eNews: Internetzo – February 2025

 

 

Message from Seth Brenzel, Executive Director

Seth Brenzel headshot

Dear Walden friends,

I hope you are finding warmth amid the cold of winter. My heart is warmed by all the ways Walden community members are coming together to celebrate, make music, and prepare for another incredible summer of creativity in Dublin, New Hampshire.

I am currently on my way to Memphis for a weekend of activities at the Memphis Composers Institute, a new collaborative project between The Walden School, the Memphis Symphony Orchestra, and the University of Memphis. Read on for more information about this groundbreaking initiative, and if you’re in the area, please join us for the weekend’s open rehearsals, panel discussions, and four exciting world premieres on Sunday, February 9

Other upcoming Walden events include a fundraiser and celebration in Baltimore on Saturday, March 8, featuring the incomparable jazz pianist, Walden alumnus, and Baltimore native Cyrus Chestnut. You won’t want to miss his performance! And please save the date for a fundraiser and celebration in New York City on Sunday, April 27.

Applications for Walden 2025’s programs are still open, and our spring application deadline is April 1. Both the Young Musicians Program (YMP) and Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) will be held on the beautiful Dublin School campus in Dublin, New Hampshire. Walden is also hiring for several summer positions at YMP—read on for more details, and please help us spread the word!

Thanks for reading, and I hope to see you at a Walden event or program soon!

Sincerely,

 

Seth Brenzel signature

Seth Brenzel
Executive Director
415-587-8157

Memphis Composers Institue

A new collaborative project will present four orchestral premieres.

The 2025 Memphis Composers Institute, a collaborative initiative between the Memphis Symphony Orchestra (MSO), The Walden School, and the University of Memphis, will take place Friday through Sunday, February 7 through 9. This groundbreaking program celebrates emerging talent, offering mentorship and performance opportunities to composers selected through an international call for scores. The weekend will feature open rehearsals, panel discussions, and a reception, culminating in the world premiere of four new orchestral works on Sunday, February 9, at 2 pm Eastern at Harris Hall, University of Memphis.

The concert will showcase works by composers Evan Erickson, Sina Karachiani, and Soomin Kim, chosen from over 100 global submissions. Acclaimed violist Kimberly Sparr will perform a new viola concerto by D. J. Sparr, commissioned by the MSO and conducted by Kyle Dickson.

Visit this page for more information about this exciting project, including a schedule of activities, bios of featured artists, and a link to purchase tickets.

Upcoming Fundraising Events

Baltimore
Saturday, March 8
6 to 8 pm

Please join The Walden School’s Board of Directors, along with Walden and Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC) alumni, families, faculty, staff, artists, and friends, for an evening of music and refreshments to celebrate Walden and support its 2025 summer programs.

Acclaimed jazz pianist Cyrus Chestnut, himself a Walden alumnus, will perform.

“What makes Chestnut the best jazz pianist of his generation is a willingness to abandon notes and play space. ” —Time

This reception and concert will celebrate Walden’s mission of inspiring artistic expression and personal growth through experiential music programs. Contributions to Walden’s Annual Fund will underwrite critical student scholarships and inspiring artist residences at Walden’s 2025 summer programs. For more information or to RSVP, email us or call (415) 587-8157.

New York City
Sunday, April 27
3 to 5 pm

Please save the date for a Walden celebration and fundraiser in New York City. This afternoon of music, community, and refreshments will be held near Union Square in Manhattan. For more information or to RSVP, email us or call (415) 587-8157.

Apply for Walden 2025

The spring application deadline is April 1.

The spring deadline to apply to Walden’s Young Musicians Program (YMP) and Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) is Tuesday, April 1, 2025. We encourage you to share the news with your friends, family, colleagues, students, and teachers

Walden’s 2025 programs:

  • Young Musicians Program: June 28 – August 3, 2025, Dublin School, Dublin, New Hampshire (for pre-college musicians, ages 9-18)

Application materials for both programs are available on our website.

Write to us at applicants@waldenschool.org with any questions.

Walden Holiday Parties

Throughout January, Walden community members gathered for holiday/new year parties in cities around the country, and online!

Walden holiday parties were held in Baltimore, San Francisco, Cambridge (Massachusetts), Bainbridge Island (Washington), and New York City. Alumni of the Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC), Walden’s predecessor program, also gathered for a holiday reunion over Zoom.

These events brought together Walden and JCC alumni, parents, faculty, staff, and board members for festive potluck gatherings. Delicious food and drinks were shared, music was played, new friendships and connections were made, and much merriment was had. Many thanks to our wonderful volunteer hosts: Sky Macklay and Sam Pluta in Baltimore, Ruth Rainero and Pieter de Haan in San Francisco, Josh Goodman and Anna Lumelsky in Cambridge, Danielle Schindler Cheung and Jason Cheung in Bainbridge Island, and Michael Schessel in New York City.

Thank you to all who gathered to celebrate the new year with Walden community!

Give the Gift of Walden

Bring some summer magic to the holiday season and support Walden School programs and initiatives with your order of Walden merchandise!

We have Walden beach towels (new!), blankets (new!), hoodies, shirts, baseball caps, canvas totes, stickers, mugs, pens, pencils, and more.

See what’s available and fill out an order form here.

Orders can be placed by check or money order, or via credit card/PayPal. Please contact Mindy Williams, Walden’s Administrative Manager, or call the Walden office at (415) 587-8157 if you have any questions.

Young Musicians Program (YMP)

Information Sessions

Join us to learn more about the music camp that changes lives.

Do you know a student who writes songs or arranges music? Or a young improviser who wants to strengthen their musicianship and meet like-minded peers? Or a music teacher who might like to learn about Walden’s unique curriculum?

Join us at one of our online interactive information sessions, featuring presentations and Q&A with Walden’s Executive Director, Seth Brenzel, alongside YMP leadership, faculty, staff, and students.

All YMP Info Sessions are held on Zoom. Learn more and register for one of the info sessions below:

Tuesday, February 25, 2025

Thursday, March 20, 2025

These events are open to prospective students, music teachers, and anyone else who would like to learn about Walden’s flagship program for musicians ages 9 to 18.

 

Walden is Hiring!

Join our summer team.

Walden is hiring for 2025 summer positions at our Young Musicians Program (YMP) in Dublin, New Hampshire. We are seeking new teammates to join our creative community, and we hope that you might help spread the word about these opportunities to your friends and colleagues.

The positions currently open are:

2025 YMP Camp Nurse

2025 YMP Staff Member / Staff Lifeguard

2025 YMP Faculty Member

Please contact us with any questions and inquiries. All positions are open until filled.

Competitions and Calls for Scores

Featured opportunities with upcoming deadlines

Walden encourages the sharing of opportunities and resources for composers, including competitions and calls for scores that may be of interest to our community. We maintain a searchable list of competitions, awards, and calls for scores on our website. Opportunities are often posted in Walden’s community Facebook group as well.

Below is one featured opportunity with an upcoming deadline:

MacDowell Fellowships

MacDowell is an artist residency program located in Peterborough, New Hampshire, near Walden’s summer home in Dublin, New Hampshire. A MacDowell Fellowship consists of exclusive use of a studio (with baby grand piano for composers), accommodations, and three prepared meals a day for two to six weeks. Applications are invited from artists of all backgrounds and all countries in the following disciplines: architecture, film/video arts, interdisciplinary arts, literature, music composition, theatre, and visual arts.

Over the years, many Walden alumni, faculty, and artists have participated in residencies at MacDowell, including Sam Pluta, Sky Macklay, Caroline Mallonee, Aurora Nealand, Dave Eggar, Leah Reid, Jon Yu, Eve Beglarian, and numerous others!

Apply by February 10.

Community News

Marilyn Crispell receives NEA Jazz Masters Fellowship

Marilyn Crispell, a Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC) alumna and past Walden visiting artist, has received the 2025 Jazz Masters Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts, a prestigious award that recognizes her status as a “living legend” for her exceptional contributions to jazz. The National Endowment for the Arts describes her as “one of the most original and sought-after avant-garde jazz pianists and composers,” both for her prolific recording history and her extensive touring and performance experience. Marilyn has previously been granted a composition commission from the Mary Flagler Cary Charitable Trust and a Guggenheim Fellowship for music composition. Marilyn will be honored alongside three other Jazz Masters on Saturday, April 26, in a free concert at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC.

Walden representation at the New York Choral Consortium

Walden board member Kate Valenta recently attended a New York Choral Consortium event, where members read through pieces by six featured composers, all of whom were present to discuss and conduct their work. While discussing in small groups, Kate learned that two of the six composers had attended Walden’s Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) in 2017: Jamie Klenetsky Fay and Laura Jobin-Acosta. We love hearing about Walden and JCC connections being made around the world!

Brian Claeys receives Emmy nomination

Young Musicians Program (YMP) alumnus Brian Claeys has been nominated for an Emmy Award for his work on the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series on Disney+. The show picked up a record-breaking 16 nominations, including Brian’s for “Music Direction and Composition for a Live Action Program,” alongside composer Bear McCreary and the team at Sparks & Shadows, McCreary’s music production and record label. The show has another incredible connection to Walden: the character of Zeus was played by the late Lance Reddick, an esteemed Walden alumnus and faculty member, in his last screen appearance, and Brian wrote a special musical theme for his portrayal. Brian has also contributed music to Outlander, The Walking Dead, See, Call of Duty: Vanguard, and The Serpent Queen, as well as assisting McCreary on multiple projects including The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power and God of War: Ragnarok. Congratulations, Brian!

Peter Thompson appointed Interim Rector at St. Bart’s

The Reverend Peter Thompson, a YMP alumnus, has been appointed Interim Rector at Saint Bartholomew’s Church in the City of New York. Peter was appointed Vicar at St. Bart’s in July 2021 after serving as Associate Rector for Formation and Liturgy since 2019. The letter announcing his appointment describes Peter as “a gifted speaker, teacher, and preacher” and “a strong and collegial leader” in his parish. Peter served as Assistant Rector of St. Paul’s on the Green in Norwalk, Connecticut, before joining St. Bart’s, and continues his passion for music as a singer in the Young New Yorkers’ Chorus.

Matthew Hunter retires from Berlin Philharmonic

Matthew Hunter, a JCC alumnus, parent to a Walden alum, and past Walden visiting artist, is retiring from the Berlin Philharmonic after a 30-year career with the renowned orchestra. A violinist turned violist at the age of 27, Hunter fell in love with the “dark chocolate” tone of the instrument and shortly thereafter won the Gee International Viola Competition. After winning a seat in the Berlin Philharmonic, he also became known to audiences as a guitar player during performances of Mahler’s 7th Symphony, adding yet another classical string instrument to his skill set. In a farewell interview with the Philharmonic, he mused, “becoming an artist is one of humankind’s greatest challenges. At the same time, it is one of the greatest privileges—can you imagine being able to devote your energy in pursuit of a sound-world ideal? From a philosophical perspective, a life dedicated to art music connects us to the eternal, to the essence behind representation.” The full interview can be found here.

Lila Meretzky releases album

YMP faculty member Lila Meretzky is releasing her first album, Bone Dice, featuring music for percussion performed by Sandbox Percussion among other artists. On January 31, there was a release show at the Sandbox Studio in Brooklyn featuring selections from the album. You can also watch a live performance of Bone Dice by Sandbox Percussion here.

Alicia Jo Rabins releases live concert album

Composer and performer Alicia Jo Rabins, a YMP alumna, has released a live concert album of her project I Was a Desert: Songs of the Matriarchs. The evening-length show for choir, string trio, rock trio, and Alicia herself is based on Alicia’s Girls in Trouble song cycle. The work was commissioned with the 135-person Camas High School Choir, and it is now available on Bandcamp, Spotify, and Youtube. In addition, there is a mini documentary about the process of making the project, which she has worked on for the past two years. Congratulations, Alicia!

Chad Hoeppner publishes book on public speaking

Chad Hoeppner, parent of a YMP student and husband of Hilary Kole (a YMP alumna and faculty member), has published a new book titled Don’t Say Um: How to Communicate Effectively to Live a Better Life. The book includes a comprehensive guide to public speaking and communication, with video resources of confidence-boosting exercises available online. Chad is a renowned public speaking expert, having coached presidential candidates and Fortune 500 CEOs. He condensed his knowledge from his communication coaching firm, GK Training, into the book.

Pre-release of FATHM by Laura Cocks

Laura Cocks, a member of The Walden School Players and a frequent visiting artist at Walden, has pre-released her second solo album, FATHM, on Out of Your Head Records and Relative Pitch Records. The full album will be out on February 21, with a release show at City University London. The album is being released digitally and on CD and LP, including 50 of each with hand-embellished covers.

Text scores by Caroline Mallonee featured in Pauline Oliveros tribute

Two pieces by Caroline Mallonee (YMP alumna, Walden faculty, and director of Walden’s Creative Musicians Retreat) have been included in a new book called A Year of Deep Listening. What began as an online project by the Center for Deep Listening to celebrate the legacy of Pauline Oliveros on what would have been her 90th birthday is now a beautifully bound book of 365 text scores with essays to contextualize them. It is a tribute to her and her work, and it is a valuable resource for anyone interested in music made in this way. Carrie, along with the rest of the summer community,had the great pleasure of meeting and learning from Pauline when she was in residence at Walden in 2002.

We Want To Hear From You!

If you have a recent or upcoming premiere or concert, publication, award, new job, or a celebratory life event, please share your news, which needn’t be music-related (although we love your music-related news to be sure!). Email your news to alumni@waldenschool.org.

Stay in Touch

You can like The Walden School page on Facebook and join The Walden School private group to hear about events and opportunities throughout the year. You can also find us on InstagramTwitterYouTubebandcamp, and at waldenschool.org.

A dance during the 2019 Young Musicians Program


eNews: Internetzo – December 2024

 

 

Message from Seth Brenzel, Executive Director

Seth Brenzel headshot

Dear Walden friends,

Happy Holidays! I hope your season is bright with things that bring you joy—music, food, family, friends, or perhaps some much-needed downtime. We’re very excited to continue the holiday season into January with Walden holiday parties in six cities around the country, as well as a virtual gathering for alumni and families of the Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC), Walden’s predecessor program. Please read on to find details about these wonderful events, and to RSVP!

Applications for Walden 2025’s programs are open! Our next application deadline is February 3, and there are several Young Musicians Program (YMP) information sessions coming up. Both YMP and our Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) will be held on the beautiful Dublin School campus in Dublin, New Hampshire. If you know a creative musician, ages 9 to 99, or if you yourself might want to apply to be part of Walden Summer 2025, I hope you will pass along information about Walden and request an application.

We are so grateful to the many donors who have already given generously to support our 2025 summer programs through contributions to Walden’s 2025 Annual Fund. During our 2025 fiscal year (October 1, 2024, through September 30, 2025), we seek to raise $415,000 in support of critical scholarships, inspiring artist residencies, and all our program expenses. If you’ve already made a gift toward Walden’s upcoming 2025 season, thank you! If not, I hope you’ll consider supporting Walden today with a year-end contribution. I wish you a very Happy New Year, and I hope to see you at a Walden event soon!

I wish you a very Happy New Year, and I hope to see you at a Walden event soon!

Sincerely,

 

Seth Brenzel signature

Seth Brenzel
Executive Director
415-587-8157

Walden Holiday Parties

Warm up with Walden holiday parties! Walden and Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC) community members will be gathering for holiday potlucks—and online!—in cities throughout the country in January. You are warmly invited to join us in the following cities:

Baltimore

Sunday, January 5, 3 to 5 pm

Portland, Oregon

Sunday, January 12, 3:30 to 5:30 pm

San Francisco

Saturday, January 18, 3 to 5 pm

Boston Area (Cambridge)

Saturday, January 25, 3 to 5 pm

Seattle Area (Bainbridge Island)

Saturday, January 25, 3 to 5 pm

New York City (Manhattan)

Sunday, January 26, 4 to 6 pm

These events are open to Walden and Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC) alumni, faculty, staff, artists, donors, and board members, as well as friends and family. Please save the date and help us spread the word!

These are a potluck-style events held at private homes. When you RSVP, please let us know what you would like to bring, and we will send you the address.

RSVP to events@waldenschool.org or call (415) 587-8157.

It’s not too late to volunteer to host a party in your area! Please email us if interested. We are so grateful to this season’s hosts and the many volunteers who have hosted Walden holiday parties over the years.

Attention JCC community: Join us for a JCC Holiday Party on Zoom!

Tuesday, January 14

7 pm Eastern / 6 pm Central / 5 pm Mountain / 4 pm Pacific

Walden is excited to offer a holiday Zoom gathering for alumni and families of the Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC), Walden’s predecessor program.

Bundle up in your favorite cozy scarf, pour yourself a cup of holiday cheer, and join fellow JCC alumni for a festive gathering over Zoom!

RSVP to events@waldenschool.org or call (415) 587-8157.

Apply for Walden 2025

The winter application deadline is Monday, February 3.

The winter-round deadline to apply to Walden’s Young Musicians Program (YMP) and Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) is Monday, February 3, 2025. We encourage you to share the news with your friends, family, colleagues, students, and teachers

Walden’s 2025 programs:

  • Young Musicians Program: June 28 – August 3, 2025, Dublin School, Dublin, New Hampshire (for pre-college musicians, ages 9-18)

Application materials for both programs are available on our website.

Write to us at applicants@waldenschool.org with any questions.

Year-End Giving

We’re counting on your support!

Thank you to the many generous donors who have made year-end gifts to Walden! Your contributions will help us offer life-changing musical experiences next summer to 100 students across our two programs, including critical student scholarships and inspiring artist residencies.

It’s not too late to make a contribution during 2024! Make a donation online, or see below for more ways to give. Gifts postmarked on or before December 31, or online gifts made before 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on December 31, can be counted toward the 2024 tax year.

Give the Gift of Walden

Bring some summer magic to the holiday season and support Walden School programs and initiatives with your order of Walden merchandise!

Enjoy 20% off of all Walden merchandise orders, now through January 5.

We have Walden beach towels (new!), blankets (new!), hoodies, shirts, baseball caps, canvas totes, stickers, mugs, pens, pencils, and more.

See what’s available and fill out an order form here.

Orders can be placed by check or money order, or via credit card/PayPal. Please contact Mindy Williams, Walden’s Administrative Manager, or call the Walden office at (415) 587-8157 if you have any questions.

Young Musicians Program (YMP)

Information Sessions

Join us to learn more about the music camp that changes lives.

Do you know a student who writes songs or arranges music? Or a young improviser who wants to strengthen their musicianship and meet like-minded peers? Or a music teacher who might like to learn about Walden’s unique curriculum?

Join us at one of our online interactive information sessions, featuring presentations and Q&A with Walden’s Executive Director, Seth Brenzel, alongside YMP leadership, faculty, staff, and students.

All YMP Info Sessions are held on Zoom. Learn more and register for one of the info sessions below:

Tuesday, January 21, 2025

Tuesday, February 25, 2025

Thursday, March 20, 2025

These events are open to prospective students, music teachers, and anyone else who would like to learn about Walden’s flagship program for musicians ages 9 to 18.

Community News

Leo Liebeskind appears on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon

Young Musicians Program (YMP) alumnus Leo Liebeskind, who performs as Leo Lovechild, was on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon on a segment titled “Battle of the Instant Songwriters.” Leo and his competitor Meredith Lampe were each given an hour to come up with a song to match a made-up song title and perform it on the show. Leo’s song, Babysitting the Rizzler (world premiere), featured hilarious lyrics like “Told him to be in bed by nine / but now he’s live with the Costco Guys,” accompanied by acoustic guitar. Follow this link to watch the full clip, and more of Leo’s music can be found on his Bandcamp.

Osnat Netzer and Stacy Garrop programmed on “Concert for Peace”

The 26th Annual Concert for Peace, programmed by Chicago-based new music organization Fulcrum Point on the topic of Lamentations on the Disaster of War, featured two Walden composers, Stacy Garrop (left) and Osnat Netzer (right). Garrop is a YMP alumna and former YMP faculty member. Netzer is an alumna of Walden’s Teacher Training Institute (TTI), and she has taught at both YMP and the Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR). Netzer’s piece They bury their dead with great ululations and Garrop’s piece Lo Yisa Goy were performed on December 17 at Fourth Presbyterian Church in Chicago. Both works deal with themes of conflict, grief, and peace.

Katherine Balch and Lei Liang win Fromm Commissions

The Fromm Music Foundation at Harvard University announced twelve winners of its commissioning prize on December 18, including two composers from the Walden community. Former YMP faculty member Katherine Balch (left) and past CMR and YMP composer-in-residence Lei Liang (right) both received commissions as part of the foundation’s mission to bring contemporary concert music closer to the public. They join the ranks of many Walden-affiliated composers who have received this prestigious commission. Congratulations, Katie and Lei!

Freya Waley-Cohen featured on Visionary Sounds

In our November edition of InterNetzo, we highlighted an upcoming performance of YMP alumna Freya Waley-Cohen’s song cycle Spell Book by the St. Luke’s Chamber Orchestra. The performance, part of the Orchestra’s Visionary Sounds series, took place on December 4 at the DiMenna Center in New York City, and Walden Board member Kate Valenta was in attendance. Many thanks to Kate and her husband Alex Johnston, Director of the DiMenna Center, for sharing this photo of Freya speaking to the audience about her work. A recording of Waley-Cohen’s song cycle, set to poems by Rebecca Tamás, was released on NMC Records in October. Photo credit: The DiMenna Center.

Aurora Nealand tours multiple countries as musical ambassador

Aurora Nealand, a former YMP faculty member and a perennial visiting artist at Walden, was selected along with her Inquiry Quartet as a touring artist by American Music Abroad. She was in Lesotho this month and will tour Kuwait and Algeria in January. Aurora Nealand’s Inquiry Quartet performs new music in the New Orleans jazz tradition. American Music Abroad (AMA) is a program sponsored by the United States Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Each year, approximately 10 ensembles of American music in different genres are selected from among hundreds of applicants to represent the U.S. through a multi-country tour, with a focus on reaching audiences with little or no access to American music.

Sky Macklay profiled in Peabody Magazine

Sky Macklay, a CMR and TTI alumna and former YMP faculty member, was recently featured in Peabody Magazine, a publication of the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University, where she is an assistant professor of composition. The article, titled “A Composer Drawn to ‘Spicy Sounds’,” detailed how Sky’s longtime interest in multimedia has manifested in an acoustic sound installation called Harmonitrees, featuring inflatable harmonica-playing clear vinyl sculptures, which has traveled to Florida, Maryland, and Poland. Her work has been commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Fromm Foundation at Harvard University, and the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, among others. She’s also received several awards and prestigious honors, including fellowships from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation and the Columbia Institute for Ideas and Imagination in Paris. Photo by Larry Canner for Peabody Magazine.

Ruth Franklin’s New Book Available for Preorder 

YMP alumna and former board member Ruth Franklin has authored a new book, The Many Lives of Anne Frank, which will be released in January. The book is structured around the myriad identities of Anne Frank as a person, witness, author, and symbol following her death, from her agency as an artist and writer to the diverse applications of her legacy. More information about the book’s conception and background can be found in Ruth’s essay on Substack. The Many Lives of Anne Frank is now available for preorder here. Ruth Franklin is a book critic and former editor at The New Republic. Her first biography, Shirley Jackson: A Rather Haunted Life (2016), won the National Book Critics Circle Award for Biography.

We Want To Hear From You!

If you have a recent or upcoming premiere or concert, publication, award, new job, or a celebratory life event, please share your news, which needn’t be music-related (although we love your music-related news to be sure!). Email your news to alumni@waldenschool.org.

Stay in Touch

You can like The Walden School page on Facebook and join The Walden School private group to hear about events and opportunities throughout the year. You can also find us on InstagramTwitterYouTubebandcamp, and at waldenschool.org.

A dance during the 2019 Young Musicians Program


eNews: Internetzo – November 2024

Message from Seth Brenzel, Executive Director

Seth Brenzel headshot

Dear Walden friends,

Happy Thanksgiving! During this season of gratitude, I am thankful for the passion, dedication, and creativity of our entire Walden community. Thank you for all the ways you show generosity to Walden: by attending our summer programs, joining us for events throughout the year, volunteering your time and efforts, and making financial contributions.

I invite you to share your gratitude with Walden on December 3 for Giving Tuesday. We will be holding a one-day fundraiser to kickstart Walden’s 2025 season, and we encourage gifts made in honor or memory of someone you’re grateful for. Please mark your calendars and read below for more details.

We are very excited to be hosting Walden holiday parties again this December and January. Please read on to find details about these wonderful events, to RSVP, and to volunteer to host a potluck gathering in your city!

We’re already looking ahead to June 14, 2025, the start of Walden’s Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR), and to June 28, 2025, when we will commence Walden’s Young Musicians Program (YMP). Both programs will be held on the beautiful Dublin School campus in Dublin, New Hampshire. If you know a creative musician, ages 9 to 99, or if you yourself might want to apply to be part of Walden Summer 2025, I hope you will pass along information about Walden and request an application.

I wish you a joyful Thanksgiving, and I hope to see you soon at a holiday party in your area, an upcoming Walden regional event, or next summer in Dublin, New Hampshire!

Sincerely,

 

Seth Brenzel signature

Seth Brenzel
Executive Director
415-587-8157

Walden Holiday Parties

Warm up with Walden holiday parties! Walden community members will be gathering for holiday potlucks in cities throughout the country this December and January. So far, we have two confirmed dates, with more to be announced soon:

Chicago

Sunday, December 15, from 4 to 6 pm

Boston

Sunday, January 12, from 3 to 5 pm

These events are open to Walden and Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC) alumni, faculty, staff, artists, donors, and board members, as well as friends and family. Please save the date and help us spread the word!

RSVP by email or call (415) 587-8157. When you RSVP, please let us know what you would like to bring, and we will send you the address.

If you are interested in hosting a party in your area, please contact us. We are so grateful to this season’s hosts and the many volunteers who have hosted Walden holiday parties over the years.

Celebrate Giving Tuesday with Walden

Share your gratitude on December 3.

Giving Tuesday is a global day dedicated to giving back. On Tuesday, December 3, communities around the world will come together for one common purpose: to celebrate generosity and to give.

During this season of gratitude, Walden is encouraging gifts in honor or memory of someone you’re grateful for. It could be a teacher who mentored you or your child, a creative artist who inspired you, or a friend or family member who made a difference in your life. We are happy to contact your dedicatee to let them know you made a gift to Walden in their honor.

We hope you will consider making a gift to Walden on Giving Tuesday. Your gift of any amount will be put to work making Walden’s 2025 summer programs a success. See below for ways to donate, or visit our Facebook page to participate in a one-day fundraiser. Our Giving Tuesday goal is to raise $5,300 for Walden’s upcoming 53rd season!

Support Walden Today

Give the Gift of Walden

Bring some summer magic to the holiday season and support Walden School programs and initiatives with your order of Walden merchandise!

Enjoy 20% off of all Walden merchandise orders, now through January 5.

We have Walden beach towels (new!), blankets (new!), hoodies, shirts, baseball caps, canvas totes, stickers, mugs, pens, pencils, and more.

See what’s available and fill out an order form here.

Orders can be placed by check or money order, or via credit card/PayPal. Please contact Mindy Williams, Walden’s Administrative Manager, or call the Walden office at (415) 587-8157 if you have any questions.

Apply for Walden 2025

The early application deadline is Monday, December 16.

We are thrilled to announce that applications for The Walden School’s 2025 summer programs are now open! The early-round deadline to apply to the Young Musicians Program (YMP) and Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) is Monday, December 16. We encourage you to share the news with your friends, family, colleagues, students, and teachers.

Walden’s 2025 programs:

  • Young Musicians Program: June 28 – August 3, 2025, Dublin School, Dublin, New Hampshire (for pre-college musicians, ages 9-18)

Application materials for both programs are available on our website.

Write to us at applicants@waldenschool.org with any questions.

Young Musicians Program (YMP)

Information Sessions

Join us to learn more about the music camp that changes lives.

Do you know a student who writes songs or arranges music? Or a young improviser who wants to strengthen their musicianship and meet like-minded peers? Or a music teacher who might like to learn about Walden’s unique curriculum?

Join us at one of our online interactive information sessions, featuring presentations and Q&A with Walden’s Executive Director, Seth Brenzel, alongside YMP leadership, faculty, staff, and students.

All YMP Info Sessions are held on Zoom. Learn more and register for one of the info sessions below:

Monday, December 9, 2024

Thursday, December 12, 2024

Tuesday, January 21, 2025

Tuesday, February 25, 2025

Thursday, March 20, 2025

These events are open to prospective students, music teachers, and anyone else who would like to learn about Walden’s flagship program for musicians ages 9 to 18.

A Walden School/PRISM Quartet Premiere

Congratulations to Young Musicians Program (YMP) alumnus Aaron Nichols, recipient of The Walden School/PRISM Quartet Student Commissioning Award, on the premiere of his commissioned work, Mesovortex!

Aaron’s piece was performed by PRISM Quartet in Philadelphia on November 17 and New York City on November 18. Walden hosted receptions after each concert, and we were so glad to see several Walden alumni and friends in attendance! Many thanks to Walden faculty member, academic dean, and Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) alumnus Nate Trier for organizing the receptions. Thanks also to Walden board member Kate Valenta and to Mary Anne O’Meara, a past board member and Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC) alumna, for their assistance.

Photos courtesy of Nate Trier and Kate Valenta

Walden is proud to partner with PRISM Quartet on this opportunity to support young composers in their creative development. We are especially grateful to Matthew Levy, founding member of PRISM Quartet and a former member of Walden’s Board of Directors, for his longstanding collaboration and leadership. The Walden School/PRISM Quartet Student Commissioning Award was launched in 2000, and since then 22 Young Musicians Program (YMP) students have received the award and had their compositions premiered on PRISM’s concert series.

Community News

Walden at the GRAMMYs!

The 2025 Grammy Awards nominations were announced on November 8, with five going to members of the Walden Community! The Best Opera Recording category includes both The Shining, by past Young Musicians Program (YMP) Composer-in-Residence Paul Moravec, and Kaija Saariaho’s Adriana Mater, featuring the San Francisco Symphony Chorus, which includes Walden Executive Director Seth Brenzel, Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) alum Drew Kravin, Walden bookkeeper Brielle Morgan Neilson, and former Walden administrative staff members Elizabeth Susskind and Chung-Wai Soong. YMP alumna Andrea Grody is nominated for Best Musical Theater Album as the co-producer and music supervisor of the original cast album of Suffs. Seth Parker Woods, a past member of The Walden School Players, received a nod for Best Classical Instrument Solo for Eastman: The Holy Presence Of Joan D’Arc. And JACK Quartet (which includes Austin Wulliman, a past visiting artist at Walden) is nominated for Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance for its recording of Waves and Particles by John Luther Adams.

Ruth Hertzman-Miller and Sarah Kirkland Snider to be featured on Carnegie Hall program

Compositions by CMR alumna Ruth Hertzman-Miller and 2024 YMP Composer-in-Residence Sarah Kirkland Snider will be performed on December 15 at Carnegie Hall, on a program titled Celebration of the Voice of Women Composers. The concert is being presented by Vox Feminarum, a new nonprofit committed to creating a global platform that elevates the work of women composers. To order tickets, click here.

Kate Soper awarded Marie-Josée Kravis Emerging Composer Prize by the New York Philharmonic 

Composer and vocalist Kate Soper, a past visiting artist at Walden with Wet Ink Ensemble, has been named the Kravis Emerging Composer by the New York Philharmonic as part of the Marie-Josée Kravis Prize for New Music. She will receive a $50,000 stipend and a commission to compose a new work that the Philharmonic will premiere in May 2025, conducted by Gustavo Dudamel. This opportunity to explore the orchestral texture in a meta-theatrical sense will continue Kate’s existing work in creating “unique and uncategorizable musico-theatrical spectacles.” Congratulations, Kate!

Violin concerto by Michael Kropf performed on Concert for Peace

Moses in Nederland, a violin concerto by CMR alumnus and former YMP faculty member Michael Kropf, was performed on November 24 in Milwaukee as part of a Concert for Peace, a program presented by the ensemble Present Music. The work is inspired by Kropf’s great-grandfather, Moses Schenkein, who, Michael writes, “as a European Jew living in Holland, was forced to lead his family on a dangerous and miraculous journey of escape from the horrors of the Holocaust. He was also an amateur violinist and composer, and left behind a folder of short melodic compositions,” some of which are incorporated in the concerto. An earlier performance of the work can be viewed here. Michael is on faculty at Gonzaga University as Assistant Professor of Theory and Composition.

Sarah Stroud authors new book

Sarah Stroud, a professor of philosophy at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, member of Walden’s Board of Directors, and mother of YMP alumna and faculty member Francesca Hellerman, is the co-author, along with Daniel Muñoz, of a new book: Ethical Theory: 50 Puzzles, Paradoxes, and Thought Experiments. The book covers classic debates and problems, such as the Trolley Problem and the Repugnant Conclusion, and explores more recent topics of interest, including the ethics of AI. Congratulations on this publication, Sarah!

Song cycle by Freya Waley-Cohen to be performed in New York City

Book two of Spell Book by YMP alumna Freya Waley-Cohen will be performed by the St. Luke’s Chamber Players on December 4 at the DiMenna Center in New York City, in a concert on the theme of Spells and Revelations. Spell Book is a song cycle set to poems by Rebecca Tamás published in the 2019 collection Witch. A recording of Spell Book was released in October on NMC Records. Tickets to the December 4 concert can be purchased here.

Mary H. Crawford and Jimmy Levi engaged

We are excited to share the news that YMP alumni Mary Crawford and Jimmy Levi have gotten engaged! Mary and Jimmy live in San Francisco, where they attended Walden’s celebration and fundraiser in September.

 

Congratulations, Mary and Jimmy!

In Memoriam

Mary Murrell (Bennett) Faulkner

We are sad to share the news Mary Murrell (Bennett) Faulkner died on October 27, 2024. Mary attended the Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC), Walden’s predecessor program, in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Her obituary can be found here. Mary was a distinguished organist and church musician who also worked as a professional tax advisor. Fellow JCC alum Bob Weaver shares that Mary can be seen in this JCC video (prepared by the late Ron Nelson) at the 12:45 mark in a top emblazoned with a large “T”. Walden joins Mary’s family and all who remember her from the JCC in mourning her passing.

We Want To Hear From You!

If you have a recent or upcoming premiere or concert, publication, award, new job, or a celebratory life event, please share your news, which needn’t be music-related (although we love your music-related news to be sure!). Email your news to alumni@waldenschool.org.

Stay in Touch

You can like The Walden School page on Facebook and join The Walden School private group to hear about events and opportunities throughout the year. You can also find us on InstagramTwitterYouTubebandcamp, and at waldenschool.org.

A dance during the 2019 Young Musicians Program


eNews: Internetzo – October 2024

Message from Seth Brenzel, Executive Director

Seth Brenzel headshot

Dear Walden friends,

Happy Halloween! Fall is here, and another mind-bendingly fun and creative Walden summer has come and gone!

Our 2024 season officially came to an end on September 30 with the close of Walden’s fiscal year. We are so grateful to the more than 450 individuals, families, foundations, and corporations who contributed more than $396,000 to Walden’s 2024 Annual Fund! Your generosity allowed us to exceed our goal of raising $375,000 for the 2024 fiscal year, truly raising the bar for Walden’s Annual Fund, which we depend on year after year to make the Walden experience possible for generations of creative musicians.

We are especially grateful to donors who increased their contributions, or made first-time gifts to Walden, in response to our Summer 2024 Board Challenge. Walden’s Board of Directors generously offered to match every new and increased contribution—up to $15,000—that Walden raised during the summer. In response, our donors contributed more than $39,000 in new and increased contributions, including 18 first-time donors to Walden. Thank you, donors!

Walden’s 2024 season was an extraordinary team effort. From our tireless and visionary teachers and staff members to our phenomenal visiting artists and composers-in-residence and, of course, our talented students—who brought creativity, openness, and a collaborative spirit to each day at Walden—everyone in our community showed up to make this an unforgettable summer of growth and inspiration. Thank you to all who participated in our programs in 2024!

I hope you enjoy this edition of InterNetzo, which celebrates our recent fundraising events and features lots of exciting news and announcements from around the Walden community.

Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a spooky Halloween!

Sincerely,

Seth Brenzel signature

Seth Brenzel
Executive Director
415-587-8157

Happy Halloween. . . in October!

One of our newer traditions at Walden’s Young Musicians Program (YMP) is Halloween in July—a spooktacular day featuring a DIY haunted house created by Walden staff and faculty with various creepy, fun, and music-nerdy rooms for students to go trick-or-treating. Here are some highlights from Halloween in July in 2024: the human claw machine, a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, a sad clown watching Shrek, and a forum/form monster.

Read more about the origins of this tradition from Kittie Cooper, a faculty member and Director of (De)Composers Forums at YMP.

Upcoming Community Events

PRISM Quartet to premiere new saxophone quartet by Walden alumnus Aaron Nichols

Young Musicians Program (YMP) alumnus Aaron Nichols was selected last year as the winner of The Walden School/PRISM Quartet Student Commissioning Award, a longstanding partnership in which Walden and the PRISM Quartet collaborate to select a student composer, mentor that composer in completing their final score, and PRISM provides a world premiere performance experience.

PRISM will give the premiere performances of Aaron Nichols’s commissioned piece, Mesovortex, on November 17 in Philadelphia and November 18 in New York City, as part of a program titled “Machine.” Tickets are available on a pay-what-you-wish basis. We anticipate that there will be opportunities for Walden alumni and friends to gather after the concerts. Please write to us if you are interested in helping to organize a get-together in New York or Philadelphia!

Nichols describes the piece as “inspired by, and structured loosely around, timelapse footage of tornadogenesis. When sped up, one can clearly see the ordinary cloud formations caught in an inexorable, yet invisible pull towards themselves—one that is less obvious in real time. This process feels analogous to the unraveling of human emotions: normal events, aligned properly, can grind against one another, creating anger or fear out of virtually nothing. Musically, I feel the saxophone quartet’s capacity to melt into itself—to form more of a mercurial, polyphonic plasma than four distinct voices—will lend itself well to this concept.” Aaron is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in music composition at Oberlin Conservatory, studying under professors Stephen Hartke, Jesse Jones, Michael Frazier, and Soomin Kim.

Walden holiday parties

The holiday season is just around the corner! Walden community members will be gathering for holiday potlucks in cities throughout the country in December and January. Look for an email announcement of dates and cities soon, and if you are interested in hosting a party in your area or want to learn more in the meantime about these upcoming gatherings, please write to us at alumni@waldenschool.org. We are so grateful to the many volunteers who have hosted Walden holiday parties over the years.

Fundraising Events

A Walden Celebration and Fundraiser in San Francisco

Friction Quartet performs in the Green Room.

Walden held a fabulous end-of-season celebration and fundraiser on Sunday, September 29, in the dazzling Green Room at San Francisco’s War Memorial. We are so grateful to our host committee and all our donors, who contributed more than $10,000 to Walden!

Friction Quartet (Otis Harriel, Kevin Rogers, Mitso Floor, and Doug Machiz) gave a masterful performance, featuring works from the Quartet’s 2024 Faculty Commissioning residency at Walden by Cara HaxoFrancesca Hellerman, and Theo Trevisan, as well as a composition written during this summer’s Young Musicians Program by student Henry Vidaver. Thanks to Friction for sharing these amazing works with our West Coast Walden friends!

We are grateful to Walden parent Juli Anna Johnson and board member Stephen Smith, who spoke movingly about Walden’s incredible impact and the importance of supporting our programs.

Thanks also to Stephen Smith and Cultivar Wine for arranging a donation of wine for the event, and to Carlos Henrique Pereira and MacRostie Winery for contributing some fabulous raffle prizes.

Walden supporters Corty Fengler (former Walden Board member and Teacher Training Institute alumna) and Chung-Wai Soong (former Walden administrative staff member)

Giving Day

We shared a wonderful day at our Young Musicians Program (YMP) with friends and supporters near and far as part of Walden’s online Giving Day on Monday, July 29. Livestreams included classes and choral rehearsals, interviews with students, faculty, and members of The Walden School Players, a rehearsal of a student composition, and our first 2024 Festival Week Composers Forum. We hope you enjoyed the day as much as we did!

The videos from Giving Day will remain available here. You do not need a Facebook account to watch the videos.

Our goal was to raise $5,200 in honor of Walden’s 52nd summer. With your support, we raised $7,700—148% of our goal. Thank you!

A Walden Celebration and Fundraiser in New Hampshire

Hilary Kole and Misha Piatigorsky perform.

Walden hosted a wonderful end-of-summer celebration and fundraiser in Dublin and Harrisville, New Hampshire, on Saturday, August 3. The afternoon began with a sizzling performance by acclaimed vocalist Hilary Kole with pianist Misha Piatigorsky. Hilary and Misha were joined for one song by guitarist and composer Carlos Henrique Pereira, a faculty member at Walden’s Young Musicians Program (YMP) and a parent of two Walden students.

Hilary Kole is a Walden alumna who returned to Walden this summer as a YMP faculty member, an attendee at Walden’s Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR), and the parent of a first-time YMP student! As Hilary shared during her performance, “Walden is not the same” as it was when she attended as a student—“it’s better!” Thank you, Hilary, for your incredible performance and powerful reflections on Walden.

Walden supporters Ellen Bernard (Emerita Walden Board member) and Mary Anne O’Meara (Junior Conservator Camp alumna and former Walden Board member)

The celebration continued at the home of Ellen and Ed Bernard in nearby Harrisville. Thank you, Ellen and Ed, for hosting this event for the third year in a row! Thanks, also, to David Bivins, a Walden parent and a new member of Walden’s Board of Directors, who spoke movingly about Walden’s tremendous impact on his family. We are so grateful to our host committee and all our event donors for their generosity. With your help, we raised $28,500 through this event! Thank you!

Save the date—Saturday, March 8, 2025, in Baltimore!

We are thrilled to be returning to Baltimore for a fundraiser and celebration in the evening on Saturday, March 8, 2025. Please save the date and plan to join us!

Support Walden Today

Welcoming Ellie Murphy-Weise

Walden is excited to welcome Ellie Murphy-Weise as our new Development Assistant. Ellie will be working as a part-time member of Walden’s administrative team in our San Francisco office. Welcome, Ellie!

Ellie joins the Walden School following the completion of a Thomas J. Watson Fellowship, where she investigated opera institutions, vocal pedagogy, and traditional music theatre in 18 countries around the world. She began singing with the San Francisco Girls Chorus at the age of ten and developed a taste for new music through performances with Kronos Quartet, The Knights, and Philip Glass. A mezzo-soprano and musicologist with a passion for contemporary opera, she has interned at km28 and the Pierre Boulez Saal in Berlin and conducted research at the University of Cape Town Opera School. Ellie studied music and international relations at Wellesley College and participated in the Young Artists Vocal Program at the Boston University Tanglewood Institute. She has previously worked in development for the San Francisco Ballet, Tatsuya Daniel Orchestra, and the Merit School of Music, and has thoroughly enjoyed hearing student and faculty compositions created at Walden.

Competitions and Calls for Scores

Featured opportunities with upcoming deadlines

Walden encourages the sharing of opportunities and resources for composers, including competitions and calls for scores that may be of interest to our community. We maintain a searchable list of competitions, awards, and calls for scores on our website. Opportunities are often posted in Walden’s community Facebook group as well.

Here are some featured opportunities with upcoming deadlines:

Ballora-Wang Young Composer Award at Penn State

Students who are U.S. citizens and in high school (9th-12th grade) in 2024-25 are invited to submit works for any instrumentation, including acoustic ensembles and/or digital media. Selected composers will win $100 and a one-hour lesson with a member of the Composition and Technology faculty at Penn State. Apply by December 7, 2024.

International Clarinet Association (ICA) 2025 Composition Competitions

The ICA seeks newly composed works for solo B-flat or A clarinet and chamber compositions which include at least one member of the clarinet family. Selected composers will win $1,000 and a performance of their music at the 2025 ClarinetFest conference in Fort Worth, Texas. Apply by December 20, 2024.

San Francisco Choral Artists (SFCA) New Voices Project

The New Voices Project (NVP) is SFCA’s annual competition for composers under 30, aiming to encourage the next generation of composers to write music for a cappella chamber choir. The winner receives a cash prize, three performances of the winning work in June 2025, and a professional-quality recording.

Eligible composers are encouraged to submit new and creative a cappella choral works that suit the theme “Welcome to the Zoo! A Musical Menagerie.” Chosen texts must, in some way, deal with the theme of animals. Apply by February 1, 2025

Community News

Sky Macklay receives Serge Koussevitsky commission

Sky Macklay is one of eight composers awarded a 2024 Music Commission from the Serge Koussevitsky Foundation in the Library of Congress. Sky is a former faculty member at the Young Musicians Program (YMP), former staff at the Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR), and an alumna of both CMR and Walden’s Teacher Training Institute (TTI). Sky’s new commissioned work, Saxophone Hero, was premiered by Project Fusion Saxophone Quartet on September 22 in Washington, D.C. At the premiere, the audience interacted with the quartet and live electronics via a video game, which challenged the audience to execute increasingly complex rhythmic patterns, influencing the form of the piece in real time. Congratulations to Sky on this honor and a creative, ambitious premiere!

Molly Pindell’s Sage Farm Goat Dairy wins national cheese award

Molly Pindell, former Director of Operations at Walden and a past member of Walden’s Board of Directors, owns and operates Sage Farm Goat Dairy together with her sister, Katie Pindell. This year, Sage Farm won two ribbons in the farmstead cheese category at the American Cheese Society National Judging and Competition. The Pindells operate their dairy and care for their herd of alpine goats in Stowe, Vermont, and Sage Farm products are available at markets throughout New England. Molly was featured in a news story about the award on WCAX television in Vermont.

Danity Pike selected as Luna Composition Lab fellow

YMP alumna Danity Pike is one of six composers selected as 2024–25 Luna Composition Lab fellows. Danity (age 16) is a composer and multi-instrumentalist from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She began playing piano at the age of 7 and has been interested in music creation ever since. Danity is currently excited by conceptual composition techniques and performance in songwriting. Her music is often inspired by storytelling, navigating the world between poetry and composition. Congratulations, Danity!

Founded in 2016 by composers Missy Mazzoli and Ellen Reid, Luna Composition Lab provides mentorship, education, and resources for young female, nonbinary, and gender-nonconforming composers ages 13-18. Luna’s ensemble-in-residence this season will be the International Contemporary Ensemble, a frequent ensemble-in-residence at both of Walden’s programs.

Luke Poeppel appointed Assistant Conductor of Kansas City Symphony

Luke Poeppel, a German-American conductor who attended YMP for five summers, is serving as as an assistant conductor to the Kansas City Symphony during Matthias Pintscher’s first season as music director. He will conduct the orchestra in Handel’s Messiah, among other performances this season. Poeppel is a 2024 graduate of the Eastman School of Music where he received his master’s in conducting under the tutelage of Brad Lubman and Timothy Long. He recently served as cover conductor for a Pintscher-led concert with the New York Philharmonic featuring the premiere of Pintscher’s piece neharot, the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto with Gil Shaham, and Schönberg’s Pelleas und Melisande. Congratulations, Luke!

Splinter Reeds releases new album

Splinter Reeds, a past visiting ensemble at YMP, released their third full-length recording, Dark Currents, in August on Canteloupe Music. Dark Currents features two long-form works, Michael Gordon’s Tall Grass and Antenna Studies by Paula Matthusen, a past Composer-in-Residence at YMP, who will return as Composer-in-Residence at CMR in 2025. The album was recorded at SFCM in Dolby Atmos immersive audio, which allows sounds to be placed and recorded spatially in three-dimensional space. At the album release party on August 16 in San Francisco, the audience experienced the Gordon and Matthusen pieces in their intended immersive, spatialized format, alongside spatially conceived works by veteran Walden faculty member Sam Pluta and others.

Lukáš Janata and Lila Meretzky at Mizzou

Lukáš Janata (CMR alumnus and YMP faculty) and Lila Meretzky (YMP faculty and CMR staff) were composers-in-residence at the 2024 Mizzou International Composers Festival at the University of Missouri Columbia. They worked with the players of Alarm Will Sound on new pieces for the ensemble that were performed on July 27, at the Missouri Theater. Esteemed composer George Lewis (past composer-in-residence at both YMP and CMR) was a mentor composer there, along with composer Mary Kouyoumdjian. This summer, Lukáš was also in residence at the Aspen Music Festival as a recipient of the Susan and Ford Schumann Fellowship.

Mary Fineman and “The Sound of Lemonade”

Mary Fineman, a JCC alumna and pianist, shared a moment of musical serendipity this month, which you can enjoy here. And a piano trio by Mary was performed in San Franciso on September 20 as part of a concert sponsored by NACUSAsf (National Association of Composers USA, San Francisco Branch).

Freya Waley-Cohen releases debut album

Composer and YMP alumna Freya Waley-Cohen released her debut album, Spell Book, on October 25 on NMC Records, which includes the song cycle that inspired the album’s title along with three chamber works. Featured artists include members of the Albion Quartet and the Manchester Collective, with singers Héloïse Werner, Fleur Barron, and Katie Bray. The album can be ordered here. Freya will also be giving a pre-concert talk for her new orchestral work Mother Tongue, which will be premiered on November 6 by the London Philharmonic Orchestra at Royal Festival Hall.

Walden composers and artists participate in American Composers Orchestra (ACO) EarShot program

ACO’s EarShot is an ongoing program to develop relationships between composers and orchestras at the national level. Veteran Walden faculty member and Teacher Training Institute (TTI) alumna Osnat Netzer will have her work Common Ground performed at the first EarShot Readings event in Ottawa, Ontario, on October 28-29 with Canada’s National Arts Centre Orchestra.

In January 2025, an EarShot Readings session will be hosted by Lawrence University, with past YMP and CMR Composer-in-Residence Marcos Balter serving as a mentor composer. And in March 2025, Mazz Swift (a past YMP visiting artist) will be featured in an EarShot CoLABoratory Workshop, in which commissioned artists will develop their ideas in partnership with ACO and partner ensembles through an artist-led process.

Orchestral work by Nicolás Lell Benavides premiered

Last spring, Acequia, a new orchestral work by CMR and TTI alumnus Nicolás Lell Benavides, was premiered by the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM) Orchestra under music director Edwin Outwater. That performance is now available for streaming here, and Benavides was featured in an article about the creation of the piece, which draws on the concept of acequia, an ancient irrigation system symbolizing water-sharing and communal responsibility. Acequia was commissioned by the Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music as part of the Composing Earth initiative.

Joel St. Julien honored for work supporting youth

Joel St. Julien, a CMR alumnus YMP alum parent, was honored by San Francisco District 9 Supervisor Hillary Ronen for his work supporting Bay Area youth as Program Director at New Door Ventures, a nonprofit that connects transition-age youth to work and education with paid, meaningful jobs, skills training, educational support, and individualized case management. Joel is also a prolific composer, sound artist, and video artist based in San Francisco. Congratulations on this honor, Joel!

Davey Hiester graduates and pursues master’s degree

Bassoonist and conductor Davey Hiester, a YMP alumnus, wrote to share that his two summers at Walden are “still some of my most life-changing musical experiences that I cherish deeply and still reflect on to this day. I’ve also just graduated from UT Austin and will be going to Yale for my Masters in Bassoon Performance this fall!” Congrats, Davey!

Ann Callaway and Claudia Stevens featured on Sonic Harvest

Sonic Harvest, a long-running Bay Area performing arts series, presented the premiere of Missa Brevis by Ann Callaway (pictured), a Junior Conservatory Camp alumna and former YMP faculty member. The concert, held on October 6 at the Berkeley Piano Club, also included the premiere of a new opera, The Singer Josephine, with music by Allen Shearer and a libretto by Claudia Stevens, a past visiting artist at Walden.

Kyra Sims reprises YMP festival piece

Kyra Sims, a member of The Walden School Players, performed a composition by YMP alumnus Owen O’Connor on October 13 as part of the University of Oregon’s Horn Day. The composition, Where Will You Take Me for horn and electric guitar, was written as Owen’s festival piece at YMP this summer.

We Want To Hear From You!

If you have a recent or upcoming premiere or concert, publication, award, new job, or a celebratory life event, please share your news, which needn’t be music-related (although we love your music-related news to be sure!). Email your news to alumni@waldenschool.org.

Stay in Touch

You can like The Walden School page on Facebook and join The Walden School private group to hear about events and opportunities throughout the year. You can also find us on InstagramTwitterYouTubebandcamp, and at waldenschool.org.

A dance during the 2019 Young Musicians Program


eNews: InterNetzo – July 2024

Message from Seth Brenzel, Executive Director

Seth Brenzel headshot

An incredible summer of creative music making at Walden is flying by. Our Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) was as inspired as ever, and our Young Musicians Program (YMP) is entering its final stretch—Festival Week starts on Sunday!

We hope you will join us, either in person or online, for some of the amazing concerts we have lined up for the last week of YMP. Read on for more information, including livestream links!

In this edition of InterNetzo, we are excited to invite you to two upcoming fundraising events. Monday, July 29, is Giving Day, our annual online fundraiser showcasing live video updates from YMP. And Saturday, August 3, is our end-of-summer celebration and fundraiser in New Hampshire, featuring the acclaimed vocalist Hilary Kole, a Walden alumna and faculty member. We hope you will join us and support Walden!

Plus, Walden’s Board of Directors is matching every new and increased contribution—up to $15,000—that we raise through August 4, the last day of our Young Musicians Program. Your new or increased gift today will be put to work immediately toward student scholarships and inspiring artist residencies at Walden this summer.

Please read on for more news and updates from the Walden community, including reflections on this summer’s CMR from Caroline Mallonee, and an announcement of our new Memphis Composers Institute, an exciting orchestral performance opportunity for emerging composers. I hope our paths cross soon!

Sincerely,

Seth Brenzel signature

Seth Brenzel
Executive Director
415-587-8157

 

This Weekend at Walden

At Dublin School,

Dublin, New Hampshire (and online!)

All events are free and open to the public.

 

Friday, July 26, 7:30 pm EDT

The Walden School Players

.Presenting Walden’s in-house contemporary music ensemble in a dynamic concert of new music, including works by YMP Composer-in-Residence Sarah Kirkland Snider

Walden is proud to host its own professional ensemble-in-residence, The Walden School Players. All distinguished musicians and specialists in contemporary music, the Players share their talent and wealth of experience in contemporary music with the Walden community each summer during the course of a two-week residency at the Young Musicians Program (YMP). While in residence at Walden, the Players work closely with student composers in readings and rehearsals, giving feedback as students prepare their pieces for Festival Week. Then, over the course of three Festival Week Composers Forums, they perform students’ pieces. In addition to their work with students, the Players present a concert of modern and contemporary chamber music in an event that is always a highlight of Walden’s concert series.

The 2024 Walden School Players are: Laura Cocks (flutes), Erica Dicker (violin), Kyra Sims (horn), Chris Wild (cello), Mabel Kwan (piano), Dennis K. Sullivan II (percussion), and Zachary Good (clarinets).

This concert will feature music by YMP 2024 Composer-in-Residence, Sarah Kirkland Snider, alongside contemporary works by Kyra Sims, George Lewis, Rick Burkhardt, Carolyn Chen, Hans Abrahamsen, Isang Yun, and Steven Long.

Watch the Livestream Here!

 

Sunday, July 28, 7:30 pm EDT

YMP Composer-in-Residence Presentation with Sarah Kirkland Snider

Composer Sarah Kirkland Snider writes music of direct expression and vivid narrative that has been hailed as “rapturous” (The New York Times), “groundbreaking” (The Boston Globe), and “ravishingly beautiful” (NPR). Recently named one of the “Top 35 Female Composers in Classical Music” by The Washington Post, Snider’s works have been commissioned and/or performed by the New York Philharmonic; Boston Symphony Orchestra; Cleveland Orchestra; San Francisco Symphony; National Symphony Orchestra; Detroit Symphony Orchestra; Philharmonia Orchestra; Birmingham Royal Ballet; Emerson String Quartet; Renée Fleming and Will Liverman; Deutsche Grammophon for mezzo Emily D’Angelo; percussionist Colin Currie; eighth blackbird; A Far Cry; and Roomful of Teeth, among many others. Join us for a presentation by Ms. Snider of some of her work.

Note: This event will not be livestreamed.

 

Upcoming concerts—Festival Week starts on Sunday!

Festival Week Composers Forums:

  • Monday, July 29: YMP Festival Week Composers Forum I
  • Tuesday, July 30: YMP Festival Week Composers Forum II
  • Wednesday, July 31: YMP Festival Week Composers Forum III

Friday, August 2: YMP Choral Concert

See the entire Summer 2024 Concert Series lineup here.

 

Upcoming Fundraising Events

Giving Day is Monday, July 29!

Throughout the first day of Festival Week, we’ll be sharing live video updates from our Young Musicians Program (YMP) as part of a special fundraiser on our Facebook page. Help us raise $5,200 in honor of Walden’s 52nd summer.

Livestream events will include meals, classes, interviews with students, faculty, and visiting artists, a rehearsal of a student composition, and the first 2024 YMP Festival Week Composers Forum.

Plus, Walden’s Board of Directors is matching every new and increased contribution—up to $15,000—that we raise through August 4, the last day of our Young Musicians Program. Your new or increased gift today will be put to work immediately toward student scholarships and inspiring artist residencies at Walden this summer.

Now is a great time to make your first donation to Walden, or to increase your annual donation, to be sure to increase your contribution’s impact!

Support Walden Today

 

A Walden celebration in New Hampshire on Saturday, August 3

You’re invited to a fabulous Festival Week celebration to cap off Walden’s 2024 Young Musicians Program! Join us to celebrate the impact of Walden’s transformative music programs and to raise funds for student scholarships and inspiring artist residencies. Enjoy a performance by world-renowned vocalist Hilary Kole, a Walden alumna and faculty member, and jazz pianist Misha Piatigorsky, followed by a reception with refreshments and wonderful Walden community.

While there is no charge to attend, gifts to support Walden’s award-winning programs may be made online, by check payable to The Walden School at P.O. Box 432, Dublin, NH 03444, or in person at the event.

For details or to RSVP, contact Noah Mlotek, Walden’s Director of Development and Alumni Relations, by email or by calling (603) 563-8212.

Reflections on the 2024 Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR)

From Caroline Mallonee, Director of CMR

The 2024 Creative Musicians Retreat has come and gone. It was a wonderful week of music-making! This summer, we welcomed 46 participants from 21 states, the District of Columbia, Canada, and Australia. More than a third of the student body were alumni of CMR, back for more Walden magic, and one participant was an alumna of the Young Musician’s Program (YMP), returning to Dublin 37 years after her first summer at Walden!

We offered twelve different classes, including four musicianship/pedagogy classes, three electronic music classes, some favorite seminars, and two new skills classes in conducting and choral writing. Our curriculum was rounded out by workshops in Irish Traditional music, writing for the guitar, writing for the flute, and exploring the creative potential of the “electro-sandbox” in the Electronic Music Studio.

Our CMR Composer-in-Residence Oscar Bettison came to us all the way from the Netherlands to lead master classes, give private lessons, and moderate our three Composers Forums, in which we heard 39 world premieres! The pieces were performed beautifully by our artists-in-residence alongside performers from our student body. Our incredible 2024 CMR artists-in-residence were pianist David Friend and members of the International Contemporary Ensemble: Colleen Bernstein (percussion), Isabel Lepanto Gleicher (flutes), Nicolee Kuester (horn), Dan Lippel (guitar), Josh Modney (violin), and Damian Norfleet (voice).

The CMR Chamber Choir, led by our choral director, Sarah Riskind, performed four world premieres at this year’s CMR Composers Forums. Sarah also led the morning choral rehearsals for the entire community. We delighted in singing both very new and very old music from a variety of composers, and we used a lot of solfège hand signs.

When we started the Creative Musicians Retreat, we hoped it would be appealing to musically inclined parents of students at our Young Musicians Program (YMP). It is! One of our participants, who had sent his daughter to YMP two years ago, came to CMR this year from his home in San Francisco. He invited his sister to join him, and she did — coming all the way from Australia! They played a delightful piano four-hands piece on Performers Night.

Performers Night kicked off with a performance by faculty member Alex Christie using slide projectors and tape loops; included six pieces by faculty and artists who coached ensembles playing their work; and offered one of the most memorable performances of the week. None of us will soon forget Liz Benjamin’s performance of PDQ Bach’s “Little Bunny Hop Hop Hop,” in which she donned a bicycle helmet and hit her head with boomwhackers (tuned percussion tubes)!

We were thrilled to return to our home at Dublin School after two years away. Although we have proved that the magic of Walden can be created elsewhere, being back in Dublin allowed us to reconnect with the memories and traditions cultivated here over forty years. It was a joy to revisit familiar spaces, revive past experiences, and build upon our shared history in this special place.

Sincerely,

Caroline Mallonee

Director, The Walden School Creative Musicians Retreat

Announcing the Memphis Composers Institute

Walden is proud to announce a new performance opportunity for emerging composers: the Memphis Composers Institute, a partnership between The Memphis Symphony, the Rudi E. Scheidt School of Music of the University of Memphis, and The Walden School.

Memphis Composers Institute invites composers in the early stages of their orchestral composing careers to submit one orchestra work for a chance to be performed by the Memphis Symphony. This is a three-day event beginning with rehearsals and panel discussions, culminating with a performance of three orchestral works by emerging composers with the Memphis Symphony conducted by Kyle Dickson on February 9, 2025.

For more information about this exciting call for scores, visit our Memphis Composers Institute webpage. The submission deadline is Thursday, September 12, 2024, at 11:59 pm Central Daylight Time.

Plus, be sure to visit our website for a searchable list of competitions, awards, and calls for scores. Opportunities are often posted in Walden’s community Facebook group as well.

Transitions on Walden’s Board of Directors

The Walden School’s Board of Directors held its annual summer meeting on July 19 and 20, in the midst of this summer’s Young Musicians Program (YMP). For two days, this group of dedicated volunteers met to work on plans for Walden’s long-term growth and sustainability. Board members also joined the YMP community for a barbecue dinner and a concert by the International Contemporary Ensemble. The weekend was capped off by a celebratory dinner hosted by Charlie and Dede MacVeagh at their home in Marlborough, New Hampshire.

At this year’s meeting, we were excited to welcome two new members to the board, and we expressed gratitude to Bob Bassett, whose term on the board came to an end. A Denver-based composer, Bob is a Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) alum and a valued member of the Walden community. Thank you, Bob, for your service on Walden’s board!

We are pleased to welcome two new board members:

Stephen Smith

Stephen has worked in the biotechnology/pharmaceuticals industry for 28 years, developing medicines in neurology, virology, oncology, and various rare diseases. His passion is visual art and art history, and he works as a volunteer docent at the San Francisco Asian Art Museum, where he leads school tours aiming to form deeper connections between young people in the 21st century and objects created hundreds or thousands of years ago. He holds degrees from George Washington University (political science and economics) and the Sotheby’s Institute of Art Institute in London (East Asian art). Stephen lives with his husband and their daughter in San Francisco.

David Bivins

David Bivins has been a dedicated supporter of The Walden School since 2022 when his son experienced a transformative first year as a student. His passion for the school’s mission stems from witnessing the profound impact it has had on the growth and development of his own child and many others. David is a seasoned marketing strategist currently serving Montefiore Einstein, a renowned hospital system in New York City. He holds a B.A. in Women’s Studies from Michigan State University. David’s creative outlets include photography and music composition and performance. His joy of music traces back to his youth when he played trumpet and served as drum major in his high school marching band.

 

We Want To Hear From You!

If you have a recent or upcoming premiere or concert, publication, award, new job, or a celebratory life event, please share your news, which needn’t be music-related (although we love your music-related news to be sure!). Email your news to alumni@waldenschool.org.

Stay in Touch

You can like The Walden School page on Facebook and join The Walden School private group to hear about events and opportunities throughout the year. You can also find us on InstagramTwitterYouTubebandcamp, and at waldenschool.org.

A dance during the 2019 Young Musicians Program


eNews: InterNetzo – June 2024

Message from Seth Brenzel, Executive Director

Walden begins today!

Seth Brenzel headshot

Summer is here, bringing with it another summer of transformative music programs at The Walden School. Today, June 15, our 2024 Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) begins, and our Young Musicians Program (YMP) starts on June 29. I can’t wait to experience the energy, diversity, and creativity that our more than 100 participants will bring to Walden this year.

In this edition of InterNetzo, we are excited to share the incredible lineup of faculty and staff who will bring our Summer 2024 programs to life. We also share a recap of the festive Walden celebration and fundraiser that was held on May 5 in Washington, DC, raising more than $11,000 in support of critical scholarships and world-class artist residences at Walden’s programs this summer.

Please read on for more news and updates from the Walden community. And stay tuned for more updates throughout the summer as our programs and Concert Series get underway. I hope our paths cross soon!

Sincerely,

Seth Brenzel signature

Seth Brenzel
Executive Director
415-587-8157

 

This Weekend at Walden

At Dublin School,

Dublin, New Hampshire (and online!)

All events are free and open to the public.

Join us for the opening concert of Walden’s 2024 Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR), featuring artists-in-residence David Friend (piano) and members of International Contemporary EnsembleColleen Bernstein (percussion), Isabel Lepanto Gleicher (flutes), Nicolee Kuester (horn), Dan Lippel (guitars), Josh Modney (violin), and Damian Norfleet (voice). The concert will feature music by current Walden faculty members and by CMR Composer-in-Residence Oscar Bettison.

Sunday, June 16, 7:30 pm Eastern

Composer-in-Residence Presentation

With CMR Composer-in-Residence Oscar Bettison

Note: This event will not be livestreamed.

Oscar Bettison’s music lives, thrillingly, on a razor’s edge between unpredictability and a groove wrought of full-bodied play. Born on the United Kingdom’s Channel Islands to Spanish and British parents, Bettison was fascinated from an early age by the interplay between the “weird, hazy, tenuous aural image” in his imagination and the wild effort to wrestle it onto the page. After studying in Amsterdam with Louis Andriessen and Martijn Padding, he learned to embrace this creative discomfort, crashing through challenges with fantastic, imaginative twists. As Bettison has said: “It’s not that refinement is a bad thing. But there are times when it can get in the way.” Join us for a presentation by Mr. Bettison of some of his work.

Fundraising Event

Event recap: A Walden Celebration and Fundraiser in Washington, DC

Thank you to all who joined us for The Walden School’s celebration and fundraiser in Washington, DC, on Sunday, May 5!

It was a wonderful afternoon of food, drink, conversation, and music held in the beautiful and historic DACOR Bacon House, just steps from the White House. The Claremont Trio (violinist Emily Bruskin, cellist Julia Bruskin, and pianist Sophiko Simsive) wowed with their engaging performances of works by Fanny Mendelssohn, Kati Agócs (a 2022 Composer-in-Residence at Walden), and Johannes Brahms. In between pieces, Julia Bruskin shared reflections from her many visits to Walden’s Young Musicians Program, saying, “There’s no place like Walden.”

Donate Today

We are so grateful to our host committee and all of our event donors for your generosity. With your help, we raised $11,480! Thank you! Your support brings Walden 2024 that much closer.

If you would like to show your support to Walden, contributions are warmly appreciated at any time. You are welcome to donate online or send a check to The Walden School at 7 Joost Avenue, Suite 204, San Francisco, CA 94131.

Donate Today

Summer 2024 Faculty and Staff

Each summer, Walden assembles a stellar team of faculty and staff to mentor and inspire our participants and provide them with unparalleled musical experiences. Our philosophy is that by participating together in all levels of community life, faculty, staff, visiting artists, and students can create an environment where close relationships develop and creativity flourishes.

Walden’s 2024 faculty and staff team is a wonderful mix of returning team members, team

members returning in new roles, and several new staff and faculty members. Walden’s faculty are a diverse group of improvisers, composers, conductors, performers, and music scholars, all of whom are committed to the creation and dissemination of new music and to developing the next generation’s composers, performers and arts advocates.

Visit our website to learn more about the faculty and staff at Walden’s Young Musicians Program (YMP) and Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR).

YMP Faculty and Staff

David Carlton Adams, Faculty

Zaki Andoh, Staff

William Bolles-Beaven, Faculty

Seth Brenzel, Executive Director & YMP Program Director

Kittie Cooper, Faculty, Academic Dean, & Director of Composers Forums

Shannon Dunning, Staff

Jeff Dutter, Staff

Kari Francis, Faculty & Choral Director

Aidan Gold, Faculty

Cara Haxo, Faculty & Academic Dean

Francesca Hellerman, Faculty & Assistant Director of Composers Forums

Gree Jordan, Nurse

Ross Karre, Technical Director

Hilary Kole, Faculty

Loretta Notareschi, Teaching Mentor

Carlos Henrique Pereira, Faculty

Dahlia Riddington, Staff

Marco Roberts, Staff

Luke Schroeder, Assistant Director of Operations & Faculty

Sammi Jo Stone, Director of Operations & Faculty

Theo Trevisan, Faculty

Nate Trier, Faculty

Samantha Wolf, Faculty

Paul Zito, Staff

CMR Faculty and Staff

Seth Brenzel, Executive Director

Alex Christie, Faculty & Director of Electronic Music

Cara Haxo, Faculty

Francesca Hellerman, Staff

Caroline Mallonee, Faculty & CMR Program Director

Ted Moore, Technical Director

Loretta Notareschi, Faculty

Sam Pluta, Faculty

Dahlia Riddington, Staff

Sarah Riskind, Choral Director

Luke Schroeder, Staff

J. Sparr, Faculty

Sammi Jo Stone, Director of Operations

Call for Memories and Photos

Attention alumni! We are renewing a call for treasured memories and photos from your time at Walden or the Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC), to be included in a 50th/70th-Anniversary memory book.

Please aim to keep your reflections to a maximum of 250 words.

Alumni are also invited to share up to five treasured photos with the community to be included in the memory book.

Please send your memories and photos to us at alumni@waldenschool.org. We look forward to hearing from you!

Community News

Denise Ondishko’s Moments in Nature featured on new recording

A three-movement composition by Denise OndishkoMoments in Nature for saxophone and digital audio, is featured on Inflorescence, a new album by saxophonist Kyle Horch. In these pieces, Ondishko is heard reciting a poem along with digital audio that she designed and created in her home studio, and a live saxophone recorded for the album. Ondishko is a Young Musicians Program (YMP) alumna and a former Walden staff member, faculty member, and Board member. She was featured in a previous edition of InterNetzo, where she shared that her work with Horch was instrumental in keeping her involved in composition.

Modney releases Ascending Primes 

Composer-violinist Josh Modney, who performs and records as Modney, released a new double-album of solo and ensemble works on Pyroclastic Records, Ascending Primes. The album builds on Modney’s interests in tuning systems and exploring “extremes of harmonicity and dissonance.” The works are performed by prime-numbered ensembles featuring several Walden-affiliated artists: Erica Dicker (violin), Marina Kifferstein(violin), Mariel Roberts (cello), and Sam Pluta (electronics). Modney is a frequent Walden visiting artist who will return to both the Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) and the Young Musicians Program (YMP) in Summer 2024.

Nnenna Ogwo’s Juneteenth Festival returns  

This June, Juneteenth LP (Juneteenth Legacy Project), founded by Nnenna Ogwo, will present a series of musical events celebrating Juneteenth, the national holiday commemorating the end of slavery in America. The Juneteenth Festival will culminate in Ogwo’s annual Juneteenth celebration at Joe’s Pub on June 19, featuring music by Black composers across genres. Ogwo’s Juneteenth LP was honored this year with a special grant from the Aaron Copland Fund for Music (a Walden School supporter), in honor of the Fund’s 30th anniversary. Ogwo is both a YMP and CMR alumna, as well as a past board member, faculty member, and visiting artist. A complete lineup of the Juneteenth Festival can be found here.

Alex Christie earns PhD

Composer, electronic musician, and intermedia artist Alex Christie, a YMP alumnus and veteran Walden faculty member who will return to teach at CMR this summer, earned his PhD from the Department of Music at the University of Virginia on May 18. His dissertation is titled “Light, Sound, Systems, Deer: Nonhuman Agency and Intermedia Practice,” and it represents the culmination of many years of Christie’s artistic practice and scholarship. Congratulations, Alex!

We Want To Hear From You!

If you have a recent or upcoming premiere or concert, publication, award, new job, or a celebratory life event, please share your news, which needn’t be music-related (although we love your music-related news to be sure!). Email your news to alumni@waldenschool.org.

Stay in Touch

You can like The Walden School page on Facebook and join The Walden School private group to hear about events and opportunities throughout the year. You can also find us on InstagramTwitterYouTubebandcamp, and at waldenschool.org.

A dance during the 2019 Young Musicians Program


eNews: InterNetzo – May 2024

Message from Seth Brenzel, Executive Director

Seth Brenzel headshot

Dear Walden friends,

I enjoyed seeing many of you in March for our celebration and fundraiser in New York, and I look forward to seeing more of you this weekend in Washington, DC. Read on for details about a wonderful Walden event planned for Sunday, May 5, and join us as we build excitement and raise funds for another summer of extraordinary music programs. I hope to see you there!

In this edition of InterNetzo, we are pleased to share the full lineup of our Summer 2024 Concert Series. All of our events are free and open to the public, as well as livestreamed for a global audience. Wherever you are, I hope you’ll join us for some inspiring performances this summer!

I also want to draw your attention to a part-time job opening on our year-round administrative team in San Francisco. We are seeking a Development Assistant to support Walden’s fundraising efforts while gaining valuable experience in the field of nonprofit development. If you or someone you know might be interested in this position, please be in touch!

Please read on for more news and updates from the Walden community. I hope our paths cross at a Walden event or program soon. Our 2024 Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) begins on June 15, and our Young Musicians Program (YMP) starts on June 29. Summer is right around the corner!

Sincerely,

Seth Brenzel signature

Seth Brenzel
Executive Director
415-587-8157

Upcoming Fundraising Events

Join us on Sunday, May 5, for a Walden celebration in Washington, DC!

Washington, DC

Sunday, May 5

3 to 5 pm

Join The Walden School for an afternoon of music, community, and refreshments at the historic DACOR Bacon House, an elegant mansion and foreign-affairs club located near the White House. Guests will enjoy a performance by the Claremont Trio, lauded as “one of America’s finest young chamber groups” (Strad Magazine), who will perform works by Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel, Johannes Brahms, and Kati Agócs (a former Walden Composer-in-Residence).

This reception and concert will celebrate Walden’s mission of inspiring artistic expression and personal growth through experiential music programs. Contributions to Walden’s Annual Fund will underwrite critical student scholarships and world-class artist residences at Walden’s 2024 summer programs.

For more details or to RSVP, contact us or call (415) 587-8157.

Summer 2024 Concert Series

Each summer, Walden’s award-winning Concert Series presents leading professional musicians and ensembles on concerts that are offered free of charge to the public and webcast through high-quality livestreams.

Visiting artists and Composers-in-Residence are integral to Walden’s programs, leading workshops, demonstrations, and dialogues that challenge and inspire Walden students. During Composers Forums, student improvisations and compositions are performed by faculty, students, and visiting artists.

Across eight concerts, eleven Composers Forums, and two composer presentations, the 2024 Walden School Concert Series will feature cutting-edge works from artists of diverse contemporary musical genres. In a typical summer, Walden will present nearly 200 world premieres created by our students and faculty—approximately 140 by Young Musicians Program (YMP) students, 40 works by Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) participants, and 10 pieces commissioned from Walden’s YMP faculty.

We hope you will join us—whether in person or virtually—for a season of dynamic performances, creative collaborations, and diverse new musical voices.

Time: 7:30 pm

Location: Louise Shonk Kelly Recital Hall on the Dublin School campus in Dublin, New Hampshire (unless otherwise noted)

Admission: Always free and open to the public

Saturday, June 15

Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) artists-in-residence David Friend and members of International Contemporary Ensemble performing music by Walden faculty members and CMR Composer-in-Residence Oscar Bettison

Thursday, June 20

CMR participants and visiting artists presenting a curated selection of chamber music

Sunday, June 30

ZOFO piano duet—Eva-Maria Zimmerman and Keisuke Nakagoshi (pictured at right)—presenting repertoire for piano four-hands on Walden’s recently donated Steinway

Friday, July 5

Aurora Nealand and friends, presenting a popular outdoor concert of New Orleans jazz on the Fountain Arts Building patio—co-presented with the Monadnock Folklore Society

Friday, July 12

Faculty Commissioning Concert with Friction Quartet (pictured at right), premiering new works by Young Musicians Program (YMP) faculty members

Friday, July 19

International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), described by the New York Times as “one of the most accomplished and adventurous groups in new music”

Friday, July 26

The Walden School Players, featuring innovative performers Laura Cocks (flute), Erica Dicker (violin), Kyra Sims (horn), Chris Wild (cello), Mabel Kwan (piano), Dennis K. Sullivan II (percussion), and Zachary Good (clarinet) performing contemporary music including works by Sarah Kirkland Snider, 2024 YMP Composer-in-Residence

Friday, August 2

The Walden School Choral Concert, showcasing the entire YMP community under the direction of choral director Kari Francis

COMPOSER PRESENTATIONS

Sunday, June 16

Oscar Bettison, CMR Composer-in-Residence

Sunday, July 28

Sarah Kirkland Snider, YMP Composer-in-Residence

COMPOSERS FORUMS

Creative Musicians Retreat Composers Forums

Tuesday, June 18; Wednesday, June 19; and Friday, June 21

Featuring newly composed/improvised works by CMR participants

Young Musicians Program Composers Forums

Each Tuesday in July: 2, 9, 16, 23, as well as Thursday, July 18

Monday–Wednesday, July 29–31 (Festival Week Composers Forums)

Featuring newly composed/improvised works by YMP participants

Walden is Hiring!

Join our year-round administrative team in San Francisco.

Walden is hiring for a Development Assistant to join our dynamic, fun, and collegial San Francisco-based administrative team. The part-time Development Assistant will play a crucial role in supporting Walden’s fundraising efforts. This position offers an exciting opportunity to contribute to Walden’s growth and sustainability while gaining valuable experience in the field of nonprofit development.

Please help us spread the word about this exciting opportunity! View the full job description here.

Please direct any questions and inquiries to us at jobs@waldenschool.org.

Photo: The Walden School administrative office in San Francisco

Call for Memories and Photos

Attention alumni! We are renewing a call for treasured memories and photos from your time at Walden or the Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC), to be included in a 50th/70th-Anniversary memory book.

Please aim to keep your reflections to a maximum of 250 words.

Alumni are also invited to share up to five treasured photos with the community to be included in the memory book.

Do you have memories and photos to send? Contact us: waldenschool.org/contact. We look forward to hearing from you!

Photo courtesy of Jane Dugdale, showing Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC) students on a swim trip in the late 1950s

Community News

Katie Balch performed by SF Contemporary Music Players

Katherine Balch’s Musica Spolia was performed on April 20 by the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players as part of the Pierrot RE:Wind festival. The festival celebrates Arnold Schoenberg’s Pierrot Lunaire, featuring new and existing works for the “Pierrot” ensemble of flute, clarinet, violin, cello, and piano. Musica Spolia was performed alongside pieces by Kevin Day, Massimo Lauricella, Andrew Norman, and Mason Bates. A past Young Musicians Program (YMP) faculty member, Balch currently teaches composition at Yale School of Music.

D. J. Sparr’s harp concerto premiered in Nashua alongside music by New Hampshire students

On April 20 in Nashua, New Hampshire, Symphony New Hampshire gave the premiere performance of Extraordinary Motion: Concerto for Electric Harp by composer D. J. Sparr and poet Janine Joseph. D. J. is a YMP alumnus, a past YMP faculty member, and a current CMR faculty member. Also premiered on the April 20 program was a new collaborative work created as part of New Hampshire Concerto, a project that commissions college composers to submit short movements for orchestra that exemplify or represent New Hampshire. Music composed by four New Hampshire students, from University of New Hampshire, Dartmouth, Plymouth State, and Keene State, made up the finished work.

Sky Macklay featured with portrait concert at WoCo Fest

Composer Sky Macklay, a former YMP faculty member, former CMR faculty and staff member, and Teacher Training Institute (TTI) alumna, was featured in a portrait concert on April 13 at Strathmore in Bethesda, Maryland. The concert was presented by Ghost Ensemble, in which Macklay performs as oboist, as part of WoCo Fest 2024, a three-day festival celebrating music by women and gender-marginalized composers, produced by the Boulanger Initiative. Five of Macklay’s compositions were performed, alongside an installation of her Harmonitrees, a unique set of interactive, inflatable harmonica-playing sculptures. Sky is on the composition faculty of the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University.

Bob Bassett work performed by Federal Way Symphony

Bob Bassett’s string orchestra work Lodore received a Pacific Northwest premiere on April 14 by the Federal Way Symphony, based outside of Seattle, Washington. Bassett is a CMR alumnus and member of Walden’s Board of Directors. He was also featured on a podcast speaking about the work and his path as a composer with conductor Adam Stern. Congratulations on your premiere, Bob!

New Arrangement of Stacy Garrop’s Tribute to Justice Ginsburg

YMP alumna and past faculty member Stacy Garrop was commissioned by Jane and James Ginsburg, the children of the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, to compose My Dearest Ruth for the Justice’s 80th birthday tribute in 2013. Garrop’s work is a setting of the last letter written to Ruth Bader Ginsburg by her husband, Martin Ginsburg. Last year, the Bay area vocal ensemble 21V commissioned Garrop to create a version for soprano and alto voices. The new adaptation of My Dearest Ruth was performed by 21V on April 5-6, 2024 in Berkeley and San Francisco.

Theo Trevisan presents master’s recital

Theo Trevisan, a YMP and CMR alumnus and current YMP faculty member, presented his composition master’s recital at the University of Southern California on April 6. Theo performed as bass-baritone in the concert alongside many other performers, including Walden alumni Daniel Montes de Oca Tellez (YMP) and Hannah Rice (CMR). CMR alumna Ashlin Hunter helped with tech. The program for the recital can be viewed here.

Zach Layton performs live sci-fi film score in Albany, New York

On April 20, CMR alumnus and 17-string bassist Zach Layton and collaborators Geoff Gersh (electric guitar) and Bradford Reed (drums and pencilina) performed a live film score for the 1973 French sci-fi film Fantastic Planet at The Linda in Albany, New York. Together, as Order of the Illusive, Layton, Gersh, and Reed have performed accompaniment for other silent films at the same venue, including Nosferatu, F.W. Murnau’s Faust, and Metropolis. On April 21, Layton performed a new work for amplified piano, drums, and 17-string bass with Hamir Atwal and Phyllis Chen (a past Walden visiting artist who will return to Walden in 2024) in Kingston, New York. Check out more of Zach’s upcoming concerts and collaborations in New York State on his website.

Lukáš Janata cantata to be premiered in New York

CMR alumnus and YMP faculty member Lukáš Janata was commissioned by the Chorus American award-winning Cantori New York to write a new cantata. But Love Is Stronger, a 50-minute work for mixed choir, countertenor, clarinet, string quartet, and percussion, will be premiered on May 18 and 19 at the Church of the Holy Apostles in New York City. Janata describes the work as “a testament to the indomitable power of love to transcend even the darkest of circumstances, offering solace, healing, and the promise of renewal,” set to poems by Lord Byron, Emily Brontë, Christina Rossetti, and e.e. cummings. Lukáš recently completed a three-month Helene Wurlitzer Foundation Artist Residency in Taos, New Mexico, as part of a cohort of 11 cross-disciplinary artists.

PRISM Quartet to premiere new body of work

PRISM Quartet, the acclaimed saxophone ensemble and Walden School collaborative partner, will present a new body of work entitled Generate Music, exploring the ties between Black and Jewish artists. World premiere concerts will take place on June 8 in Philadelphia and June 9 in New York, preceded by panel discussions on May 28 and 30 in Philadelphia. Five of the project’s commissioned composers are also musicians—clarinetist David Krakauer, violinist Diane Monroe, poet/vocalist Ursula Rucker, drummer Tyshawn Sorey, and trumpeter/vocalist Susan Watts—who will join PRISM, guitarist David Gilmore, and bassist Reuben Rogers to form an all-star ensemble and perform each other’s works. The program includes additional commissions from Yotam Haber, Myra Melford (with poet Erica Hunt), and Fred Wesley. Project artists have previously collaborated with James Brown, Wayne Shorter, The Roots, Itzhak Perlman, The Klezmatics, and more. A trailer for the project can be viewed here.

We Want to Hear from You!

What’s been going on? If you have a recent or upcoming premiere, publication, award, new job or program, or a celebratory life event, please share the news at waldenschool.org/contact.

Stay in Touch

You can like The Walden School page on Facebook and join The Walden School private group to hear about events and opportunities throughout the year. You can also find us on InstagramTwitterYouTubebandcamp, and at waldenschool.org.

A dance during the 2019 Young Musicians Program
A dance during the 2019 Young Musicians Program


eNews: InterNetzo – March 2024

Message from Seth Brenzel, Executive Director

Seth Brenzel headshot

Dear Walden friends,

Spring has sprung, and I hope you are enjoying the blossoms and the longer days of sun!

As we prepare for another incredible summer of creative music-making, we are continuing our series of benefit concerts to raise funds for Walden’s 2024 season. This month, we enjoyed a wonderful celebration and fundraiser in New York City, featuring pianist Pedja Mužijević. And I invite you to save the date for an upcoming fundraiser on Sunday, May 5, in Washington, DC, from 3 to 5 pm.

The final, Spring deadline for our 2024 Young Musicians Program (YMP) and Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) is Monday, April 1. See below for information about program dates and locations. We hope you will apply to join us!

Please read on for more news and updates from the Walden community. I hope our paths cross at a Walden event or program soon. Summer is coming!

Sincerely,

Seth Brenzel signature

Seth Brenzel
Executive Director
415-587-8157

Apply for Walden 2024

The final application deadline for Walden’s 2024 programs is April 1.

The final application deadline for The Walden School Young Musicians Program (YMP) and Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) is on Monday, April 1—and we’re not fooling when we say that we hope you’ll apply to make music at Walden this summer!

Walden’s 2024 programs:

  • Young Musicians ProgramJune 29 – August 4, 2024, Dublin School, Dublin, New Hampshire (for pre-college musicians, ages 9-18)

To be considered in the spring admissions round, please submit your application by 11:59pm (Pacific Time) on Monday, April 1. Teacher recommendations for the Young Musicians Program can be submitted after the deadline. The non-refundable application fees for both programs may be paid up to a week after the deadline.

Application materials for both programs are available on our website.

Write to us at applicants@waldenschool.org or call the Walden office at (415) 587-8157 with any questions.

Write to us with any questions.

Apply Today

Fundraising Events

Event recap: A Walden School celebration and fundraiser in New York City

Thank you to all who joined us for The Walden School’s celebration and fundraiser in New York City on Saturday, March 16!

It was a wonderful evening of food, drink, conversation, and music held in the beautiful, art-filled Skylight Gallery at the Salmagundi Club in Greenwich Village. Pianist Pedja Mužijević, a former Walden faculty member and the Artistic Administrator of Baryshnikov Arts in New York, took us on a fascinating musical journey with his program “Homage to Mixtapes.”

We are so grateful to our host committee and all of our event donors for your generosity. With your help, we have raised more than $10,400—and counting! Thank you! Your support brings Walden 2024 that much closer.

If you would like to show your support to Walden, contributions are warmly appreciated at any time. You are welcome to donate online or send a check to The Walden School at 7 Joost Avenue, Suite 204, San Francisco, CA 94131.

Upcoming fundraising event

Washington, DC

Sunday, May 5

3 to 5 pm

Join us for an afternoon of music, community, and refreshments at the historic DACOR Bacon House in Washington, DC!

This reception and concert will celebrate Walden’s mission of inspiring artistic expression and personal growth through experiential music programs. Contributions to Walden’s Annual Fund will underwrite critical student scholarships and world-class artist residences at Walden’s 2024 summer programs.

For more information or to RSVP, email donors@waldenschool.org or call (415) 587-8157.

Walden is Hiring!

Join our summer team.

Walden is hiring for 2024 summer positions at our Young Musicians Program (YMP) in Dublin, New Hampshire. We are seeking new teammates to join our creative community, and we hope that you might help spread the word about these opportunities to your friends and colleagues.

The positions currently open are:

  • Staff Member—Young Musicians Program (June–August 2024; Dublin, NH)

Please contact us with any questions and inquiries. All positions are open until filled.

Young Musicians Program (YMP) Online Information Sessions

Join us to learn more about the music camp that changes lives.

Do you know a student who writes songs or arranges music? Or a young improviser who wants to strengthen their musicianship and meet like-minded peers? Or a music teacher who might like to learn about Walden’s unique curriculum?

Join us at one of our online interactive information sessions, featuring presentations and Q&A with Walden’s Executive Director, Seth Brenzel, alongside YMP leadership, faculty, staff, and students.

All YMP Info Sessions are held on Zoom and begin at 7 pm Eastern / 4 pm Pacific.

These events are open to prospective students, music teachers, and anyone else who would like to learn about Walden’s flagship program for musicians ages 9 to 18.

Call for Memories and Photos

Attention alumni! We are renewing a call for treasured memories and photos from your time at Walden or the Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC), to be included in a 50th/70th-Anniversary memory book.

Please aim to keep your reflections to a maximum of 250 words.

Alumni are also invited to share up to five treasured photos with the community to be included in the memory book.

Please send your memories and photos to us at alumni@waldenschool.org. We look forward to hearing from you!

Photo courtesy of Jane Dugdale, showing Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC) students in the late 1950s

Community News

Cara Haxo’s compositions performed

YMP alumna and faculty member Cara Haxo (who will return on faculty at the 2024 Young Musicians Program) had multiple compositions performed this month, including several premieres. On March 9, the ensemble Synergy 78 premiered Haxo’s The Weft and Weave Between Us and the flute and clarinet version of her composition Ripple at the Music by Women Festival at the Mississippi University for Women. On March 16, Forward Motion performed Haxo’s A Few Figs from Thistles (originally commissioned by The Walden School as part of the 2021 Faculty Commissioning Project for Hub New Music) at the Ball State University Festival of New Music in Muncie, Indiana. And on March 22, Stories, Secrets, and Forgotten Wisdom for tenor saxophone was premiered by Andrew Hosler in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, as part of the Local 4 Music Fund concert series. Congratulations, Cara!

 

Recognition for Osnat Netzer’s Dot : Line : Sigh

Veteran CMR and YMP faculty member Osnat Netzer released her debut recording in February of this year, featuring performances of her compositions by Ensemble Dal Niente, Geoffrey Landman, Mivos Quartet, Eric Lamb, Michael Hall, Marianne Parker, and the ~Nois saxophone quartet. Osnat’s new release, Dot : Line : Sigh, was selected by Bandcamp Daily as one of the best contemporary classical releases in February 2024. Osnat spoke about her new release on the Relevant Tones podcast with Matthew Dosland, discussing how she chose compositions from her catalog for the album, and the common thread that connects them: “Though the pieces differ in musical language and aesthetics, they all share the tropes of a punctuated sustain (Dot-Line) and many forms of pitch bends, glissandi, and stylized portamenti (Sigh).” Congratulations, Osnat!

 

Nicole Mitchell at SF Jazz with Brandee Younger

Creative flautist, improviser, and YMP 2023 visiting composer Nicole Mitchell performed at SF Jazz on March 9-10, in a musical tribute to Alice Coltrane led by jazz harpist Brandee Younger. Nicole joined Younger’s quartet as a special guest, along with saxophonist Ravi Coltrane and a string ensemble led by De’Sean Jones. Nicole shared some audio and reflected on the performance in a social media post, which you can view here. We are grateful that Nicole is part of the Walden community!

 

Alicia Jo Rabins announces Girls in Trouble: The Series 

YMP Alumna Alicia Jo Rabins is a musician, poet, Torah teacher, and the creator of Girls in Trouble, a project which explores the complex stories of women in the Bible through music, visual art, and a Torah teaching curriculum created by Alicia. This year, Alicia is collaborating with filmmaker Alicia J. Rose to create Girls in Trouble: The Series. In each episode of this new web series, Rabins takes the viewer on a journey into a Biblical woman’s story and visits scholars and artists to get their take on the story. You can watch the pilot episode here.

 

Ruth Hertzman-Miller first-ever orchestra piece premiere

CMR alumna Ruth Hertzman-Miller is a physician, pianist, and composer. Ruth’s first-ever composition for orchestra, The Activity of Sound, was premiered by the Boston Conservatory Composers Orchestra on March 7. You can watch a video of the performance here. A hearty congratulations to Ruth on this achievement!

 

Eliza Brown’s music responds to climate change

A work by YMP alum and veteran faculty member Eliza Brown was performed as part of a climate change-inspired concert by the Juventas New Music Ensemble in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on March 23. Eliza’s work, In the Age of the Rise: Three Songs Imagining Life in the Age of Climate Change deals with both the immense grief and the glimmers of hope (through the power of collective action) that are contained within our possible climate futures. Eliza spoke about the work in a short video, which can be viewed here. The livestream of the March 23 concert is available for viewing here.

Updates from Anne Deane Berman

Anne Deane Berman, a Walden alumna and past board member, gave a talk in March at UCLA on her interactive immersive environments with her co-creator and spouse, Dr. Steve Berman. Together, they are planning to host their residential and nonresidential day STEM+ARTS+HUMANITIES Academies at Cornell University in July and UCLA in August. They brought a small Model United Nations high school delegation to Yale University in January and plan to go to Yale MUN LATAM in São Paulo in late summer.

We Want to Hear from You!

What’s been going on? If you have a recent or upcoming premiere, publication, award, new job or program, or a celebratory life event, please share the news at waldenschool.org/contact.

Stay in Touch

You can like The Walden School page on Facebook and join The Walden School private group to hear about events and opportunities throughout the year. You can also find us on InstagramTwitterYouTubebandcamp, and at waldenschool.org.

A dance during the 2019 Young Musicians Program
A dance during the 2019 Young Musicians Program


eNews: InterNetzo – February 2024

Message from Seth Brenzel, Executive Director

Seth Brenzel headshot

Dear Walden friend,

As winter wears on, summer feels closer than ever. Along with the whole Walden team, I am immersed in planning an incredible season of programs in 2024. In this edition of InterNetzo, we are pleased to share highlights of the inspiring artists who will be in residence at Walden this summer, mentoring our students, workshopping and premiering their works, and presenting world-class performances on our summer Concert Series.

This newsletter also contains information about upcoming application deadlines and fundraising events; a recap of Walden’s leadership retreat in San Francisco; and the latest news from around the Walden community.

I hope our paths cross at a Walden event or program soon!

Sincerely,

Seth Brenzel signature

Seth Brenzel
Executive Director
415-587-8157

Apply for Walden 2024

Applications for the Lance Reddick Scholarship are due Friday, March 1.

Applications for the Lance Reddick Scholarship at Walden’s Young Musicians Program (YMP), including a completed financial aid application, are due Friday, March 1.

The final application deadline to apply to the Young Musicians Program (YMP) and Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) is Monday, April 1. We encourage you to share the news with your friends, family, colleagues, students, and teachers.

Walden’s 2024 programs:

  • Young Musicians Program: June 29 – August 4, 2024, Dublin School, Dublin, New Hampshire (for pre-college musicians, ages 9-18)

Application materials for both programs are available on our website.

Write to us with any questions.

Apply Today

Upcoming Fundraising Events

Saturday, March 16, from 6 to 8 pm

Save the date for an evening of music, community, and refreshments at the beautiful Salmagundi Club in New York City.

Pedja Mužijević, an amazing pianist, a former Walden School faculty member, and the Artistic Administrator at Baryshnikov Arts in New York, will perform.

This reception and concert will celebrate Walden’s mission of inspiring artistic expression and personal growth through experiential music programs. Contributions to Walden’s Annual Fund will underwrite critical student scholarships and inspiring artist residences at Walden’s 2024 summer programs.

For more information or to RSVP, contact us or call (415) 587-8157.

Sunday, May 5, from 3 to 5 pm

Save the date for another wonderful Walden celebration and fundraiser at the DACOR Bacon House in Washington, DC! More details will be available soon. Contact us or call (415) 587-8157. with any questions or to RSVP.

 

Inspiring Artist Residencies at Walden 2024

Each summer, Walden’s award-winning Concert Series presents leading professional musicians and ensembles on concerts that are offered free of charge to the public and webcast through high-quality livestreams.

Visiting artists and Composers-in-Residence are integral to Walden’s programs, leading workshops, demonstrations, and dialogues that challenge and inspire Walden students.

We have an incredible roster of visiting artists and composers lined up for Walden’s 2024 summer season, with additional artists still to be confirmed.

2024 Composers-in-Residence

Oscar Bettison, Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) Composer-in-Residence

Born on the United Kingdom’s Channel Islands to Spanish and British parents, Oscar Bettison was fascinated from an early age by the interplay between the “weird, hazy, tenuous aural image” in his imagination and the wild effort to wrestle it onto the page. After studying in Amsterdam with Louis Andriessen and Martijn Padding, he learned to embrace this creative discomfort, crashing through challenges with fantastic, imaginative twists. Bettison was recognized with a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2017, and he is currently a Professor of Composition at John Hopkins University’s Peabody Institute.

Sarah Kirkland Snider, Young Musicians Program (YMP) Composer-in-Residence

A highly acclaimed composer who has written dozens of chamber, orchestral, and choral works, Sarah Kirkland Snider has been called “one of today’s most compelling composers for the human voice” (NPR’s Deceptive Cadence). Snider’s music organically synthesizes diverse influences to render a nuanced command of immersive storytelling. She is also the co-founder and co-artistic director of New Amsterdam Records, a nonprofit label that champions new albums by creative composers and performers.

 

2024 Artists-in-Residence

International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE)

Members of the International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE) will return for residencies at both CMR and YMP in 2024, presenting concerts of cutting-edge new music and performing student works on Composers Forums. With a commitment to cultivating a more curious and engaged society through music, the International Contemporary Ensemble—as a commissioner and performer at the highest level—amplifies creators whose work propels and challenges how music is made and experienced.

David Friend

Pianist David Friend will return as a visiting artist at CMR in 2024. A fearless performer, he has been hailed by critics for his adventurous programming, his commanding technique, and his captivating performances. His playing has been described as “astonishingly compelling” (the Washington Post) and the New York Times calls him “[one] of the finest, busiest pianists active in New York’s contemporary-classical scene.”

ZOFO

This GRAMMY-nominated piano duo will present an opening concert at YMP. Since joining forces as a professional duo in 2009, internationally acclaimed solo pianists Eva-Maria Zimmermann and Keisuke Nakagoshi—ZOFO—have electrified audiences from Carnegie Hall to Tokyo Japan with their dazzling artistry and outside-the-box thematic programming for piano-four-hands.

Friction Quartet

The acclaimed Bay Area-based string quartet will be in residence for Walden’s 2024 Faculty Commissioning Project at YMP. Friction Quartet will collaborate closely with members of Walden’s faculty, with rehearsals open to the Walden community, culminating in a concert of world premieres composed by Walden faculty members. Lauded for performances described as “terribly beautiful” (San Francisco Classical Voice), “stunningly passionate” (Calgary Herald), and “exquisitely skilled” (ZealNYC), Friction Quartet is dedicated to modernizing the chamber music experience and expanding the string quartet repertoire.

Aurora Nealand

The beloved bandleader, composer, performer, and improviser Aurora Nealand will return to Walden for an outdoor concert during YMP. A Walden alumna and former faculty member, Aurora Nealand has become a prominent force in the New Orleans music scene since she first arrived in 2004. She is most recognized for her performance on saxophones, clarinet, and vocals and has been at the forefront of the revival of New Orleans traditional jazz amongst the younger generation of the city’s musicians.

The Walden School Players

All distinguished musicians and specialists in contemporary music, The Walden School Players share their talent and wealth of experience with the Walden community each summer during a two-week residency at YMP. They will present a concert of cutting-edge new music and premiere student works on three Festival Week Composers Forums. The 2024 Walden School Players are Mabel Kwan (piano), Chris Wild (cello), Laura Cocks (flute), Zachary Good (clarinet), Kyra Sims (horn), Erica Dicker (violin), and Dennis Sullivan (percussion).

Walden is Hiring!

Join our summer team.

Walden is hiring for 2024 summer positions at our Young Musicians Program (YMP) in Dublin, New Hampshire. We are seeking new teammates to join our creative community, and we hope that you might help spread the word about these opportunities to your friends and colleagues.

The positions currently open are:

  • Faculty Member—Young Musicians Program (June-August 2024; Dublin, NH)
  • Staff Member—Young Musicians Program (June–August 2024; Dublin, NH)

Please contact us with any questions and inquiries. All positions are open until filled.

Young Musicians Program (YMP) Online Information Sessions

Join us to learn more about the music camp that changes lives.

Do you know a student who writes songs or arranges music? Or a young improviser who wants to strengthen their musicianship and meet like-minded peers? Or a music teacher who might like to learn about Walden’s unique curriculum?

Join us at one of our online interactive information sessions, featuring presentations and Q&A with Walden’s Executive Director, Seth Brenzel, alongside YMP leadership, faculty, staff, and students.

All YMP Info Sessions are held on Zoom and begin at 7 pm Eastern / 4 pm Pacific.

These events are open to prospective students, music teachers, and anyone else who would like to learn about Walden’s flagship program for musicians ages 9 to 18.

Walden Leadership Retreat

February 10-11 in San Francisco

Members of Walden’s year-round administration and program leadership teams met for two days of planning sessions on February 10-11 in San Francisco. On the agenda were Walden’s curriculum, strategic framework, marketing and recruiting efforts, year-round programming, finances and budget, Musicianship Course Update Project, and more. It was a productive, inspiring weekend that generated lots of great ideas and momentum as we prepare for Summer 2024—and beyond!

Call for Memories and Photos

Photo courtesy of Robin Seto, showing Walden students in 1975

Attention alumni! We are renewing a call for treasured memories and photos from your time at Walden or the Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC), to be included in a 50th/70th-Anniversary memory book.

Please aim to keep your reflections to a maximum of 250 words.

Alumni are also invited to share up to five treasured photos with the community to be included in the memory book.

Please send your memories and photos to us. We look forward to hearing from you!

 

Community News

Loretta Notareschi releases new premiere recording

YMP alumna and YMP/CMR faculty-member Loretta Notareschi’s Scourge Songs, recorded by the Nebula Ensemble, was released on streaming platforms in January. The poetry, about the Covid-19 pandemic, was written by Denver-based poet Alyse Knorr. In addition to the streaming audio, a video with subtitles is also available for viewing on YouTube. The cover art was partially created by YMP alum Ruby Garlow.

Katherine Balch work premiered by Pittsburgh Symphony

On February 16, the Pittsburgh Symphony premiered former YMP faculty member Katherine Balch’s musica pyralis, a work that takes inspiration from the sounds of the firefly. musica pyralis was co-commissioned through New Music USA’s Amplifying Voices program. The commission was led by the Pittsburgh Symphony and the New York Philharmonic in collaboration with the Ann Arbor Symphony, Erie Philharmonic, and Santa Rosa Symphony. The New York Philharmonic will perform the work on April 12-14. Balch was interviewed by WQED Pittsburgh in advance of the premiere.

Sarah Riskind presents “Baroque Music of the Synagogue”

On February 25, Sarah Riskind presented a concert of Jewish baroque music with the group she directs, the Baroque Artists of Champagne Urbana (BACH). In advance of the concert, Sarah was interviewed on Illinois Public Media. Riskind is a longtime Walden faculty member, having served as Choral Director at YMP for several years, and she will return to Walden as Choral Director at the 2024 Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR). A livestream of the February 25 concert can be viewed here.

David Roberts and teammate win table tennis tournament

David Roberts (at far right in the accompanying photo), a member of Walden’s Board of Directors and parent of YMP alum Marco Roberts, along with his teammate won the Over-50 Men’s Team Championship in Lima, Peru, at the 32nd International Table Tennis Open held at the Juan XXIII Peruvian Chinese School. The pair went undefeated against four teams, one from Chile and three from Peru, to win the event. Congratulations, David!

Hub New Music premieres work by Marcos Balter

Hub New Music, a past ensemble-in-residence for Walden’s Faculty Commissioning Project, performed on February 24 as part of the Celebrity Series of Boston. The program, “to hear the things we cannot see,” included a world premiere by Marcos Balter, a past Composer-in-Residence at both of Walden’s programs. The work by Balter was commissioned as part of Hub New Music’s 10th anniversary season.

Joan Tower honored by Da Capo Chamber Players

The Da Capo Chamber Players honored one of its founding members, the composer Joan Tower, with a concert on February 25 at the Tenri Cultural Institute in New York City. Tower, who is a past Composer-in-Residence at YMP and who has moderated a Walden Alumni Composers Forum, has described Walden as “one of America’s greatest hidden treasures.” The concert, in celebration of Tower’s 85th birthday, featured four of her works, spanning almost 50 years of Tower’s compositional activity.

We Want to Hear from You!

What’s been going on? If you have a recent or upcoming premiere, publication, award, new job or program, or a celebratory life event, please share the news at waldenschool.org/contact.

Stay in Touch

You can like The Walden School page on Facebook and join The Walden School private group to hear about events and opportunities throughout the year. You can also find us on InstagramTwitterYouTubebandcamp, and at waldenschool.org.

A dance during the 2019 Young Musicians Program
A dance during the 2019 Young Musicians Program


eNews: InterNetzo – January 2024

Message from Seth Brenzel, Executive Director

Seth Brenzel headshot

Dear Walden friend,

I hope your year is off to a great start! This winter has been a busy time for Walden, with lots of plans afoot for an amazing season of programs in 2024.

Here is some of what you’ll find in this edition of InterNetzo: an exciting new scholarship created in memory of Lance Reddick; the winter-round deadline to apply to Walden’s summer programs—Thursday, February 1!; summer employment opportunities at Walden; an upcoming Walden event in New York City on March 16; and much more, including news from around the Walden community.

I hope our paths cross at a Walden event or program in the months to come. Summer is coming!

Sincerely,

Seth Brenzel signature

Seth Brenzel
Executive Director
415-587-8157

Lance Reddick Scholarship Announced

Earlier this month, The Walden School launched the Lance Reddick Scholarship, an exciting new initiative made possible by a $450,000 anonymous donation in memory of esteemed alumnus and actor, Lance Reddick, who passed away suddenly in the spring of 2023. The donation will fund ten full scholarships per year for the 2024 through 2026 seasons of the Young Musicians Program (YMP), enabling deserving young musicians the opportunity to experience Walden’s summer five-week program free of charge. Five of the ten scholarships will be awarded specifically to students from the Baltimore area in honor of Mr. Reddick’s hometown and the birthplace of The Walden School.

The news was featured in a January 24 article in the Keene Sentinel of New Hampshire, which quoted Walden’s Executive Director, Seth Brenzel: “We’ve always been committed to providing financial aid, and I’m just thrilled we’re going to be able to grow that number quite significantly and create even more access opportunities.”

Applications for the Lance Reddick Scholarship are due Friday, March 1. Click here to apply to Walden, and here to learn more about the scholarship.

Walden is Hiring!

Join our summer team.

Walden is hiring for 2024 summer positions at our Young Musicians Program (YMP) in Dublin, New Hampshire. We are seeking new teammates to join our creative community, and we hope that you might help spread the word about these opportunities to your friends and colleagues.

The positions currently open are:

  • Faculty Member—Young Musicians Program (June 2024; Dublin, NH)
  • Staff Member—Young Musicians Program (June–August 2024; Dublin, NH)

Please contact us with any questions and inquiries. All positions are open until filled.

Year-End Giving

Thank you for your support!

Thank you to the many generous donors who made year-end gifts to Walden! Your contributions will help us offer life-changing musical experiences next summer to 100 students across our two programs, including critical student scholarships and inspiring artist residencies.

During the last three months of 2023, our donors contributed more than $150,000 to Walden’s Annual Fund. This represents 40% of our goal to raise $375,000 during Walden’s 2024 season (October 1, 2023, through September 30, 2024). Thank you! Your support brings a life-changing summer experience that much closer for our students. If you missed our year-end campaign, it’s not too late to support Walden today with a tax-deductible gift. Thank you for your support!

Donate Today

Upcoming Fundraising Event

Saturday, March 16, from 6 to 8 pm

Save the date for an evening of music, community, and refreshments at the beautiful Salmagundi Club in New York City.

Pedja Mužijević, a “refined pianist” (The New York Times) and former Walden School faculty member, will perform.

This reception and concert will celebrate Walden’s mission of inspiring artistic expression and personal growth through experiential music education. Contributions to Walden’s Annual Fund will underwrite critical student scholarships and inspiring artist residences at Walden’s 2024 summer programs.

For more information or to RSVP, contact us or call (415) 587-8157.

 

Walden Holiday Parties

In January, Walden community members gathered for three holiday/new year parties in New York, Seattle, and Portland, Oregon. These events brought together Walden alumni, parents, faculty, staff, and board members for festive potluck gatherings. Delicious food and drinks were shared, music was played, Jenga towers were built and destroyed, and much merriment was had. Many thanks to our wonderful volunteer hosts: Scott Menchin and Yvetta Fedorova in New York, Ali Crockett Moore in Portland, and Michael Brotchner and Lori Cohen in Seattle.

Apply for Walden 2024

The next (winter-round) application deadline is Thursday, February 1!

The second (winter) application deadline to apply to the Young Musicians Program (YMP) and Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) is tomorrow, Thursday, February 1. We encourage you to share the news with your friends, family, colleagues, students, and teachers.

Walden’s 2024 programs:

  • Young Musicians Program: June 29 – August 4, 2024, Dublin School, Dublin, New Hampshire (for pre-college musicians, ages 9-18)

Application materials for both programs are available on our website.

Write to us with any questions.

Apply Today

Young Musicians Program (YMP) Online Information Sessions

Join us to learn more about the music camp that changes lives.

Do you know a student who writes songs or arranges music? Or a young improviser who wants to strengthen their musicianship and meet like-minded peers? Or a music teacher who might like to learn about Walden’s unique curriculum?

Join us at one of our online interactive information sessions, featuring presentations and Q&A with Walden’s Executive Director, Seth Brenzel, alongside YMP leadership, faculty, staff, and students.

All YMP Info Sessions are held on Zoom and begin at 7 pm Eastern / 4 pm Pacific.

Learn more and register for one of the info sessions below:

Thursday, February 15

Thursday, March 21

Thursday, April 11

These events are open to prospective students, music teachers, and anyone else who would like to learn about Walden’s flagship program for musicians ages 9 to 18.

Walden Recordings on Bandcamp

Listen to live recordings from Walden.

Each summer, students at Walden’s Young Musicians Program (YMP) and Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) showcase their creativity by presenting original works on Composers Forums. Walden is proud to offer professional-quality recordings of those works for free on our Bandcamp page, where you can enjoy recordings from all the summer 2023 Composers Forums at both Walden programs, as well as last summer’s festive YMP Choral Concert featuring the entire YMP community.

Competitions and Calls for Scores

Featured opportunities with upcoming deadlines

Walden encourages the sharing of opportunities and resources for composers, including competitions and calls for scores that may be of interest to our community. We maintain a searchable list of competitions, awards, and calls for scores on our website. Opportunities are often posted in Walden’s community Facebook group as well.

Here are some opportunities we are highlighting this month:

Flute Choir Call for Scores

The National Flute Association invites composers to submit works for flute choir. Submissions must be 12 minutes in duration or less, and include at least six parts for any combination of the acoustic flute family. The winning submission will be performed in August 2024 at the National Flute Association convention in San Antonio, Texas. Apply by February 14.

Ithaca College Wohlhueter Jazz Ensemble Composition Contest

Entries must be original, unpublished compositions for instrumental jazz ensemble, including a solo part for guest artist Alexa Tarantino on alto sax, soprano sax and/or flute. Ithaca College Jazz Ensemble students participate in the judging of contest submissions, and will perform the winning composition in April 2024. The contest prize for the winning composer is $1,500. The entry fee is $25. Apply by March 1.

2024 Earplay Donald Aird Competition

Earplay sponsors the annual Donald Aird Composers Competition, open to composers of any nationality and any age. Submissions should be for the instrumentation of Earplay, 1-6 players with one player per part on any combination of flute, clarinet, piano, violin, viola, and/or cello. Works may include electronics. Earplay performs the prizewinning piece and presents a cash prize of $1,000 to the winning composer. Apply by March 31.

If you’re aware of an opportunity that Walden students, alumni, faculstaff, and friends should know about too, please contact us.

Call for Memories and Photos

Photo courtesy of Robin Seto, showing Walden students in 1975

Attention alumni! We are renewing a call for treasured memories and photos from your time at Walden or the Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC), to be included in a 50th/70th-Anniversary memory book.

Please aim to keep your reflections to a maximum of 250 words.

Alumni are also invited to share up to five treasured photos with the community to be included in the memory book.

Please send your memories and photos to us. We look forward to hearing from you!

 

Community News

D. J. Sparr collaborates with Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra

Walden alumnus and longtime faculty member D. J. Sparr, who will return on faculty at the 2024 Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR), will be featured this Friday and Saturday, February 2 and 3, with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, for a program called Shostakovich and Six Strings. Sparr is a composer and guitarist who frequently performs on electric guitar in collaborative concerts with symphony orchestras. In an interview with Buffalo Rising, D. J. said, “We’re going to play with joy. . . . [We are] going to reach out to people that wouldn’t otherwise maybe want to come, like people in the ‘guitar world’ who are really curious about the guitar being combined with classical music.” In connection with the concerts, D. J. will offer a masterclass for high school and college students.

 

New music by Freya Waley-Cohen in London

In February, several compositions by Freya Waley-Cohen, a Young Musicians Program (YMP) alumna, will receive premiere performances in London, England. On February 1, Manchester Collective will give the first performance of Freya’s song cycle Spell Book at the Barbican Milton Court Concert Hall. On February 27, the Colin Currie Quartet will premiere Freya’s new percussion quartet Stone Fruit at Wigmore Hall, on a program of percussion ensemble music by Steve Reich, Andy Akiho, Dave Maric, and Amy Beth Kirsten, who has been composer-in-residence at YMP in 2022 and CMR in 2023.

 

George Lewis profiled by Alex Ross in The New Yorker

George Lewis, the pioneering composer, scholar, and trombonist who has been Composer-in-Residence at both of Walden’s programs, was the subject of a recent profile by Alex Ross in The New Yorker. The article highlighted Lewis’s work as both a participant in, and a scholar of, the black-led experimental music collective known as the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM), as well as his recent work as artistic director of the International Contemporary Ensemble—a frequent Walden artistic collaborative partner, which will return to Walden’s programs in summer 2024.

 

Julian Hofstetter honored by Lawrence University

Julian Hofstetter has received the Pi Kappa Lambda Composition Award from Lawrence University, awarded “for exceptional originality and skill in music composition.” The award committee wrote of Julian: “Julian Hofstetter is a composer who has shown consistent imagination and skill, with a strong dedication to his art. . . . The composition faculty highly commend Julian on his initiative, work ethic, and originality.” An alumnus of both YMP and CMR, Julian graduated from Lawrence University in 2023. A hearty congratulations from Walden, Julian!

 

Constantine Darie featured in local newspaper

YMP alumnus Constantine Darie is raising funds for a trip to perform in Austria, the Czech Republic, Italy, Germany, and Switzerland with the American Music Abroad program. He will play cello and sing in chorus on the tour alongside 150 other music students from the United States. His fundraiser was featured in an article in North Country Now of Potsdam, New York.

 

Del Sol Quartet premieres Huang Ruo’s Angel Island

On January 11-13, the Del Sol Quartet, a past Walden visiting ensemble, gave the New York premiere of Angel Island, a staged oratorio for string quartet and chamber choir by acclaimed Chinese-American composer Huang Ruo. Del Sol has been working with Ruo on the Angel Project for six years, and their collaboration was profiled in a New York Times article about the performances at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. The work is a setting of poems etched between 1910 and 1940 by Chinese immigrants to the U.S. on the walls of the Angel Island Immigration Station in San Francisco Bay. Del Sol Quartet, who are based in San Francisco, will give a series of performances at the historical immigration station in March.

In Memoriam

Ron Nelson at a JCC Composers Forum (photo credit: Edward Max)

Ron Nelson

Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC) composer and faculty member Ron Nelson died on December 24, 2023, at the age of 94 in Scottsdale, Arizona. He taught at Brown University for many years and was the Chair of the Music Department there.

Legions of Walden alums will recall singing Ron’s “Sleep, Little One” in chorus and in evening music. Nelson was described by conductor Leonard Slatkin as a “quintessential American composer.” You can learn more about his life and music here.

Ron put together a video with footage from the 1960 JCC season for the 2007 Walden/JCC alumni reunion. You can view the video here, to which JCC alumnus Bob Weaver added Ron’s original music as a soundtrack.

The entire Walden and JCC communities join in extending our condolences to Ron’s wife Michele, Ron’s family and friends, and all who loved him and who were touched by his life and music.

Alice Parker

Alice Parker, the renowned American choral composer, arranger, conductor, and educator, died at the age of 98 on December 24, 2023. In the summer of 2005, Parker paid a visit to Walden’s Young Musicians Program (YMP), where she led one of her signature “Community Sings.” The impact of this visit was felt for many years by those who remember her generous spirit and heartfelt musicianship. The Walden School extends its condolences to Alice Parker’s family and to all those who were touched by her legacy.

Charles Ogwo

Charles Ogwo, brother of Walden alumna, past faculty member, and past Walden board member Nnenna Ogwo, passed away unexpectedly earlier this month in Washington, DC. The Walden community joins together in keeping Nnenna in our thoughts, prayers, and hearts during this most difficult time.

We want to hear from you!

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A dance during the 2019 Young Musicians Program
A dance during the 2019 Young Musicians Program