To the 2012 Participants

Dear Participants of the 2012 Round Top Festival Institute,

Arrival and Departure
You should make plans to arrive on Sunday June 3, 2012. Registration will open at the Service Building
at 11:00 am and will close at 8:00 pm. A buffet dinner will be served at the dining hall (Menke House) from 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm.
If you are not driving, we advise you to land at Houston-Bush Airport (IAH.) A shuttle bus (cost is $35 one way) will depart at 4:30 pm from Terminal C. Do not land at Houston-Hobby airport or Austin airport. There will not be any pick up there.
Departure day is Sunday July 15, 2012. A shuttle service to Houston-Bush airport will depart from Round Top at 9:30 am (cost is $35.) Please, do not book flights taking off earlier than noon. (It takes about 2 hours to drive from Round Top to IAH!)

Chamber Music
We have emailed and/or mailed the chamber music assignments along with either links to downloadable parts and scores or printed parts and scores. Thanks to YouTube, you can listen to most of the chamber music works.

Percussionists will get their assignments on Monday June 4.

Orientation Meeting
On Monday June 4 at 9:00 am in the Festival Concert Hall.

Orchestra Placement Auditions
On Monday June 4 starting at 10:00 am, you will audition for the faculty. Auditions will include a solo piece and orchestral excerpts listed in the right column menu. Some have been updated. Others are unchanged.

Interns
Padua Canti, viola alumna of 2010. She is currently Teaching Assistant for Professor Van der Werff at the Shepherd School of Music, Houston.
James Lee, pianist, singer and composer, B.A. In Music at Dartmouth College, NH.

If you have not done so, please, go to
http://festivalhill.org/summerinstitute/orientation-and-policies/
This page will answer a lot of questions …
Among important reminders: Bring a flash light, Cellists and Bassists should bring end pin anchors, Bring your portable stands, Participants are requested to bring their bedding (long one for twin beds) and pillow cases (pillows and blankets are supplied) as well as towels, Orchestra Concert Attire White top and black bottom. (Ties for men) and more …
Please, remember that
“Self Governance on Mutual Trust” is the key to a well behaved community.

Mail
All mail should be addressed to: Your Name
c/o Festival Hill
PO Box 89
Round Top TX 78954-0089

Packages (UPS, Federal Express) should be Your Name
addressed to: c/o Festival Hill
248 Jaster Road
Round Top, TX 78954
Tel. (979) 249-3129

Anton Bruckner Symphony No. 5

This work is the great 2012 project.

Christoph Campestrini expresses his thoughts about it.

During the week June 18-23, we may schedule extra sectionals and orchestra rehearsals.

Complete listing of concerts and master classes

Any question? Feel free to email or call 979-250-3815.

Cordially,

Alain G. Declert
Program Director
Round Top Festival Institute
PO Box 89
Round Top, TX 78954-0089, US
+1(979) 249 3086
+1(979) 250 3815 cell
alaind@festivalhill.org

http://festivalhill.org

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New Cello Faculty

Stephen Balderston will undergo a surgery early April 2012 and will not be able to join us this summer … We wish him a complete recovery and an awaited return in 2013!

Jésus Castro-Balbi (June 24 – July 8)(an alumnus of the String Quartet program at Round Top) will take charge of the cello section starting June 24 through July 8, 2012. A sought-after pedagogue, Mr. Castro-Balbi has conducted master-classes and lectures at Beijing’s Central Conservatory, the Juilliard School, Paris Conservatory, the Leipzig Hochschule, and the Yale School of Music. He has served on the jury of the Sphinx Competition, the concerto competitions finals at the Juilliard School, Rice, and Southern Methodist Universities, and of every “Carlos Prieto” International Cello Competition since 2002. Of Peruvian heritage and raised in France, he is a graduate of the Conservatoire National Supérieur at Lyon, Indiana University at Bloomington, Yale, and earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the Juilliard School. He studied cello with Aldo Parisot and Janos Starker, and chamber music with members of the Amadeus, Borodine, Juilliard, Ravel and Tokyo String Quartets.

Adrien Zitoun (July 8 – July 15)
Cellist Adrien Zitoun joined the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra in 2001. Prior to the MSO, Mr. Zitoun was a member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago from 1999-2001, and was principal his second season. In 2001, as a member of the Eusia String Quartet, he was awarded the Gold Medal at the Fischoff Chamber Music Competition. They tour regularly throughout the US, Finland, France and Japan. Mr. Zitoun is an active teacher. He teaches at Cardinal Stritch University, the Wisconsin Lutheran College, coaches the Phiharmonic and Senior Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestras, as well as having dedicated private students.

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Concertmaster Position

All accepted violinists might hold the position of concertmaster during the program for one or more performances of the Texas Festival Orchestra. The chosen ones will be under the supervision of Gregory Fulkerson, Espen Lilleslatten and Erica Kiesewetter.

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Christoph Campestrini notes about Anton Bruckner Symphony No. 5

Notes

Very enlightening!

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News from Carol Wincenc

Carol has been very active as usual …
Let us mention her Life Time Achievement Award she received from the National Flute Association in August 2011 and Music Distinguished Alumni Award from the Manhattan School of Music in October 2011.
She recorded Henryk Gorecki’s Concerto for flute and orchestra, of which she is the dedicatee, with the Warsaw Philharmonic in September 2011 (Naxos label) and a new CD of all American music for flute and string quartet (Arthur Foote, Joan Tower and Amy Beach) with the Green Mountain Chamber Players.
She tours with the New York Wind Quintet and performed in Houston for the Houston Friends of Music this last Tuesday January 17, 2012. She gave a master class there on Wednesday.

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News from Rebecca Henderson

FINALLY!! After several years in the making, my new CD, “Gobo” is out!! Featuring several wonderful new (or newish) pieces by Russell Pinkston, Diane Thome, Joseph Landers, and Nancy Galbraith, and Jenni Brandon; performances by Kristin Wolfe Jensen, Susan Hatch Tomkiewicz, Sheryl Cohen, Rebekah Heller, and Robert S Freeman. It should be available on i-tunes via Naxos in another month or so. In the meantime, for anyone wanting a copy right away, contact Evan Leslie at the Butler School of Music at UT: eleslie@austin.utexas.edu

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Performance Today Show

on Wednesday, December 21st, 2011, Performance Today will broadcast the following selection from the 2011 Round Top Festival Institute:

Gioachino Rossini (orch. Ottorino Respighi): The Fantastic Toyshop
Texas Festival Orchestra
Ransom Wilson, conductor
Round Top Festival Institute
Festival Concert Hall, Round Top, TX
July 9, 2011

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Eteri Andjaparidze

will join Piano Artist faculty at NYU Steinhardt in Fall 2012.

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Alumni News

News from Caroline Slack (2005 alumna)

Founded in 2010 with four core members, QUARTUS CHAMBER PLAYERS is a chamber music ensemble dedicated to making classical chamber music more widely accessible by bringing intimate and educational performances to concert halls and alternative venues. In its inaugural season, Quartus was invited to perform with Houston Chamber Choir on three sold-out Christmas concerts at the Villa de Matel, made its radio debut on Houston Public Radio’s The Front Row, toured in San Antonio for two lunch time concerts, partnered with Classical Revolution Houston for an afternoon concert at the Ginger Man, and gave three near-capacity performances in downtown Houston. Quartus also began its Quartus in the Classroom educational program in Sheldon ISD and Cy-Fair ISD this year and brought its Quartus in the Community outreach program to the Houston Area Suzuki String Association (HASSA) and a few retirement communities.
Quartus continues its mission and will bring classical chamber music to audiences in the upcoming season with exciting collaborations and programing. To be added to Quartus’ mailing list, email us at: info@quartuschamberplayers.com


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Boxing may help musicians?

James VanDemark says “yes!”

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