The VCUarts Department of Music regularly hosts workshops, camps and other programs for middle- and high-school students and their families.
Programs happen year-round and include offerings for winds, brass, percussion, voice, piano, strings and more! Select from the menu to learn more about each program.
Select a program
Join the VCU Wind & Percussion faculty for an audition prep workshop! The workshop will take place on November 10th at 2:00 p.m for District I and at 3:30PM for District III. This workshop for winds and percussion helps high school players with their District I and III etudes and scales. Participants will hone their skills and build their confidence.
VCUarts Music is excited to hold a Music Major for a Day for Prospective Students on April 3, 2024. Open House is projected to take place from 10am to 5pm. A detailed schedule will be sent out about a week ahead of time, with detailed directions and parking information. Plan to bring your instrument!
Interested students will have the opportunity to participate in: master classes, band rehearsals, orchestra sessions, choir rehearsals, info sessions and workshops. They will get a chance to meet with VCUArts Music faculty and current students, get a tour of our facilities, and more!
FEBRUARY 17, 2024 SATURDAY 10am-12:30 ON ZOOM
REGISTER NOW
Cost $40 per participant ($50 after February 1)
This workshop for violin, viola, cello, bass, and harp helps high school string players prepare for the Virginia All-State audition. Guided by VCU String faculty, participants will hone their skills and build their confidence.
In this online workshop, you will hear us, the faculty, but we won’t hear you as we will keep you muted (unless you are asking a question). You’ll get tips on how to work on the trickiest of spots in your audition material with faculty on your instrument. Workshops on scale readiness and stagefright round out the workshop to allow you to be your best in the All-State Audition.
Schedule of Activities (Draft)
10:00-10:25am Technique/Scale Blitz
10:30-11:15am Etude Workshop
– break –
11:20am-12:05pm Excerpt session
12:05-12:30pm Performance & Stagefright Training
Workshop includes handouts to keep and instruction over zoom. Looking for music? Audition materials for All-State Orchestra can be found at the VBODA.org website under events.
Faculty:
Violin: Professors Susanna Klein, Anna Williams
Viola: Professors Molly Sharp, Stephen Schmidt
Cello: Professors Dana McComb, Mikhail Veselov
Bass: Professor Ayca Kartari
Harp: Professor Anastasia Jellison
VCUarts Music faculty members are professional musicians who currently perform with the Richmond Symphony, Virginia Symphony, Atlantic Chamber Ensemble, Classical Revolution and more. They have countless years of experience playing in professional orchestras and preparing successfully for auditions. Read more about our amazing professional string faculty here.
Join the VCU Wind & Percussion faculty for a free, one-hour virtual audition prep workshop! The virtual workshop will take place on February 12 at 7:00 p.m. This workshop for winds and percussion helps high school players prepare for the Virginia All-State audition. Participants will hone their skills and build their confidence. Please fill out this form to participate.
All cello, all afternoon! Stretch your playing and musicianship with a diverse offering of workshops in technique and creativity with like-minded community cellists. All participants will perform in a cello ensemble concert! Cellopalooza is an ideal experience for cellists age 12 to 99*, both students and teachers.
The Amazing Cellopalooza Faculty for 2024 is: Dana McComb & Mikhail Veselov with this year’s special guest artist Nicholas Photinos.
Registration fee $50 (Early Bird, up to October 15th ) or $65 (October 16th-31st).
Registration covers all workshops, rehearsals, T-shirt, boxed lunch
REGISTER HERE
Workshops Topics:
- Practice Strategies for left hand/Sectionals
- Right Hand Technique/Sectional
- Young Artist Masterclass with Nicolas Photinos
- Cello Choir Rehearsal & Concert
Important Details – Please Read:
- Students younger than 12 must be accompanied by their parents or a teacher/guardian
- **Cellists will be assigned a cello ensemble part based on their experience. Cello teachers may join any cello choir section.
- Link to Cellopalooza Ensemble Music will be made available on November 7th
- T-shirt will be guaranteed for all who register by Wednesday November 6th
- Final schedule for the day, parking info and directions will be emailed the week of the event
Cellopalooza has been running for more than a decade!
Previous special guest artists have been:
Cellopalooza I: Bonnie Hampton, Juilliard
Cellopalooza II: Peter Wispelwey, International Artist
Cellopalooza III: Zuill Bailey, International Artist
Cellopalooza IV: Joel Krosnick, Juilliard Quartet
Cellopalooza V: Clive Greensmith, Tokyo Quartet
Cellopalooza VI: Alisa Weilerstein
Cellopalooza VII: Irene Sharp
Cellopalooza VIII: Paul Watkins
Cellopalooza IX: Sharon Robinson
Cellopalooza X: Emanuel Feldman
To be added to our Strings mailing list, please click here
Questions about Cellopalooza? Contact Dana McComb: dmmccomb@vcu.edu
More about this year’s Special Guest Artist:
Four-time Grammy Award-winning cellist Nick Photinos is one of the most innovative and multifaceted cellists of our time. An ardent advocate of new music, he has worked closely with many of the foremost composers of this era and has premiered hundreds of works throughout his career. He has received Musical America’s Ensemble of the Year Award, the MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions, the inaugural Chamber Music America Visionary Award, the Naumburg Award, and the Concert Artists Guild Grand Prize.
The VCU Choral Classic is an invitational event for high school choirs to attend.
Each fall choirs from across the state attend a half-day vocal workshop with our voice faculty followed by tours of campus, rehearsals in the concert hall, dinner at Shafer Dining Hall and culminating with Gala Concert featuring each of the guest choirs and the VCU Commonwealth Singers.
For more information, please contact Dr. Christopher Hansen.
We are please to host our second annual Clarinet & Double Reed Day again on January 13, 2024.
All high school students who play clarinet, oboe, or bassoon are invited to spend a day of music-making featuring a clarinet choir directed by Dr. George Stoffan and a double reed ensemble directed by Dr. Bruce Hammel, bassoon and Alyssa McKeithen, oboe. Students will rehearse new music throughout the day and perform short selections at the end. A pizza lunch will be provided along with a short faculty recital and masterclasses on each instrument. Seniors will have the opportunity to audition for VCU Music that same day. Check-in will begin at 9:30am, and the day should end around 4pm. Registration is $30.00.
Any interested student should fill out this interest form.
VCU DOUBLE BASS DAY
SATURDAY, APRIL 13, 2024
9:30am to 1pm
James Black Music Center, VCU
1015 Grove Ave Richmond, VA 23220
It’s all about bass at VCU’s double bass workshop with VCU Bass Prof. Kartari and special guest National Symphony bassist Ira Gold. Grow your technique and have a blast with the Double Bass Ensemble.
The Double Bass Workshop is for Middle School and High School Bassists. Double Bass Teachers may also join us for the Double Bass Workshop!
Read more about our Amazing Double Bass Faculty:
Registration fee:
$50 (including walk-up)
Registration covers all workshops and a snack.
Workshop Details
- Bass Ensemble Rehearsal
- Technique Workshop: Optimizing the Left Hand on the Bass (Prof. Gold)
- Faculty Recital (Pr. Kartari & Gold)
- – Snack/break –
- Technique Workshop: Great Sound Production on the Bass (Pr. Kartari)
- Bass Ensemble Rehearsal
- Bass Ensemble Concert (open to the public)
More Important Details – Please Read:
*Bassists will be assigned a bass ensemble part based on their experience, which we ask about in the registration questions. Bass teachers may join any ensemble section. Link to Bass Ensemble Music will be made available 2 weeks prior to the event via email, and we will have all parts on hand.
**Bassist must bring their own stools if they use them, but we supply music stands
*** Parking info, directions, and details will be emailed the week of the event
To be added to our Strings mailing list, please click here.
Questions about Double Bass Workshop? Contact Susanna Klein: sbklein@vcu.edu
Prof. Ayça Kartari Bio
Ayça Kartari was born in Bilecik, Turkey. She began studying the double bass when she was 11 years old. In 2005, she received a full scholarship from the International Yehudi Menuhin Music Academy to study chamber music and completed her graduate studies at the Lausanne Conservatory in Switzerland.
During her studies, she toured around Europe and performed at Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Bozar in Brussels, Victoria Hall in Geneva, Konzerthaus in Vienna, Konzerthaus in Berlin, Smetana Hall in Prague, Casino in Bern, Slovenian Philharmonic Hall in Ljubljana, Palais de Bratislava, George Enescu Festival in Bucharest, Festival Estoril Lisboa, and Menuhin Festival in Gstaad.
Before moving to Richmond, Virginia, she was working with the Izmir State Opera and Ballet, and Istanbul Borusan Philharmonic. She performed for The Proms at the Royal Albert Hall in London conducted by Sascha Goetzel in 2015.
She recorded with the Space Bomb artist Trey Pollard on his solo album “Antiphone” as part of a string quintet. She frequently performs with a Richmond-based indie Turkish pop band Yeni Nostalji, Williamsburg Symphony, Opera in Williamsburg, Richmond Symphony, and the Atlantic Chamber Ensemble. She recorded “Rags and Hymns of River City” commissioned by composer Mason Bates in 2019 with Atlantic Chamber Ensemble.
In addition to her roles as a double bass performer and teacher, Ayça has directed Classical Incarnations at Classical Revolution RVA and served as the Artistic Director for the Mozart Festival.
Ira Gold Bio
Ira Gold made his Carnegie Hall solo debut in 2011, performing the Vanhal Bass Concerto with the Catholic University of America Symphony Orchestra.
Prior to joining the National Symphony in 2005, he performed with several American orchestras, as Section Bass with the Minnesota Orchestra and as guest Principal Bassist with the San Francisco Symphony and Detroit Symphony. He has attended festivals such as Grand Teton Music Festival, Domaine Forget Music Academy, Bach Festival Leipzig, Aspen, and Tanglewood. Mr. Gold spent several summers at the International Festival Institute at Round Top both as a student and faculty. He is continually in demand for recitals and masterclasses, including recent visits at The Colburn School, University of Southern California, The Moscow State Conservatory, Boston University, New England Conservatory, Boston Conservatory, University of Colorado (Boulder), The Juilliard School, Boston University Tanglewood Institute, The International Society of Bassists Convention, and The Manhattan School of Music. Mr. Gold maintains a studio of private students, has taught lessons and coached chamber music in the National Symphony Orchestra Youth Fellowship program, and has been a Double Bass Faculty member of Peabody Conservatory since 2009. He also teaches for Boston University Tanglewood Institute Young Artist’s Orchestra, DCBass, Bass Works, and Bass Club (UK).
Mr. Gold has been interviewed multiple times by Jason Heath for the podcast Contrabass Conversations, and more recently as a featured guest on The Audition Breakthrough Summit, which launched in March 2017. In 2016 he published an article for the ISB’s journal Bass World, in which he discusses the qualities of teaching that affect the relationship of teacher and student.
An active chamber musician, Mr. Gold has performed with East Coast Chamber Orchestra, the NSO Millenium Stage Prelude Series, Peabody Conservatory Faculty, and the New Orchestra of Washington.
He earned his Bachelor of Music degree at Boston University’s College of Fine Arts, and his Master of Music degree at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, where he won the strings division of the 2005 Concerto Competition. His primary teachers include Edwin Barker and Paul Ellison, and additional studies with Albert Laszlo, Kenneth Harper, Dennis Whittaker, Mark Shapiro, and Harry Lantz.
About GRYJB
The Greater Richmond Youth Jazz Band (formerly called GRHSJB) is made up of some of the most talented high school jazz students from the region. Alumni of this ensemble have gone on to major in music at such programs as VCU, Temple, Miami, The New School, Berklee, and at other institutions throughout the U.S.
Each year the group is selected through auditions, held in January. Rehearsals are held on Sundays from 2-4pm starting February 4, 2024, culminating with a concert at the Dominion Energy Center, Carpenter Theater on May 14 at 7pm.
STEP 1: Fill out the GRYJB application form.
STEP 2: Sign up for an audition time slot.
A non-refundable fee of $225 (or $300 max for two students from the same family) will be due by the first rehearsal. Scholarships are available for families with financial need. Contact Duane Coston (costonpd@vcu.edu) for the scholarship application.
GRYJB Audition Dates (SIGN UP HERE)
January 8, 2024, 4-8pm
January 9, 2024, 4-8pm
Location: James Black Music Center, 1015 Grove Ave, Richmond VA.
For more information, please contact Dr. Barnett barnettt@vcu.edu
Preparing for your Audition
Auditions will determine acceptance in the band, as well as chair placement. We welcome an extra copy of your sheet music. Backing tracks are allowed. Auditions will be 8 minutes in length.
Horns: Prepare the melody and, if possible, improvised solo over two contrasting tunes of your choice, especially swing, bossa, Afro-Cuban and samba. You will be asked to play a major scale in our choice of key, to assess range, tone and technique. You will also sight-read a short excerpt.
Piano, guitar, and bass: Prepare the melody, accompaniment, and, if possible, improvised solo over two contrasting tunes of your choice, especially swing, bossa, Afro-Cuban and samba. Potential comping in a variety of styles on request.. VCU will supply guitar and bass amps; students should bring their own 1/4″ cords. You will be asked to play a major scale in our choice of key, to assess range, tone and/or technique. You will also sight-read a short excerpt.
Drums: Unaccompanied performance of a variety of grooves on request, including swing, ballad, waltz, bossa, samba and Afro-Cuban, plus possibly trading fours. Drummers are required to bring their own cymbals, hi-hat clutch, sticks and brushes. You will also sight-read a short excerpt.
Possible audition tunes might include:
- Swing: “Autumn Leaves,” “Satin Doll,” “Now’s the Time,” “Take the ‘A’ Train” and “Stella by Starlight”
- Bossa: “Blue Bossa,” “Recorda-Me,” “Meditation,” Wave” and “Black Orpheus”
- Samba: Samba versions of the bossas above are acceptable.
- Afro-Cuban: “Mambo Inn” (2-3 clave), “Afro-Blue” (12/8), “Frenesí” (cha-cha),
“Como Fue” (cha-cha) and “A Night in Tunisia” (possible in a variety of settings) - Ballad: “In a Sentimental Mood,” “Body and Soul,” “My Funny Valentine,” “Polka Dots and Moonbeams” and “Misty”
- Waltz: “Up Jumped Spring,” “Someday My Prince Will Come,” “Alice in Wonderland,” “All Blues” and “Bluesette”
You are not limited to the above choices; these are merely examples. Please note that improvisation is not a requirement to join this ensemble; however, we are delighted to hear all levels of improv within your audition.
GRYWE Updated Promo Video from VCUarts Music on Vimeo.
Richmond’s Bands began in 1995 with the founding of the Greater Richmond Youth Wind Ensemble (GRYWE) for advanced high school musicians. The following year, the Richmond Honors Band was created as an opportunity for advanced middle school and young high school students and in response to popular demand, the Greater Richmond High School Jazz Band was added the following year.
The Richmond’s Bands program is a valuable addition to Richmond’s vibrant instrumental community, offering aspects of a district or all-state band experience within a long-term rehearsal environment.
The program has given Richmond-area students the opportunity to work with some of the finest conductors and teachers in the U.S. Guest conductors for GRYWE have included composer Timothy Mahr, retired United States Marine Band Director Colonel John Bourgeois, band clinician and author Ed Lisk and internationally renowned conductor David Whitwell. Students from Richmond’s Bands have gone on to study in some of the finest music schools in the country.
Connect with GRYWE on Facebook!
STEP ONE:
After you’ve completed your application, you will receive additional instructions via email about scheduling an audition slot.
Auditions will take place January 19th and 26th from 4:30-6:30pm at the Singleton Center for Performing Arts (922 Park Avenue, Richmond, VA, 23284). Auditions will be five minutes in length.
Students will be asked to perform a prepared piece of their choice. It is recommended that students perform their district etude if possible. Students should also be prepared to play scales and sight-read a short excerpt. Percussionists are only required to audition on one instrument but strong consideration will be given to those who demonstrate proficiency on snare, mallets and timpani. Percussionists must bring their own sticks, mallets, cymbals and clutch; percussion instruments will be provided by VCU.
For more information on GRYWE, contact Duane Coston at costonpd@vcu.edu.
VCU Jazz Girls Day, March 16, 2024
11am-4pm
VCU James Black Music Center
Free, Lunch Provided
Jazz Girls Day empowers young girls and non-binary gender students to have the skills needed for self-confidence in the performance of jazz. Jazz Girls Day is open to all students grades 6-12 interested in playing or singing jazz. Beginners to advanced and all instruments/voice are welcome. Jazz Girls Day is a safe, supportive atmosphere where all students can grow.
REGISTER FOR VCU JAZZ GIRLS DAY!
Deadline to register is March 9, 2024
VCU Middle School Summer Band Camp.
June 17-21, 2024 on the campus of Virginia Commonwealth University.
Description: Middle school students will play in a large ensemble group, attend workshops, experience team building and meet new friends! Students will work directly with VCU Music Department faculty & students.
Topics will include: Tone Production, Technique, Music Theory, Rhythmic Awareness, Equipment, Reed Care, and More!
The camp will end with a group performance in the Sonia Vlahcevic Concert Hall located in the Singleton Center for Performing Arts.
To register use this link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeJZ6cQYdl79WVjTqqHwgApOcRB2MYwgFkQa45mB2RsFivkNQ/viewform
After 27 successful years of “VCU Jazz Day”, VCUarts Music is excited to announce that we are expanding to a 2-day event! VCU Summer Jazz Intensive will take place July 10-11, 2024 from 9:30am-4pm, with an informal performance for parents and families at 3pm on July 11th.
All events take place in the James Black Music Center (1015 Grove Ave, Richmond VA, 23284).
The format will be similar to past years including:
- students assigned to faculty-coached combos
- improvisation workshops
- instrument-specific clinics
- performances by VCU Jazz students and faculty music business and advocacy presentation
- free sessions on jazz pedagogy, for any teachers who attend with their students
- lunch and snacks provided
Jazz Intensive is open to intermediate-to-advanced high school jazz students, with a recommendation from their teacher. There are limited spots in the faculty-coached combos, to ensure a good size and instrumentation for each group.
Students must bring their own instrument. Guitarists and bassists should bring a 1/4″ cable and an amp, if possible. Drummers should bring sticks, brushes, cymbals, and hi-hat clutch. Drum sets will be provided.
VCU Summer Jazz Intensive is only $40 to attend, with scholarships available.
REGISTER FOR VCU SUMMER JAZZ INTENSIVE
Deadline to register is July 1, 2024.