Table of Contents

Message from the Executive Director
Lexington Symphony World Premieres Walden Alumna Sky Macklay’s Dissolving Bands
What a Weekend! Walden/JCC Reunion Recap
Art Song in August; Upcoming Alumni Composers Forums
Applications Now Being Accepted For 2013 Young Musicians Program
Walden Board of Directors Transitions
Community News & Goods
Opportunities & Organizations Listing
Now Hear This! Work by 2012 Walden Participants

Message from the Executive Director

Seth BrenzelGreetings from San Francisco! All of us here at Walden are excited to share this edition of InterNetzo with you, chock full of information about your favorite summer music school, festival and camp: a round-up of recent and upcoming events, News and Goods regarding Walden and Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC) alumni, a wrap-up of our 40th Anniversary Reunion celebration in June, and much more.

Speaking of the Reunion, what a terrific celebration of Walden and JCC history, friendships and camaraderie took place on the campus of the Dublin School in June! Many thanks to Bob Weaver, Tamar Bloch and Erin Quist for being our Reunion Co-Chairs, and to staff members Esther Landau, Brendon Randall-Myers, Marguerite Ladd and Jefferson Packer for all of their great work in organizing the Reunion, as well as to Carol Thomas Downing, Sam Pluta, Caroline Mallonée-Huebner, Marguerite Ladd and Marshall Bessières for their leading of musical workshops. While at the moment we are not planning to have another on-campus reunion until 2017, we hope to see you at the many holiday parties, Alumni Composers Forums, and other events later this year and in the years to come. It’s always wonderful to gather with fellow JCC and Walden School participants, no matter what the occasion!

Also in June, Walden’s Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) ran for the second time. This inspiring weeklong workshop for adult musicians attracted 22 participants from around the country to participate in a week of musicianship, chorus, composition and camaraderie. Directed by senior Walden faculty member Caroline (Carrie) Mallonée-Huebner, the Retreat featured classes in the morning, chorus before lunch, afternoon lessons, composition time, rehearsals, evening Composers Forums, and a concert by resident ensemble Wet Ink. James Mobberley, former member of Walden’s Board of Directors and past Visiting Composer at the Young Musicians Program, was CMR’s Composer-in-Residence. In addition to Carrie, faculty and staff at the program included Ian Munro, Sky Macklay, Loretta Notareschi, Marguerite Ladd, Bill Stevens, Shawn Crouch and Sam Pluta. By our participants’ accounts, it was a successful week, and I know I speak on behalf of all of the faculty and staff of the program in saying how wonderful it was to have our participants with us in 2012!

The Young Musicians Program had a tremendously successful year in 2012. 49 students from 17 states, Canada, India, Japan, Lithuania, and South Sudan joined 19 faculty and staff for a wonderful summer of creative music making. Classes included courses on Beethoven symphonies, musicianship, John Cage, AudioVision, Folk Traditions/String Quartets, computer musicianship, Score Reading and more! We had wonderful guest artists, including faculty member Aurora Nealand and her band The Royal Roses, composers Jim Matheson and Eve Beglarian, Duo Prism, Yarn/Wire, Michael Poll and the amazing septet of performers that are The Walden School Players. For John Cage’s 100th Birthday, Sky Macklay and members of The Walden School Players organized a “Happening” that was a wonderful and unique event. Walden’s choral concert was held at the Peterborough Town House and featured music written exclusively by female composers, including our own Festival Forum Moderator Eve Beglarian. Midway through the Program, we held our first-annual Open House, welcoming members of the surrounding Monadnock region onto campus to learn about The Walden School. This promises to be a terrific annual event.

Pat Plude, who for the last eight years led Walden’s Teacher Training Institute, has transitioned out of her role to pursue other professional opportunities. Pat was the person who first introduced me to Walden; she also preceded me as Walden’s Executive Director and served on the Young Musicians Program faculty prior to that. Her contributions to the School have been numerous and significant, and I look forward to sharing more of the impact that she has made on Walden in a future newsletter article. In the meantime, we at Walden are sending her our best wishes for many future successes.

Be sure to read all about faculty member Sky Macklay’s tremendously successful orchestral world premiere with the Lexington Symphony. We were so fortunate to have the opportunity to select a young Walden alumna to represent Walden in the Lexington Symphony’s yearlong celebration of their town’s 300th Anniversary. I want to offer special thanks to Jonathan McPhee and Rebecca Hawkins for their vision and support of this collaboration between Walden and the Lexington Symphony.

I want to acknowledge the members of our Board of Directors — you can read more about changes on the Board in the article below. Suffice it to say, this group of super volunteers and exemplary donors does a great job in stewarding The Walden School. The entire Walden community thanks them for their tremendous efforts.

And speaking of thanks, I would like to take this moment to add a special thanks to the members of Walden’s faculty, staff and administration, who work (in some cases year-round) diligently and with passion to make Walden happen each year. All are wonderful musicians, across such a variety of fields and interests, and each brings special talents to their work, in administration, teaching and program leadership. Walden is fortunate to have such a group working on its behalf.

Applications are now available for the Young Musicians Program 2013. I hope you’ll spread the word about Walden’s unique 5-week summer program for young, creative musicians, and I hope to see many of you at the upcoming New York and San Francisco Alumni Composers Forums (November 18 and December 2, respectively), or at one of the upcoming holiday parties. For information about Walden’s year-round gatherings and events, please contact us.

Hooray for 40 years of creativity and community, and here’s to another 40 years of Walden!

With warmest wishes,

Seth Brenzel
Executive Director
sbrenzel AT waldenschool DOT org
(415) 648-4710

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Lexington Symphony Performs World Premiere of Walden Alumna Sky Macklay’s Dissolving Bands

Lexington Symphony LogoThe Lexington Symphony commissioned Sky Macklay (TTI ’09, CMR ’11, YMP Faculty ’10-’12) to compose a piece commemorating the 300th Anniversary of the town’s founding. On September 23, Dissolving Bands was premiered to warm audience reception in Lexington. Walden alumni, faculty, and staff (including Seth Brenzel, Emil Margolis, Wesley Levers, Sarah Riskind, Will Hawkins, Sam Pluta, Marguerite Ladd, among others) gathered to hear the world premiere and participated in the Lexington Symphony’s post-concert reception with patrons, performers, and the composer herself. Find out more about the project by reading this article on the Lexington Symphony’s website.

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What a weekend! Walden/JCC Reunion Recap

2012 Reunion Attendees

From the arrival of the first alumnus on June 22 to the departure of the last car to the Manchester airport on June 25, the spirit of the Walden and Junior Conservatory Camp communities shone bright on the campus of Dublin School. 64 alumni/ae, spouses and children gathered for a weekend in June to reminisce and make music together, to dance and hike, and share memories. Here were some highlights:

  • The weekend schedule included a rambunctious dance led by Sam Pluta (YMP Faculty ’03-’12, CMR Faculty ’11-’12), with music by Cross Country and several alumni
  • We took a hike up Mount Monadnock (the thunderstorm waited until we were all back down!)
  • Chorus and workshops led by Walden faculty on musicianship, film scoring, computer music and symmetry in music were a big hit
  • 16 alumni performed in a recital with repertoire ranging from Chopin to American folk music
  • A slide show included photos from every decade of The Walden School and Junior Conservatory Camp; we viewed the video Ron Nelson sent us for the last reunion in 2007.
  • 9 alumni had works presented in a Composers Forum with Tamar Bloch (JCC ’69-’72, TTI ’08) and Marshall Bessières (TTI ’08, CMR ’12, YMP Faculty ’03-’11, TTI Faculty ’09-’10, CMR Faculty ’11) moderating
  • JCC alumni spoke with Flora Cushman, daughter of Grace Cushman, via Skype
  • Here are more photos from the event. For additional treats (sound files and programs from the Alumni Recital and Composers Forum) go to handoverhand.org, the website for alumni of The Walden School and Junior Conservatory Camp. If you haven’t registered yet, it’s easy to sign up!
  • And if you attended the Reunion, we still want to hear your feedback. Please complete the survey at this link: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/HMR5CBJ

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Art Song and New Hampshire Thunderstorms in August; New York and San Francisco Composers Forums This Fall

Serena Benedetti
On August 4th, in spite of the thunderclouds looming on the horizon, Walden parents, friends and supporters gathered at the beautiful home of Susie and Loring Catlin, Sr., in Dublin, New Hampshire, for a glorious afternoon of food, friendship and music. Soprano Serena Benedetti and pianist Timothy Myers regaled guests with songs and operatic arias by various Italian composers in a brief and engaging recital; Serena also spoke eloquently about the value of programs like Walden’s Young Musicians Program and the importance of supporting financial aid. The storm – and its accompanying power failure! – held off until most guests had departed.

For those of you in or near New York (November 18) or San Francisco (December 2) this fall, Walden will once again present an Alumni Composers Forum in each city. These regional events afford area alumni and friends the chance to gather for an informal presentation of original music and lively discussion, and depending on interest, may be followed by dinner at an area restaurant. For more information, or if you are a Walden or Junior Conservatory Camp alumnus/alumna interested in submitting work or offering their services as a performer, please contact us. We hope to see you soon!

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Applications Now Being Accepted For 2013 Young Musicians Program

YMPWith the 2012 Young Musicians Program still fresh in our memory, we are moving full speed ahead towards 2013! Click here to download new student application materials — returning students will receive abbreviated application materials in the mail soon! We look forward to another wonderful summer — the Young Musicians Program will run from Saturday, June 29 to Sunday, August 4, 2013.
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Walden Board of Directors Transitions

John O'MearaThe Walden School is guided and led by an all-volunteer Board of Directors that ensures the School furthers its mission and vision, accomplishes its goals, and continues to provide the inspiring and rigorous music training that has been a hallmark of Walden since its founding in 1972.

For the past several years, the Board has been ably led by John O’Meara, a Walden parent (his daughter Caroline attended the Young Musicians Program), donor, and husband of Junior Conservatory Camp alumna Mary Anne O’Meara, herself a former Walden Board member. During John’s just-completed tenure as Board Chair, Walden launched its third program, the Creative Musicians Retreat, and completed Walden’s second strategic plan. Fortunately for Walden and the Board, John is remaining on the Board and now serves as the organization’s Treasurer.

Taking over as Chair of the Board of Directors is Andrew Jacobs, a Walden alumnus, who had previously served Walden’s Board as Vice-Chair. Andrew lives in New York City with his wife, Kathy Park, and their children, Sabine and Julian. All of us at Walden are looking forward to Andrew’s leadership as Walden moves into its next phase of development and growth. Rounding out the leadership of the Board for its 2012-2013 year are Vice-Chairs Noël Theodosiou and Corty Fengler, and Laura Mehiel, who continues as Secretary.

Joining Walden’s Board in 2012 is Jeff Nick, father of Walden alumna Julia Nick. As President of Camden Catholic High School in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, Jeff serves as the school’s chief executive officer, with oversight for the school’s personnel, budget, business affairs, and strategic planning, as well as educational and development programs.

Finally, in July the school and Board bid farewell to three outstanding directors: David Callan, Arno Drucker and Leslie Stephens. While we’ll miss their presence on the Board, we trust that they won’t be too far away. We are grateful for their service; Walden is the better for each of their service to Walden’s Board of Directors. Thank you, all!

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Community News and Goods

The Walden School welcomes news and information from members of the Junior Conservatory Camp and Walden School communities to include in our print and online newsletters. News may be sent via mail or email. We will publish your contact information only if you specifically request that we do so. Please contact us on-line or send info to The Walden School, 31A 29th St., San Francisco, CA 94110. We reserve the right to edit submissions and regret we cannot publish all information provided. For upcoming event listings, go to the Walden and JCC alumni website, handoverhand.org. (Note: YMP=Young Musicians Program; TTI=Teacher Training Institute; CMR=Creative Musicians Retreat; JCC=Junior Conservatory Camp).

Duo Fado
Duo Fado, comprising singer Melinda Becker (TTI ’04) and guitarist Thomas Walsh, has released a new promotional recording in preparation for a recording project in Spain during 2013.

Eve Beglarian
Eve Beglarian (YMP Composer-in-Residence ’12) had her work In and Out of the Game performed in the Bang on a Can Marathon on June 17. Eve’s 60-second piece, My Heart is Trembling, was selected to be in the 60X60 Athena Mix to be performed at the 2013 Women Composers Festival of Hartford.

A recital by soprano Madeline Bersamina (Biddle) (TTI ’04-’05, ’08, ’10, YMP Faculty ’06-’07) and pianist Melissa Lin (TTI ’07) at Santa Clara University on October 14 included the world premiere of a work by Marshall Bessières (TTI ’08, CMR ’12, YMP Faculty ’03-’11, TTI Faculty ’09-’10, CMR Faculty ’11).

On November 4, the Nassau Presbyterian Church in Princeton, New Jersey, featured a setting of the 23rd Psalm by Christianne Bessières Lane (YMP ’92-’96, TTI ’04-’05 and ’10-’11, CMR ’12) in their Sunday morning worship services.

Speak to me, my love and Ballade, two new works by Ann Callaway (JCC ’65-’67) was performed as part of the Sonic Harvest festival at the Hillside Club in Berkeley, California on October 21.

Nansi Carroll
Nansi Carroll (JCC ’72, YMP Faculty ’77-’96, Advisory Council ’02-present) was profiled in an article in the July 2012 issue of Senior Times Magazine.

Claire Chase (YMP Visiting Artist ’05-’09, CMR Visiting Artist ’11) has been named a 2012 MacArthur Fellow. Read more about Claire and the other Fellows in the New York Times announcement.

Cyrus Chestnut
Cyrus Chestnut (YMP ’77, Visiting Artist ’06) collaborates at the keyboard with Michael Feinstein on the CD that accompanies Feinstein’s new book, The Gershwins and Me: A Personal History in Twelve Songs, which Simon & Schusterhas just published.

Shawn Crouch
Shawn CrouchGarden of Paradise, a choral setting of Rumi and Brian Turner poetry by Shawn Crouch (YMP ’93-’96, TTI ’08, YMP Faculty ’99-’07, CMR Faculty ’12) was performed by Volti on September 30 as part of the Soundwave(5) Festival. In southern Florida, Seraphic Fire performed Shawn’s The Light of Common Day on concerts from October 17 to 21 in the greater Miami area.

Miranda Cuckson (Visiting Artist ’08, ’11) celebrated the release of a new CD on November 2 and 3 at Spectrum in New York City. The recording features a performance of Luigi Nono’s la lontananza nostalgica utopica futura for violin and eight-channel electronics (the latter performed by Christopher Burns).

Mary Fineman (JCC ’68) performed her new work, “I Thought I Saw You” in a concert on June 15 in Walnut Creek, California, presented by the Piano Composers Group of the Contra Costa Performing Arts Society.

Stacy Garrop
Clarinetist Benjamin Fingland (Visiting Artist ’01-’02) has joined the Dorian Wind Quintet.

Stacy Garrop (YMP ’87-’88, YMP Faculty ’96) will have new works premiered by the Capitol Saxophone Quartet and the Piedmont East Bay Children’s Choir during the 2012-13 season.

Adolphus HailstorkThe Virginia Symphony has released “An American Port of Call”, a recording featuring the work of Adolphus Hailstork (Composer-in-Residence ’03), under the Naxoslabel. The project is a co-presentation with the Virginia Arts Festival.

Wild Rumpus, the new music collective whose founding members include Sophie Huet (TTI ’09), performed their second concert on June 8 at the Oberlin Dance Collective (ODC) Studio Commons in San Francisco, California.
Michael JohansonMichael Johanson (YMP ’79-’86, YMP Faculty ’89, ’93, ’95-’96) was one of several composers commissioned by the International Beethoven Project to write a work for piano in some way based on a theme from the Eroica Symphony. The works were performed in concert in order of the appearance of their thematic material in the original symphony. Learn more about the festival, which included 60 events in nine days, at internationalbeethovenproject.com. Michael has also been commissioned by the Northwest Horn Orchestra— stay tuned for more details!

Amelia Lukas
An article on music licensing by Amelia Lukas (TTI ’05-’06, YMP Visiting Artist ’10) was published on the Dance USA website. In other news, Amelia’s chamber music series, Ear Heart Music has found a new home venue, Roulette in Brooklyn, New York.

On September 14, Charlie MacVeagh (Board of Directors ’99-’04, Board of Directors Emeriti ’07-present) was honored as the 2012 recipient of Antioch University Graduate School’s Horace Mann Community Service Award at a ceremony in Keene, New Hampshire. Several hundred Antioch faculty, alumni and friends enjoyed a dinner at the Keene Country Club prior to the award presentation, which recognized Charlie’s many years of providing financial consultation and oversight to a wide range of non-profit organizations in the Monadnock region of New Hampshire.Robin Kenney (Board of Directors ’04-’07, ’10-present) and his wife Leslie were also in attendance.

Caroline Mallonée
Caroline Mallonée (YMP ’87-92, TTI ’07, YMP Faculty ’98-’12, CMR Faculty ’11-’12) won 2nd prize in the 2012 Iron Composers Competition at Baldwin-Wallace College in Ohio on September 7. Carrie was one of five finalist composers invited to compete in person. On the morning of the event, the finalists were assigned an instrumentation (prepared piano, tuba, and clarinet) and a secret musical ingredient (8 seconds of silence, not to be used at the beginning or end of the piece). They had five hours to write a piece of music that incorporates those two elements. The results of their efforts, including Carrie’s brand-new work, For John Cage on His 100th Birthday, was performed and judged on a public concert that same evening, broadcast on Cleveland classical radio. Trevor Ward (YMP ’08-’10) was in the audience.

Emil Margolis (YMP ’99-’04, TTI ’09, YMP Staff ’06-’09, YMP Faculty ’12) invites the Walden community to his Masters in Composition Recital on November 18. Thomas Carr(YMP ’03-’05, YMP Staff ’08) will be among the performers. Check it out!

Pianist Teresa McCollough (TTI ’05, Visiting Artist ’01) performed works by John Cage and others on October 27 as part of the Musical Mavericks Series at Santa Clara University. The concert commemorated Cage’s 100th birthday.

Ned McGowan
Six Pièces Mécaniques, a new work by Ned McGowan(Visiting Artist ’01-’04, ’10) was performed in Utrecht, The Netherlands, on October 12, having been premiered in Amsterdam and Rotterdam in September. His Concerto for iPad and Orchestra was performed October 18 in Rotterdam and October 19 in Amsterdam, with soloist Susanna Borschon iPad.

Jesse MillsWalden, a composition by Jesse Mills (Visiting Artist ’12 as part of Duo Prism), was given its world premiere at Trinity Church in New York City on October 4 by the North Sky Cello Ensemble, which includes Jane Cords O’Hara(Visiting Artist ’08, ’10, ’12) and Robert Burkhart (Visiting Artist ’11). For more information, click here.

The Wondrous Woman Within, an opera by composer/librettist Osnat Netzer (TTI ’07-’08, YMP Faculty ’08-’11) was one of six operas chosen to be performed on Thursday, November 8 at the Skirball Center of New York University as part of the New York City Opera‘s VOX Contemporary American Opera Lab.

Nat Osborn
Nat Osborn’s (YMP ’00-03) band, fresh off of an East Coast tour in August that extended from Maine to Washington, D.C., performed at Rockwood Music Hall in New York City on September 14 and 23.

Carrier Records, the label started and run by Sam Pluta(YMP Faculty ’01-’12, CMR Faculty ’11-’12) has released a new album of his electro-acoustic compositions/improvisations entitled Machine LanguageWet Ink (CMR Ensemble-in-Residence ’12), Ian Antonio(Visiting Artist ’12), and, of course, Sam himself are among the performers.

Alicia Jo Rabins
“A Kaddish for Bernie Madoff”, a “solo-show-with-backing-band” developed by Alicia Jo Rabins (YMP ’88-’93) will be premiered at Joe’s Pub in New York City on November 8 and 15. Alicia’s band, Girls in Trouble, performed on October 27 at Hevreh of Southern Berkshire in Great Barrington, Massachusetts.

An article by Ruth Rainero (TTI ’08, YMP Faculty ’10) entitled “Practicing Vocal Music Efficiently and Effectively: Applying ‘Deliberate Practice’ to a New Piece of Music” was published by the National Association of Teachers of Singers (NATS) in the November 2012 issue of the Journal of Singing.

Dylan Sherry (YMP ’99-’01) is in his 2nd year at Case Western Reserve Medical School in Cleveland, Ohio.

D. J. SparrComposer and guitarist D. J. Sparr collaborated with conductor Timothy Myers (YMP Visiting Artist ’12) and other musicians in a concert of D. J.’s work presented by New Music Raleigh in North Carolina on September 16. On September 26, the California Symphony read his Violet Bond: Concerto for electric guitar and orchestra, with D. J. as soloist. Violet Bond was commissioned as part of his composer residency with the group, and will be premiered during their May 2013 subscription concerts.

Joan TowerAlex Torra‘s (CMR ’12) insightful and funny travel diary from a research trip to Japan can be read in three parts here: TokyoKumamoto, and Beppu.

Joan Tower (YMP Composer-in-Residence ’09) was feted for her birthday with a performance of her work in honor of the occasion at SymphonySpace in New York City on September 6 as part of the New York Chamber Music Festival. Happy Birthday, Joan!
Pamela ZMedia installations by Pamela Z (Visiting Artist ’11) were on display until November 3 at the McColl Center in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Transitions:

Kayden Lukas Greene, Terry Greene, and Rebekah Griffin Greene
Kayden Lukas Greene, Terry Greene, and Rebekah Griffin Greene

Rebekah Griffin Greene (TTI ’10, YMP Faculty ’99-’11) and her husband Terry Greene welcomed their son Kayden Lukas Greene to the world on August 11 at 3:59 am. The accompanying photo is from Kayden’s first foray into a jazz club (surprisingly late in life, given his parents’ work and passion!)

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Opportunities & Organizations Listing

An opportunities listing for composers of multiple levels and age ranges, as well as organizations that provide services to composers, performers, music teachers, improvisers, and experimental musicians, is available here.

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Now Hear This! Works by 2012 Walden Participants

The 2012 Young Musicians Program saw the world premieres of more than 100 student works, including Circumstance: for piano trio and percussion by Katya Richardson. Click here to listen to the performance by Jane Chung, violin; Jane Cords-O’Hara, cello; Aaron Wunsch, piano; and Matthew Gold, percussion, members of The Walden School Players.

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