Fischoff Chamber Music Academy Participants Announced
The Fischoff National Chamber Music Association is pleased to announce its 2020-2021 Fischoff Chamber Music Academy participants. Since 1999 the Fischoff has provided mentorship opportunities for local high school students interested in digging deeper into the art of chamber music. Each year, string, piano, woodwind, brass, and mixed ensembles of three to six musicians in Northern Indiana and Southwestern Michigan apply to participate.
This year nineteen students have been accepted. Participants come from area high schools including Chesterton, Clay, Kolbe Academy, Penn, Trinity at Greenlawn and Valparaiso along with eighth graders from Stanley Clark, Schmucker Middle School and one student who is homeschooled. All the students have studied their instruments for several years with private teachers and many of them have participated in school orchestra and band programs, as well as the South Bend Youth Symphony Orchestra. They are ready to bring this experience, as well as their passion and enthusiasm, to dive into the world of chamber music
Participants of the Fischoff Chamber Music Academy will receive coaching from talented professional chamber musicians including the acclaimed Euclid Quartet. Students are also given outreach performance opportunities, masterclass opportunities with Fischoff alumni, as well as competition and audition preparation training. Thanks to the generous support of corporate organizations and individual donors, all students receive full merit based scholarships to participate in this mentoring opportunity. In return, students give back to the community by sharing their talents with nearly 4,000 audience members through concerts at senior living homes, local libraries and other public venues. The season typically culminates in an end of year public concert at the LaBar Recital Hall at the University of Notre Dame.
Executive Director Kara Kane is “delighted that Fischoff has been able to proceed with our Chamber Music Academy in the midst of this challenging time. As formal schooling has been interrupted, we knew it was more important than ever to find a way to continue offering rigorous educational opportunities and personal connections with world class mentors for these motivated students. Some of our groups will meet outside in socially distant settings, while others will leverage technology to connect and collaborate virtually. The small composition of these ensembles allows this flexibility. Our incredible coaches have been leveraging technology to connect with their students throughout the spring semester and into the summer, and have found some wonderfully creative ways to engage with them.”
Funding for this program is made possible by the generous support of community organizations such as the University of Notre Dame, The Indiana Arts Commission, Elnora Hartman Stickley Scholarship Fund, the Teachers Credit Union Foundation, Barnes & Thornburg LLP, Miller Poultry, 1st Source Bank, The Community Foundation of St. Joseph County’s Arts Everywhere Initiative, PNC Bank, Frederick S. Upton Foundation, Old National Bank, Camden Appliances, and individual donors.
2020 – 2021 Fischoff Chamber Music Academy
South Bend Trio: Maya Kvaratskhelia (violin), Penn High School, Grade: 12, Caio Gould (cello), Trinity School, Grade: 11, Gabriel Zhang (piano), Clay High School, Grade:11. Coach: Brendan Shea
Kingsmen Trio: Ellen Brockmole (cello), Penn High School, Grade:12, Zichu Wang (viola), Penn High School, Grade:10, Felix Zhang (piano/violin) Penn High School, Grade:10. Coach: Luis Enrique Vargas
Hyacinth Trio: Emma Scofield (cello), Kolbe Academy, Grade: 12, Juliana Scofield (violin), Kolbe Academy, Grade: 11, Christa Scofield (piano), Homeschool, Grade: 8. Coach: Jameson Cooper
South Bend Quartet: Omolabake Elenitoba-Johnson (piano/cello), Schmucker Middle School, Grade: 8, Rosa Morel (flute), Stanley Clark, Grade: 8, Isabela Maxwell (violin), Stanley Clark, Grade: 8, Liam Michael Wagner (cello), Stanley Clark, Grade: 8. Coach: Jacqueline Choi
Nuwanda Trio: Carissa Yu (violin), Valparaiso High School, Grade: 11, Libby Gibson (viola), Chesterton High School, Grade: 12, Samuel Sutliff (piano), Valparaiso High School, Grade:12. Coach: Nora Frisk
Amicizia Trio: Lucia Otten (viola), Valparaiso High School, Grade: 12, Macey Schmetzer (violin), Valparaiso High School, Grade:12, Devishi Jha (violin), Valparaiso High School, Grade:12. Coach: Nora Frisk
