MAKING A DIFFERENCE WITH
OUTREACH
The Kingston Chamber Music Festival advocates for, provides instruction in and exposure to chamber music…
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LEARN ABOUT OUR
RESOURCES FOR EDUCATORS
KCMF is pleased to share video lessons designed to help educators meet the ever-changing challenges of teaching music…
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AWARDED ANNUALLY
SCHOLARSHIPS
A scholarship to be awarded annually to a music major at the University of Rhode island. The recipient is chosen by the…
Read More“Music Enhances
the education of our children by helping them to make connections and broadening the depth with which they think and feel. If we are to hope for a society of culturally literate people, music must be a vital part of our children’s education.”
– Yo-Yo Ma
OUTREACH
In addition to presenting chamber music concerts, the Kingston Chamber Music Festival advocates for and provides exposure to chamber music through Education and Outreach.
Our new music education program for 2020 will focus on two local schools, Peace Dale Elementary School and Broad Rock Middle School, both in Wakefield, RI. Beginning in January, KCMF will support the string programs with additional instructors to assist students and by supplementing their resources by providing supplies such lesson books, shoulder rests, and other essential supplies.
In a separate endeavor, we are developing a participatory lesson plan for visiting artists to use as a template for presentations in Rhode Island schools. Details on this innovative program will follow in the coming months.
The Kingston Chamber Music Festival also offers master classes each year to Rhode Island music students. These intense coaching sessions with festival artists deepen the selected students musical understanding and sharpen their playing skills. Violinist Elissa Lee Koljonen and pianist Natalie Zhu will present master classes Friday, April 17 (time to be announced) at the University of Rhode Island Fine Arts Center. Please see Master Class section for more details.
KCMF also offers a scholarship to one University of Rhode Island music student each year.
Please visit the Scholarship page for more information.
RESOURCES FOR EDUCATORS
THE KINGSTON CHAMBER MUSIC FESTIVAL 2021 CLASSES
KCMF is pleased to share video lessons designed to help educators meet the ever-changing challenges of teaching music, nurturing a love for music and strengthening the skills and concepts necessary for students to become musically literate adults.
Music Magic Part 1
Join cellist Clancy Newman as he celebrates the magic of music in this entertaining and educational video. Geared for students in grades K-2, Clancy demonstrates the ways that music can change the listener’s mood, represent sounds in the real world, and inspire the imagination of the audience. The string family is introduced, as is the concept of pitch, illustrating how composers and performers use high and low sounds to communicate with the audience. (Creating, Performing, Responding, Connecting)
Length: 12 minutes
Music Magic Part 2
Cellist Clancy Newman builds on the concepts and themes presented in his first Music Magic Video. Primary grade students will be encouraged to engage their imagination, allowing music to conjure a scene or to tell a story. Clancy also relates the music students are hearing to the composers responsible for creating it. (Creating, Performing, Responding, Connecting)
Length: 12 minutes
Rap without Words – Video 1:
In this video, cellist Clancy Newman demonstrates how to compose a Pop song by layering a melodic motif over the underlying beat. He enhances the song further by adding a backbeat, Latin and Hip-Hop rhythms, a bass line, and harmonic interest, utilizing a variety of bowing, plucking, and percussive techniques.
Length: 11 minutes
Rap without Words – Video 2:
Cellist Clancy Newman builds on the pop song he composed in Video 1, continuing to add additional stylistic elements to the mix. Here Clancy demonstrates how the cello can mimic a variety of musical styles. He also introduces the importance of form, pointing out the verse and chorus sections, connected by the bridge. With the help of visual clues, viewers are encouraged to listen for and identify all the necessary elements of a successful song.
Length: 12 minutes
SCHOLARSHIPS
CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR 2022 SCHOLARSHIP WINNER
In 2004, the Kingston Chamber Music Festival established a scholarship to be awarded annually to a music major at the University of Rhode Island. The recipient is chosen by the faculty of the URI Department of Music. Congratulations to all our recipients!
AUTUMN CASEY
Congratulations Autumn Casey
2022 Kingston Chamber Music Festival Scholarship Recipient
Autumn Casey, this year’s KCMF scholarship recipient, plays the clarinet and is majoring in Music Education at URI where she will be a junior this fall. She has been playing the clarinet since 6th grade.
Autumn began playing with the 88th Army Band in high school and joined the Rhode Island Army National Guard as a musician when she turned 18, which helped her pay for her college education. Being in the reserves commits her to monthly duty at Camp Fogarty in East Greenwich, and as a member of the 88th Army Band she performs frequently and is often the only clarinetist.
Being a Music Ed major is akin to having a double major. There are many music requirements in addition to general education classes. Despite the load, she makes time to participate in wind ensemble and orchestra and plays in a seven-member clarinet choir. She plans to join URI’s marching band next year. Autumn wants to teach music and is giving lessons this summer while working at a music store in Cumberland, Rhode Island, near where she lives in North Smithfield.
Autumn is grateful for the teachers who inspired her and feels that teaching will allow her to instill this same love of music in others. Her teachers include John Knasas, her first music teacher at North Smithfield Middle School, clarinet teacher Kathleen Vallee, and Metro Narcisi, Regina McAdam and Kevin Plouffe at North Smithfield High School. At URI, she studies with Dr. Juliet Lai. Notable performances include the 2018 Southern New England Honor Band, the National Association for Music Educators’ All-National Symphony Orchestra in 2018, the 17th Annual Rhode Island Honors Recital Concert in 2019, the All-New England Band Festival in 2019 and Honors Performance Series concerts at Carnegie Hall and Sydney Opera House in 2019, a definite high point in her young career.