Music Matters! Summer Academy goes global

It is the time of year when parents of school-aged children inquire about ways to fill their children's summer days with new experiences and adventure. Thanks to the Music Conservatory of Sandpoint (MCS), there are several opportunities for kids of all ages to connect with others and explore the world of music and theater.

For the 13th year, the accredited school of performing arts offers its Summer Academy, which includes five weeks of intensive workshops, classes, and performing arts camps for preschoolers through 12th grade. The Academy will culminate with a performance featuring international guest conductor Jan Pellant, who returns to Sandpoint after two years of conducting globally, including Asia and Africa. 

"Out-of-school support for children makes a world of difference," said the Conservatory’s Development Director Kathi Samuels. With cuts to arts education in schools, MCS has expanded its focus to include disadvantaged youth through Music Matters! afterschool and summer programs, making it available to all regardless of one's ability to pay. 

"Because of the amazing support we have from our community, we can offer scholarships," said Samuels. 

During July and August, youth from around the area can enjoy various musical majors and interactive class electives in music theory, performing arts, harp, the visual arts, piano, percussion, and orchestra. All of this will culminate in free concerts open to the public. 

“Last year, our Summer Academy employed 18 local musicians,” said Samuels, adding that they anticipate 125 students, preschool through 12th grade, to enroll in this summer’s programs. 

The first session, the Early Childhood Summer Academy, Little Mozarts, will run from June 17 to June 28. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, one session will be from 10 to 10:45 a.m., and the other will be from 11 to 11:45 a.m. This is open to children from walking to four years old, and parents are required to attend with their children. 

"We will also have two sessions of the Instrument Carousel on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday during those same times," said Samuels. This is open to ages four to seven, and parents have an option to attend with their child. Little Mozarts and the Instrument Carousel will occur at Lakeview Park in South Sandpoint. 

For the older youth, there will be two sessions, each featuring different majors. Session one will run from July 15 to July 26 and feature piano, percussion, woodwind, harp, and musical theater. There will be a free performance open to the public July 26. 

"Our second session will run from Aug. 5 to Aug. 16 and will feature choir, youth orchestra, advanced orchestra, and our instrument art factory," said Samuels. To showcase this group, there will be a variety of opportunities to hear them perform. 

"This year, we are thrilled to bring back guest conductor Jan Pellant,” said Samuels. “Maestro Pellant lives in Prague and conducts all around the world, most recently in China.” 

Pellant was the guest conductor for the Summer Academy two years ago, and many students are familiar with him and eagerly anticipate his return. As part of this year's Music Matters! Global, Pellant will host two performances at North Summit Church on Aug. 16. The mid-afternoon matinee will feature the Summer Academy youth orchestra, and the evening performance will feature the North Idaho Philharmonia and the young talent of Daniel Beal, with whom Pellant performed in December of 2021, at the Panida Theater. Beal's parents had the performance filmed, and it won a platinum prize at the World Classical Music Awards International Music Competition.

Music Matters! Global began in 2012 as a Young Artist Exchange Program, later known as Music Without Borders. At that time, the Music Conservatory’s orchestra summer camp included students visiting from Mexico. The program has since been renamed Music Matters! Global to reflect the Conservatory's desire for a more significant impact and to help differentiate their efforts from similarly-named programming.

“The goal of Music Matters! Global is to connect talent without boundaries and promote cultural harmony through music,” said the Conservatory’s founder and director, Karin Wedemeyer. "Whether hosting exchange students, international guest artists, or inviting global groups to perform for or alongside our students, we aim to harness the power of music as a source of unity and togetherness of play.”

The unity and harmony music provides is one of the driving forces for the Music Matters! Global program. “Music is a catalyst for uniting people,” said Samuels. “It is a universal language. It opens the doors for kids to go anywhere in the world.” 

MCS provides unique opportunities for beginner, intermediate, and advanced musicians and those interested in the performing arts. With several other programs discontinued, Samuels said the Conservatory's children's youth theater program is the only one in the area to her knowledge. 

“This program would not be possible without our repeat grant supporters — the Equinox Foundation, Idaho Community Foundation, and Idaho Commission on the Arts,” said Wedemeyer. “Thanks to their generosity, we have been able to touch so many lives.”

Registration is open and often fills up quickly, so early registration is encouraged. It is open to all, regardless of ability to pay. For more information or to register online, go to sandpointconservatory.org/sa2024, or call 208-265-4444.

    Area youth take part in a previous Music Conservatory of Sandpoint Summer Academy, The upcoming session of the academy will include five weeks of intensive workshops, classes, and performing arts camps for preschoolers through 12th grade.
  

    The Academy will culminate with a performance featuring international guest conductor Jan Pellant, who returns to Sandpoint after two years of conducting globally, including Asia and Africa. "