Community Music School Hosts 62nd Annual Summer Music Camps

Peter Hamby

Band rehearsal on Sunday night.

Nearly 700 junior high musicians from five states arrived on campus Sunday, July 7, to kick off the 62nd annual University of Arkansas Summer Music Camps. After completing auditions on Sunday, campers were placed into ten different concert bands. They will participate in rehearsals, master classes, sectionals, skills classes, and private lessons throughout the week.

But it's not all work; there is plenty of fun to be had, too! Students will get to experience life on the University of Arkansas campus with a performance in the Chi Omega Greek Theatre, swimming and activities in the Health, Physical Education and Recreation Building, and a Fun Fest at the Arkansas Union. Highlights of this year's camp also include a performance by guest artists in residence, the Viridian Saxophone Quartet, of which U of A saxophone professor Eric Troiano is the baritone saxophone player. The week culminates in a day of concerts for friends, family, and the public on Friday.

This is the first of two large camps hosted on campus by the University of Arkansas Community Music School. Senior High Band and Jr./Sr. High Orchestra Camps begin Sunday, July 14. The camps are run by professor W. Dale Warren and a staff of 125 hand-picked musician-educators from around the nation, some of whom have worked and attended camp for over 30 years.

Summer Music Camps are the two largest programs overseen by the Community Music School, hosting over 1000 students annually.

The Community Music School is the outreach unit of the Department of Music in the William J. Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences. With the ultimate goal of providing high-quality music instruction in both individual and group formats, the Community Music School provides year-round, non-credit, music making opportunities, for students of all ages and ability levels. To learn more about our ongoing programs and get involved, visit cms.uark.edu.