Cellist Donates Scholarship Money to Japan Earthquake Relief
Jeremy Tai, 13-year-old cellist from Cupertino (Junior Division), and San Francisco mezzo-soprano Julia Heron Metzler (Senior Division), are the two grand prize winners in the Young Artist Competition at the UC Davis Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts. Tai decided to donate his $1,000 scholarship money to assist relief efforts in Japan. He says: “While I was practicing the Elgar Cello Concerto, it was hard for me to create the proper interpretation for the first movement. I then remembered about the Japan disaster and realized how appropriate Elgar would be for depicting the victim’s sorrow. This helped me to create my own interpretation for the Concerto. It also motivated me to donate all of the competition prize money to help the Japan earthquake victims.”
The prestigious contest is open to instrumentalists and vocalists ages 8-21, nationwide. Winners earn scholarship money and performances at the Center and at the Festival Del Sole summer festival in Napa. Other 2011 champions include pianist Grace Zhou from Irvine, pianist Carrie Chen from Cupertino, cellist Will Chow from Los Altos, pianist Alison Chiang from Plano (TX), and vocalist Brian Vu from Los Angeles.
Slam Dunk: Duets and Danishes
Berkeley citizens can relax at five locations of Peet’s Coffee stores with a cuppa Joe and performances by young musicians from local music education organizations like the Young People’s Symphony Orchestra, Crowden Music Center, and the Berkeley Unified School District, on Saturday, April 16 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.
The students will have fun performing, and interested folks can get informed on music education efforts and resources in Berkeley. Learn about programs developed by the school district, Berkeley Symphony and others, and Berkeley Symphony’s “participatory” Family Concerts on Sunday, May 7. All are welcome.
If you want to sign up to be a performer or can volunteer to help, please contact Berkeley Symphony at (510) 841-2800 x304 or email [email protected].
The following Peet’s Coffee & Tea locations are participating: 2124 Vine Street, 1825 Solano Avenue, 2255 Shattuck Avenue, 1776 4th Street, and 2916 Domingo Avenue.
Community Music Center Director to Retire
Stephen Shapiro, executive director of San Francisco’s Community Music Center (CMC) for the past 33 years, has announced his retirement as of September 2011. Shapiro has a doctorate in history from the University of Wisconsin, and musical expertise on the flute and the piano. Since taking the helm in 1978, he’s expanded CMC to two locations, doubled the number of classes and faculty and built an endowment for the school, and more than doubled the student body to nearly 2,400.
Shapiro is responsible for making CMC’s offerings reflect the cultural melting pot of the city of San Francisco, establishing community-based music education. To these ends, he developed a diverse curriculum of world music, created outreach initiatives, and formed collaborations with groups such as the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts, the school district, San Francisco Symphony, and San Francisco Performances. “Steve Shapiro has greatly expanded and diversified the curriculum, and made the Center a vibrant place for performances in many musical styles," says Patricia Taylor Lee, CMC Board president. “Above all, he is committed to opening the door to music study for everyone, regardless of age, ethnicity, or ability to pay.” Under his purview, CMC created a concert series of 300 annual concerts.
Shapiro contributed to our Tips & Advice column on what makes a good music education program here