I know she’d have a blast. Hopefully she can snag some financial aid. i’d love to have her do several years of it.
Secondary question re the camps/festivals: do kids generally attend the same ones? Is there a benefit in doing so? Benefits in trying several? I could see where going back to the same one would be a natural choice but maybe it’s could to do different ones each year?
My kid went back to Kinhaven over and over, even though musically it was maybe slightly below their level. The reason they returned was that they LOVED it so much. It had such great camp spirit. The teachers could work with my child at their level, even if the ensemble was possibly slightly below level for them. There was some advantage in that the teacher reached out to their Juilliard prof to meet with my child, who then became that Juilliard prof’s student.
I think that they would have met more teachers had they done BUTI, but in the end it made no difference. They met plenty of people through their winter ensembles. More importantly, their experience at Kinhaven enhanced their love of music, and allowed them to meet like minded peers, who also valued music so highly.
I guess we saw it as a positive camp experience centered around music, rather than as a skill-building seminar. My kid would’ve probably gone back every year all through middle and high school, had the pandemic not happened. I think the only experience that they might have taken over Kinhaven was NYO, had the pandemic not killed that too.
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My S24 has done a variety of short, not highest level camps that he has not repeated. He is now at Kinhaven and, as I had been told, it is transformative. Everything about it is wonderful. He plans on going back there next year unless, similar to @parentologist said, the small possibility he makes NYO. I think the most important thing is what kind of experience your D is looking for.
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My kid went to BUTI for two summers because he loved it there. He could have gone elsewhere…but decided that BUTI was just his favorite. I think that he could go to so many concerts was a plus for him (BSO and other things happening while he was there). And the conductors were ones he really liked a lot too.
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My S22 did several short summer intensives but they were all virtual because…pandemic! It did enable him to do multiple programs because there was no travel, and he found that working with a variety of college faculty really helped him home in on what type of teacher was best for him, what repertoire is appropriate for him, as well as for him to gage where he was compared to his peers (and some slightly older). He met the professor who is now his studio teacher at one of the summer programs he attended.
Side note, and please others chime in if this is no longer the case, but I believe if a student attends Tanglewood, they are automatically given a prescreen pass straight to audition for BU? That’s a nice advantage if they plan to apply to BU.
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dD24 is at BUTI for the second year - she may apply for a final year next yea; she combine sit with national ensembles but they are really quite different experiences - she learns much more at BUTI which is much more intense plus has the Tanglewood concerts.
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I think summer programs are extremely important, less so for the actual application, and more so for how they help your child in the ways already listed above. Networking, understanding the music life, exposure to good teachers, etc.
If you are applying to high level non-conservatories (Ivies, top state schools, etc.), a resume of top summer programs is actually very helpful in gaining acceptance.
If you live in a more rural area without famous teachers and without a precollege program, having high level summer programs on your application will demonstrate your child has the ability to work at a high level musically. This is important to many schools, especially mid-level conservatories and universities. Basically, it “proves” your kid is capable.
For high level conservatories, yes, the audition is most important, but at those top levels, some times it is very minuscule things that lead them to choose one candidate over another. It might be that you happened to work with a teacher from that institution elsewhere. It might be you have a stronger resume, which might include summer programs.
In my opinion, there are no reasons NOT to do the best summer programs you can get into and afford. And yes, there is a LOT of tuition support available out there. My son had full scholarships to his summer program throughout high school.
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Thank you, appreciate you sharing your insight.
I lost my reply but in brief - dd24 is at BUTI for the second year currently. It would be v hard to do both instruments in parallel (impossible I think) but you could do an intensive and then An ensemble based (piano programme or orchestra). There tend to be a few younger (14-15yos) but generally in the violin section or
Possibly piano where they tend to have started younger. A lot of wind and brass are actually headed to college this fall. It’s a wonderful place but I think hard for duel instrumentalists - dd is string and wind and didn’t bother to take her cello as simply no practice time left for it. That’s v hard when a course is 6 weeks. She is going on to Vivace but Under 18s are not on campus and don’t have full faculty for lessons - i don’t this it’s optimal but was very hard to match something of BUTI standard on strings given most timetable for the same summer period.
I am looking on BUTI’s web site this morning and it does look like doing both violin and piano would be possible. She could do the 2 week violin workshop mid June to July 1. Then do a 3 week Young Artist’s Piano that starts July 2. That is assuming the dates will be the same next year of course, but that’s what I’m seeing for this year. Would be pretty amazing experience, regardless of what she does.
It’s tough because she’s too advanced for the camps for the younger teens and it’s a lot of expense and travel time for something that is more fun than music. Knowing her, she’d much prefer something that is more intense and really all about music. She enjoys the fun parts but it’s really for the music that she is there.
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Please excuse typos - on an old and tiny phone today
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