Students rehearse in front of the fireplace at Camp Kieve’s Wavus campus.
The DaPonte String Quartet is accepting applications to its annual three-day quartet workshop for high school string players at Camp Kieve’s Wavus campus in Jefferson in September.
Every year since 2001, the quartet have mentored some of the best aspiring young players in Maine — and as of last year, from urban schools out of state- — in the beautiful, secluded, and relaxed lakeside setting, at no cost to students.
The three-day weekend is dedicated to the study of chamber music, and its preparation and performance, through the great works of the string quartet literature. Twenty students, selected by audition, are organized into five string quartets. They are coached in the round by the individual members of the DaPonte String Quartet — violinists Lydia Forbes and Ferdinand Liva, violist Kirsten Monke, and cellist Myles Jordan.
DaPonte String Quartet cellist Myles Jordan works with students.
The coaching sessions focus on the elements of ensemble playing: listening, communication, cueing, rhythm, intonation, blending, and music theory and history. At the completion of the workshop, a concert is presented by all the students for parents and friends. For some, this is a student’s first exposure to playing chamber music, and it is an experience that will stay with them for a lifetime.
Last year, the quartet implemented a long-held goal of inviting string players from urban performing-arts schools outside Maine to participate, in order to broaden the experience for all students. Their travel costs are largely underwritten by the Friends of the DaPonte String Quartet. The cost of food and lodging for all students is made possible by an endowment created by the Kennedy family, founders of Camp Kieve, in 2001.
This year’s workshop will run from Sept. 21-23. The deadline for applications is Friday, June 15. To apply, go to daponte.org.
The DaPonte String Quartet is Maine’s premier string ensemble. Founded in 1991 in Philadelphia, it moved to Maine more than 20 years ago and now performs more than 50 times a year statewide and year-round. It also tours the Northeast.
