Arts Learning Grant

The Lake Superior Chamber Orchestra will hold an intensive two-week workshop in chamber music for area middle and high school string students. Students will 1) receive coaching in chamber music from professional musicians; 2) present a concert of major works performed by constituent ensembles; 3) present a major work for string orchestra sitting side-by-side with members of the Lake Superior Chamber Orchestra. Students will gain an understanding and appreciation of the chamber music genre and the unique challenges and rewards to be gained in this endeavor. They will develop skills in artistic decision-making, interpersonal communication, musical interpretation, and professional deportment. The Lake Superior Chamber Orchestra evaluates the effectiveness of the Quartet Project by the number of student participants, student and instructor written evaluations, comments from parents, audience attendance and response for the Lake Superior Chamber Orchestra concert that features the Quartet Project, and by camp evaluation presented, post-season, by the Lake Superior Chamber Orchestra's Artistic Director/Conductor and Quartet Project Co-Director to the Lake Superior Chamber Orchestra Board of Directors. Because the student faculty ratio, at less than four to 1, is so small, much of the evaluation happens informally and throughout the workshop. Students are invited and encouraged to communicate with the artistic staff and the staff frequently meets over the lunch hour to discuss the program.