Center today at 3:15pm.

Read the article by Gia Kourlas on nytimes.com: On Film, the Dance Hidden in Hands, Poetry and Parkinson’s: Dance on Camera Festival at Lincoln Center

Needless to say, we are extremely proud of Irene and wish her every success with this important work. Stay tuned for screening information!

View trailer for “Let’s Get the Rhythm”

CMC Faculty Enrichment Grant Was Seed Funding for “Let’s Get the Rhythm”
By Irene Chagall

Irene Chagall in her Music for Children Class at CMC’s Mission District Branch

For thirty years I have been teaching Music for Children at Community Music Center. I am fascinated by the immense pleasure all children express musically. I am deeply curious as to why this is so. When I travel I try to gain more understanding of how music connects people, even those who do not speak the same language. Fifteen years ago I traveled to Ghana. I sang with children in the schools. I danced to the drums on the shore of the Gulf of Guinea by the first full moon in spring. Rhythm is the way of life.

The event that caught my attention was a group of three girls playing a hand clapping game. That may not seem surprising, but the fact that the pattern they were clapping was a pattern that is popular here in the Bay Area. Musically it is interesting because the pattern in metrically in three, while the chant is usually in four. I realized that this is a common characteristic of the music of West Africa, so it made sense that the girls there would incorporate such a rhythm in their games. More difficult for me to figure out was how the girls in California came up with the same pattern. I began to research these games in earnest. With a small CMC Faculty Enrichment Grant I started to collect these games on videotape.

My next opportunity to travel abroad, I went to Thailand. On an excursion to an off shore island, I noticed two girls engage in a game. I videotaped them, joined in their game. It had not occurred to me that the girls in Asia might also play handclapping games.

I asked a friend of mine who was teaching in Salinas if the girls at her school played these games. She said they didn’t play these games anymore, but a week later she called me to tell me they had just started playing them again. Some games were even in Spanish.

No matter where I looked, I seemed to find these games. Some clapping patterns were extremely widespread; some lyrics were more popular. Nothing was standard. It was all perpetuated by girls between the ages of six and twelve. They did it spontaneously and voluntarily. Often when they had down time, like while waiting in line.

June Anderson of the California Academy of Sciences took an interest in my project and made me a Research Intern. I went through the Folklore Archives at UC Berkeley and spent a week in Washington DC at the Library of Congress Folklife Archives and the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage. The folklore professor at Cal, Alan Dundes, liked my first trailer and encouraged me to present a paper at the American Folklore Society Annual Conference. June Anderson retired and Alan Dundes had a heart attack, but I kept going. The contacts I had made at the Smithsonian led to my becoming a Research Associate for three years. Through AFS I met folklorists from New York who were also interested in making a documentary film. We decided to collaborate, and received funding from the NEA.

My research also took off in another direction. Neuroscience is making rapid advances in understanding how the brain processes music. A rather glib cognitive neuroscientist, Steven Pinker, made the controversial statement that “music is auditory cheesecake,” and that it would not affect the functioning of human society if there were not any. This is clearly fallacious, but difficult to prove. There is some form of music in every culture. It qualifies as a universal characteristic of human society, but its evolutionary function is nebulous. Musical expression has such a great amount of variables that it is difficult to come up with a succinct definition.

Timing, usually construed as rhythm, is one of the most robust characteristics. It is unique to humans. No other primates keep a beat. (There is a species of frogs in which the males are known to croak in unison while courting and there are some birds, specifically an Australian cockatiel is known to dance to Backstreet Boys.) Awareness and expression of rhythm is not common in the animal world. More research is necessary.

With the help of another Faculty Enrichment Grant, the documentary film Let’s Get the Rhythm approaches completion. Last November I was invited to the Victoria and Albert Museum of Childhood in London to screen it for the first time. I met with Professor Ian Cross at Cambridge University to discuss the ways to help the film find a broader audience. I attended a lecture by Dr. Justin London on the micro-rhythms of Ghanaian drumming. I networked with Graham Welch, the immediate past president of the International Society of Music Educators. The webmaster for that organization has promised to promote the film. The curators at V&A were very supportive and it is the first institution to purchase a copy of the film.

This exciting adventure has had many special perks. I received a hand written letter from Oliver Sacks encouraging my research. I sang with Pete Seeger at a Symposium at the Library of Congress. I have befriended people from many cultures and learned many games. I have had a fine time through making music wherever I go.

The post CMC’s Irene Chagall interviewed in New York Times about “Let’s Get the Rhythm” Documentary appeared first on Community Music Center.

By David Watterson

Sade and I live in the Mission, and as musicians, we both have had our own experiences with Community Music Center over the years (I’ve taken lessons there and Sade once did a video feature on CMC while she was in Journalism School at Berkeley).

I booked the concert hall and a string quartet from SF Conservatory of Music for February 7.  She thought we were going to see our friend Nick play a concert, but when we arrived, the hall was set up with just a piano, the string quartet, and a chair for her to sit in. I sat down at the piano and played a song I wrote for her, while the string quartet provided accompaniment.

It was hard to hold back tears as I sang and looked into her eyes, but I made it through the song without forgetting the words or otherwise making a mistake (that’s what I was most worried about!). Afterwards, I got down on one knee and asked if she would marry me. She responded, “Of course!”

The concert hall was such a perfect, beautiful space for our special moment. I’m so grateful to the staff at CMC for helping me pull it all together. We’ll never forget it!

The post A Musical Marriage Proposal at CMC appeared first on Community Music Center.

Solera Singers, one of CMC’s older adult choirs, went on tour down to Mountain View last month! As beneficiaries of Google’s Bay Area Impact Challenge, they wanted to give back with a special performance. We all had a great time at the Coffee Lab in Google’s headquarters. A few Googlers recorded a song or two with their smart phones, and some audience members made on the spot donations to CMC.

Solera Singers, or “El Coro Solera,” a choir for older adults, is a collaboration between Community Music Center and the Mission Neighborhood Center. The choir sings in Spanish, and the repertoire focuses on Latin-American folklore and popular music.

We would like to thank Google once again for keeping us singing by supporting our older adult choir program.

View photos and video of the performance (and the ride down to Mountain View!).

Read Community Music Center’s announcement about Google’s Impact Challenge Grant award.

The post CMC’s Solera Singers performed at Google’s headquarters appeared first on Community Music Center.

Media Contact:
Kristin Cockerham
Landis Communications Inc.
kristin@landispr.com
(415) 359-2315
www.landispr.com

“A Salute to the Joy of Making Music” Gala to benefit student scholarships;
Event begins at 6:30 p.m. at The Fairmont San Francisco Hotel

Two-time Grammy Award-winning clarinetist, Richard Stoltzman, and his son,
pianist Peter Stoltzman, to perform at event

SAN FRANCISCO – March 3, 2015 – Community Music Center, San Francisco’s oldest community arts organization that offers quality music accessible to all people, honors Fred Levin and Nancy Livingston of The Shenson Foundation at its annual fundraising event. A Salute to the Joy of Making Music, which benefits scholarships at Community Music Center, begins with a VIP reception at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, April 29 in the Venetian Room at The Fairmont San Francisco.

Honorees Nancy Livingston and Fred Levin
Photo by Alain McLaughlin

The event, hosted by KDFC-FM’s Dianne Nicolini and sponsored by Nob Hill Gazette, features two-time Grammy Award-winning clarinetist, Richard Stoltzman, and his son, pianist Peter Stoltzman, as well as Community Music Center students and faculty. A VIP reception offering cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and special entertainment by a Shenson Foundation Grantee kicks off the evening at 6 p.m. The main event at 6:30 p.m. includes cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and a silent auction with live auction and performances to follow. Silent auction items feature concert tickets, wines and certificates to fine local restaurants. Live auction items include a three-night stay in Sonoma’s popular Sea Ranch among other trips and packages. The event is cocktail attire and catered by the Fairmont San Francisco. Tickets, starting at $250, are on sale. Contact Tamara Bock at (415) 647-6015 x78 or rsvp@sfcmc.org. For more information, click here.

The event supports scholarships for students. Sixty-eight percent of 2,400 current students at Community Music Center depend on financial aid for their musical study and many participate in free programs such as Community Music Center’s Mission District Young Musicians Program and Older Adult Choir Program.

“We are longtime supporters of the arts in the Bay Area and we’re thrilled to support the Community Music Center,” said gala honoree, Fred Levin. “Each year, The Shenson Foundation sponsors concerts at Community Music Center through Shenson scholarships and a Shenson legacy fund, so the community can experience quality art for free. The service CMC provides Bay Area residents is needed today more than ever, and we look forward to continuing our efforts to keep the music flowing for years to come.”

About Community Music Center
Community Music Center (CMC) is a San Francisco-based nonprofit organization founded in 1921 with the mission of making high quality music accessible to all people, regardless of their financial status. CMC is the Bay Area’s oldest community arts organization and San Francisco’s largest provider of free and low-cost music classes and concerts. During the 2013-2014 school year, 2,400 students of all ages, ethnicities and income levels enrolled in CMC programs and more than 19,500 people enjoyed musical performances at no or low cost. Sixty-eight percent of 2,400 current students at Community Music Center depend on financial aid for their musical study and many participate in free programs such as Community Music Center’s Mission District Young Musicians Program and Older Adult Choir Program. Learn more at www.sfcmc.org.

CALENDAR EDITORS, PLEASE NOTE:

Community Music Center honors Fred Levin and Nancy Livingston at A Salute to the Joy of Making Music, its annual gala April 29 at The Fairmont San Francisco. The event, which benefits student scholarships, features two-time Grammy Award-winning clarinetist, Richard Stoltzman, and his son, pianist Peter Stoltzman, as well as Community Music Center students and faculty. KDFC-FM’s Dianne Nicolini will serve as Master of Ceremonies. A VIP reception kicks off the evening at 6 p.m.; the main event, commencing at 6:30 p.m., includes cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and a silent auction – performances and live auction will follow.

What: Community Music Center gala: A Salute to the Joy of Making Music, benefitting scholarships at Community Music Center

When: 6 p.m. for VIPs; 6:30 p.m. general admission Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Where: The Venetian Room at The Fairmont San Francisco

Performers: Clarinetist Richard Stoltzman and his son, pianist Peter Stoltzman, as well as Community Music Center students and faculty

Honorees: Fred Levin and Nancy Livingston, Stewards of The Shenson Foundation

Admission: Ticket Prices: $250 general admission or $450 VIP. To purchase tickets, contact Tamara Bock at (415) 647-6015 x78 or rsvp@sfcmc.org. For more information, click here.

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Concert will take place in CMC’s Capp Street Concert Hall

By Suzanne Korey

On Sunday, April 26, Community Music Center will be hosting the popular 12th Annual Keyboard Marathon – a diverse and surprising collection of keyboard pieces performed by CMC piano faculty and guest artists. Titled “Theme and Variations”, the concert offers piano and harpsichord works that are stylistically defined with a theme, followed by increasingly elaborate variations.

Compositions include portions of Bach’s Goldberg Variations, commissioned in 1742 by Count Keyserling who, troubled with insomnia, asked Bach to write a piece that he could listen to during his sleepless nights. Also on the program will be variations improvised on the spot, Rachmaninoff’s Variations on a Theme by Chopin, Baroque variations on the harpsichord – a full afternoon of beautiful musical moments for everyone.

The Keyboard Marathon takes place in the CMC recital hall, at 544 Capp Street in San Francisco. Admission is $15 for adults and $10 for students and seniors, with tickets available at the door. A reception follows the performance.

This year’s performers are faculty members Marissa Balonon-Rosen, Jackie Chew, Maestro Curtis, Paula Dreyer, Grace Huenemann, Juliet McComas, Janis Mercer, Jennifer Peringer, Erik Ian Walker, Betty Wong, and Shirley Wong Frentzel, and guest artists Esther Chan and Annie Nalezny. Suzanne Korey, a CMC piano student, is producing the performance.

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Mary Ann Grossman, CMC’s Development Director

By Sonia Caltvedt

Community Music Center welcomed Mary Ann Grossman as our Development Director last March. We recently sat down in an interview so that our readers could learn more about what drew her to CMC. What I learned was so inspiring! I hope you enjoy reading Mary Ann’s story.

A family history full of music
We have a lot of musical history on both sides of my family and it appealed so much to me to finally be able to work in the musical world. I play the piano, my husband plays piano and played violin in the orchestra at Interlochen Music Camp when he was a teenager. Van Cliburn would come to solo with orchestra for their final performance each summer. Our daughter founded an a capella group at the University of Chicago, my son-in-law studies guitar, and our two-year-old grandson would love to play the piano (he’s already tried to do so with his feet!). It’s a natural part of life for everyone in the family.

As a child, I was lucky to have a music scholarship. My two sisters and I took piano lessons for many years from a wonderful teacher, Mrs. Ethel Roden Gerwig. After surviving a serious illness as young woman, she decided to give thanks by offering scholarships to a number of her students to study organ. Mrs. Gerwig was the organist at her church, so many of her teenaged piano students also studied organ with her. She seeded all of the churches and synagogues in our town with young assistant organists.

I was an assistant organist at our family’s church – an Italian-American parish named after a French nun, St. Therese of Lisieux. My grandfather helped build it! I played one or two masses there each week, accompanying the men’s choir. I really liked playing in this church. It was a spare, mission style church and the acoustics were beautiful. It was a wonderful place to practice for me.

The inspiring beginnings of the Amadeus String Quartet
Here is a very special story in my family. My husband’s mother’s cousin was Peter Schidlof, the violist in the Amadeus String Quartet. This was one of the premier string quartets in the world for over 30 years. Peter was a young boy growing up in Vienna when World War II was approaching. Just before the Nazis invaded Austria, his parents were able to secure a place for him on the Kindertransport – a rescue mission that brought Jewish children to safety in England. Peter ended up in an internment camp on the Isle of Man. There he met two of the young men who would become the first and second violinist in the Amadeus Quartet with him. Peter graciously decided to switch to the viola so that they could perform together. He befriended Martin Lovett, a British born cellist, in 1946, in London – several years after he had met Norbert Brainin and Sigmund Nissel. Through the advocacy of pianist Dame Myra Hess, and composer Ralph Vaughn Williams, the teen-aged boys, Peter Schidlof, Norbert Brainin (first violinist) and Sigmund Nissel (second violinist), were able to move from the internment camp where they met to live with sponsor families in the UK.

There is a photo in our Executive Director Chris Borg’s office showing boys playing the violin in front of a train. That was likely a Kindertransport train. I’d imagine that music really did save lives or at least bring some comfort during that terrible time in our history.

My husband and I had a very close connection with Peter. We were able to see him perform all over the world, and he’d always stay with us when he came through our city on tour. Through Peter and the Amadeus Quartet, we even had the chance to meet clarinetist Richard Stoltzman right as he was about to emerge as a world-renowned musical talent.

Another musical chapter begins in San Francisco, continues at CMC
When my family moved to San Francisco two years ago, I met the Executive Director of the Del Sol String Quartet. Very different from the Amadeus String Quartet, they play contemporary music and commission new work. I now serve on their Board.

I then learned about Community Music Center through the Association for Fundraising Professionals (AFP). Knowing about my connection to music, the AFP President encouraged me to apply for the position of Development Director at CMC. I am very glad that I did, because CMC felt like a good match right away.

For one thing, this feels like a destined moment. Having the opportunity to build a campus that will serve this community well for the next century is exciting. And in the three weeks I’ve been here, I get the sense that everyone feels that. With this group of people, at this organization, we will develop and grow. It just feels awe-inspiring. It’s a wonderful alignment.

It’s gratifying for a development professional to walk into a scenario with this potential. And it’s exciting to think about the fact that a wider world of music will become more accessible to our students once we’ve completed our new building project.

There’s something else that I really enjoy about working at Community Music Center. A lot of organizations wish they had a more diverse group of donors. Here at CMC, our donor population seems to be as diverse as the population we serve. It’s got to be the music! Music really is a connector, a universal language.

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Poppy Dorsam, cello faculty

Poppy Dorsam, Director of Community Music Center’s new Chamber Music Camp, has taught cello lessons at CMC for 20 years. This new camp at CMC is for musicians aged 12-18 and takes place from 9am-noon from July 20-24. I sat down with Poppy last week to learn more about the benefits of playing chamber music and what campers can expect this July.

Tell us why CMC decided to offer a chamber music camp?

One of the many reasons the experience of playing chamber music is important is that so much of what we do as musicians is alone or with a teacher. Playing chamber music gives us a chance to make music together. It’s the right time for CMC to have a chamber music camp for this age group as an important extension of our private lesson teaching. We can create great friendships through chamber music, and summer is a great time to focus on something you enjoy doing! We also hope to create friendships between current CMC students and students from outside CMC.

What are the benefits of playing in ensembles?

Playing with others requires you to listen both to yourself and to your musical partners. You learn to appreciate the qualities of sound and harmonies, and the interaction of rhythmic patterns. These things are unique to playing in an ensemble. Chamber music emphasizes the importance of learning your own part so well that you can contribute as an individual to the group and to the musical line you’re playing together.

Talk about the activities planned.

Campers will play in ensembles of both mixed instruments and ensembles of single instruments (e.g. cello quartets or piano four-hands). They’ll have daily coaching and independent practice time with their ensembles. There will be master classes to continue working on solos started in private lessons (by instrument group). Participation as a performer in master classes is voluntary, but highly encouraged. There will be an end-of-week concert to share what we’ve worked on together and celebrate our achievements.

Tell us about the music.

We plan to play classical music in traditional ensembles (e.g. piano trios, piano and strings, woodwind ensembles, piano four-hand duets) as well as the single instrument ensembles. Music will be available for varying levels and the experience will be customized based on each student’s need.

Anything you’d like to share about the Chamber Music Camp faculty?

I’ll be joined by a wonderful group of musicians this summer: pianist Lauren Cony, violinist Josie Fath, and clarinetist Rachel Condry. Each educator has been on Community Music Center’s faculty for an average of 20 years and was chosen because they are both great teachers and great performers. We all met through CMC and now Lauren Cony, Josie Fath and I play in a piano trio together. Rachel and I met at an Oberlin alumni concert here. She is wonderful and is already leading CMC’s chamber music program (link).
We’re all really looking forward to working with young musicians this summer and invite students and parents to learn more on our website.

Carpooling may be a possibility. Contact us if you are interested.

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Skyler Chu performing for Emanuel Ax in a September 2013 master class at CMC

Skyler Chu, a senior at Lowell High School, was one of three students who won the senior competition to play a concerto movement with the Lowell High School Symphonic Orchestra. Skyler, a piano student of Juliet McComas, played the popular Rondo all’Ungarese movement from the Concerto in D Major by Haydn for the April 9 concert. Skyler is also the concertmaster (on violin) of the Lowell HS Symphonic Orchestra and played in CMC’s master class with Emanuel Ax in the fall of 2013. Skyler will be sharing a graduation recital with fellow CMC student (also a SOTA student), Katelyn Lui at CMC’s Mission District Branch on Sunday, June 28 at 4:00 pm. Katelyn is a piano student of Betty Wong and clarinet student of Michael Jordin.

Rebecca Portnoy

Rebecca Portnoy, student of Juliet McComas, was selected to perform in the Music Teachers Association of California’s Annual Festival. The theme of the Festival this year was German Character Pieces. The concert took place at that most venerable concert venue, Old First Church at Van Ness and Sacramento on Sunday, May 3.

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