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SUMMER 2003 ISSUE
President's Message
Greetings fellow string teachers! I hope you're enjoying the beautiful summer weather and getting geared up for the coming school year. It will be here before we know it! And there are a number of reasons to be excited about our wonderful organization, not only at the national level, but at the state level as well.
The first local string teaching event happening this fall is a Conference sponsored by our neighbors in Iowa. Iowa State University is hosting the 2003 Iowa ASTA with NSOA String Conference in Ames on September 12-14, and the featured clinician will be Bob Phillips. There will be a number of other presenters and several performances. Please see the enclosed one-page poster and plan on attending.
Newsflash! We will have our first ever NE-ASTA Awards Luncheon on Saturday, November 22 at 11:30 AM at the Embassy Suites! The luncheon will take place during the All-State Orchestra dress rehearsal, but it was the only feasible time, since high school orchestra directors need to chaperone their All-State students when the students aren't rehearsing. So plan on attending earlier rehearsals as well as the concert that evening. (Watch for luncheon specifics and a reservation form in the next newsletter.)
Remember, nominations must be made in order for awards to be presented at the Awards Luncheon. You can either submit nomination(s) in writing via snail mail or by e-mail. (Nomination forms are included in this issue of Stringing Along.) Or you can fill out the form by logging onto our web site. The awards will be presented at the luncheon on Saturday, November 22. So start thinking about which one or two of the many wonderful string teachers in our state you will nominate for either the School Educator Award and or the Studio Teacher Award. And send in your nominations now! Our annual NE-ASTA with NSOA membership meeting will take place earlier that day at 8:00 AM in Westbrook Music Building. So plan on attending and having breakfast--for free!
Since the String Projects are sponsored by ASTA with NSOA, I believe it is important to keep the membership informed of its progress. The third year of the String Project went very well and the final concert was a huge success. The year ended with a total of 119 elementary age students participating in the program. A special thank you to all of the Undergraduate Teachers and our Master Teacher, Alice Johnson. I'm also pleased to announce that the UNL String Project was selected by ASTA with NSOA to receive funding for another year. The first three years of funding came from the Department of Education in the form of a FIPSE Grant. This year we will receive a grant from the NEA. We are thrilled to be able to continue, and will be seeking funding for future years.
Finally, it's not too early to start thinking about next year's ASTA with NSOA conference. The "National String Forum & Festival" will take place in Dallas March 10-15, 2004. For more information see the flyer included in this issue, or log onto www.astaweb.com.
So send in those nomination forms and enjoy the rest of your summer!
Karen
Dr. Karen Becker, President, NE-ASTA with NSOA
Associate Professor of Cello, Director, UNL String Project
Phone: 402-472-4253, FAX: 402-472-8962, E-mail: kbecker2@unl.edu
The winners of the First Annual NEASTA Fiddle Tune Composition Contest were announced as part of the festivities during the Monumental Fiddling Championships in Beatrice. Each of the top three winning tunes will be printed in up-coming issues of Stringing Along.
And the winners are:
First Place & $100.00: "One Thing Leads to Another", by Mark Simos, from Watertown, Massachusetts
Second Place & $50.00: ©¯Windy Skies©˜, by Seth Austen, from Ossipee, New Hampshire
Third Place & $25.00: ©¯Out the Window©˜, by David S. Reiner, from Lexington, Massachusetts.
Other submissions were received from composers in California, Connecticut, Florida, Kansas, Nebraska, and Canada.
A hearty thank-you goes to our sponsors, who donated cash for our prizes, and enough merchandise so that all of the contestants received a prize for their efforts.
And the 2003 sponsors are:
Acoustic Music Plus in Lincoln, NE
Greenblatt & Seay in Avoca, NE
London String Instrument Repair in Lincoln, NE
Metropolitan String Quartet in Omaha, NE
Nielsen's Violin Shop in Omaha, NE
Shar in Michigan
SouthWest Strings in Arizona
And another hearty thank-you goes to our judges: NEASTA members Bob Jones and Hugh Johnson, and a future NEASTA member, Mike Metzger.
And another other hearty thank-you to the NEASTA Fiddle Tune Composition Contest Committee: Bob Jones (where have I heard that name before....), Dave Klein, and yours truly, Deborah Greenblatt.
For more information about the Second Annual Nebraska ASTA Fiddle Tune Composition Contest, contact g-s@alltel.net, or write to The Old Schoolhouse, PO Box 671, Avoca, Nebraska, 68307-0671.
Thirty-one fiddle players, and one violist (whose initials are President-Elect D.L.), from Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma, competed on May 24 in the 5th Annual Monumental Fiddling Championship in Beatrice, Nebraska, at the National Homestead Monument. The Homestead Monument, the Nebraska Arts Council, and Eastern National co-sponsored this event, and awarded cash prizes, and trophies. For more information about next year's contest, contact the Homestead National Monument of America at 402-223-3514
The winners of this year's event are as follows:
Junior Division:
First Place-Benjamin Borg, Van Meter, IA
Second Place-Megan Poppe, Blue Rapids, KS
Third Place-Preston Bradley, Lincoln, NE
Senior Division:
First Place-Matt Fincham, Marysville, KS
Second Place-Bethany Borg, Van Meter, IA
Third Place-Michelle Fincham, Marysville, KS
Lefthanded Fiddler:
Bjorn Borg, Van Meter, IA
Hottest Fiddler:
Bethany Borg, Van Meter, IA
Best Jam Group:
The Plain River Band, Omaha, NE
Youngest Fiddler:
Grant Fincham, age 3, Marysville, KS
Oldest Fiddler:
Dolores Goldapp, age 66, Murray, NE, and Pat Peterson, age 66, Nehawka, NE.
The next Lucy Weed string competition is for Friday and Saturday, October 10 and 11, 2003, at Mt. Marty College at Yankton, SD. I am assuming at this point that we will follow the same format as last year, which was violas and cellos on Friday evening (possibly beginning late afternoon), violins beginning Saturday morning, and basses Saturday afternoon. A winners' recital will be held on Saturday evening. The Lucy Weed competition is the official junior division state level competition going towards the national ASTA Solo Competition for those three states. For more information, contact David Elder, Chairman, Lucy Weed String Competition, 2014 Walnut St., Yankton, SD 57078, (605) 665-4353, delder@ysd.k12.sd.us.
Outside My Comfort Zone
by Dottie Ladman
This summer was supposed to be one of relaxation and refreshment for me. I decided this was the year I would say no thank you to several pet summer activities and just do as little as possible. Little did I imagine that my good friend Debby Greenblatt had other ideas. She does this Monumental Fiddling Contest in Beatrice at Homestead National Monument every year, and as usual she asked if I would be there. Being on the NE-ASTA board sort of gives me the feeling that I should attend as many of these ASTA sponsored functions as possible, so I assured her I would attend.
Then came the query I was not prepared for. She asked if I was going to enter the fiddling competition. Oh my goodness no I told her. I was going only to observe. In a fiddling competition you have to play a fiddle, and I understand a viola is not considered a fiddle. And you have to play three very specific types of music, memorized! Memorizing is not my strong suit, and in the concluding weeks of the school year I certainly did not have time to spend memorizing three pieces of music to be played in a style which is pretty much foreign to this classically trained (I call it "paper-trained") music teacher.
Not one to be easily discouraged, Debby informed me that for THIS fiddle contest I could definitely play my viola AND use my music. Debby knew I could not use the excuse that there is no fiddle music for viola because she knew I already had The Viola Fiddling Tune Book she has so successfully published.
So I resigned myself to entering the competition and selected three pieces from the book to prepare. They were not difficult pieces, but there are some very tricky things in fiddle music that aren't often found in the standard viola or symphonic literature!
The day of the contest I was figuring if things looked a little too intense I would just decline to compete. The only problem was when I got there some of my students from school were there also, and they knew I had said I would be competing. No way to back out then! In fact my students even had the courage to quickly learn some fiddle tunes and enter the competition as well just for fun. Of course with my students entering the "played 0-5 years" category, which is the category I put myself in when it comes to playing fiddle music, I was faced with competing against them (and I'm not at all sure they wouldn't have beat me handily) or entering the "played more than five years" category. I chose the latter.
The competition was very interesting, with people of all ages and abilities performing. I got to hear some astounding young people play exceedingly well! I was totally humbled by the competence of those youngsters who know and perform fiddle style so easily and with such joy. I don't think I embarrassed myself too badly, considering it was my first shot at this sort of thing, but I definitely have a long way to go to be a true fiddler. I believe my students benefited from seeing me do something way outside my comfort zone, and I also think they gained from doing the same. I must say I had a ton of fun playing that day, and enjoyed the freedom of playing without worrying about making mistakes--I was a novice at this so I couldn't be expected to be great at it, right?
A couple weeks later I was at a church gathering where there was a small group playing folk music. I mentioned their lack of a fiddle player and garnered an invitation to go get my instrument and join them. I did. Thanks to the fiddle contest I was actually able to hold my own playing fiddle with them for a couple hours, and it was truly FUN!
So now I encourage you all when you have the opportunity to go out and do something outside your own comfort zone, DO IT! The benefits are amazing!
Dottie Ladman
President-Elect Nebraska ASTA with NSOA
Principal Violist Hastings Symphony Orchestra
Elementary Instrumental Music Specialist
Lincoln Public Schools
Lincoln, Nebraska USA
ISTA w/NSOA sponsors
2003 String Conference
A conference for all String Teachers, Players, Orchestra Directors,
and K-12 Music Educators
Iowa State University Music Building in Ames
Three days of FUN! (Available for College Credit!)
Clinics by: Bob Phillips, Doris and Bill Preucil, Jason Weinberger, Rhonda Taggert from the Iowa Alliance for Arts, Michael Fanelli
Adjudication Certification Training presented by Alan Greiner
New Music Reading Session (bring instruments)
Studio Teachers Round Table Discussion
Concerts by the ISU Symphony Ames Piano Quartet, UNI Suzuki
School Fiddlesticks, UNI Graduate String Quartet
September 12-14, 2003
Registration $35 members, $45 non-members
More information and download registration form from
Or register on-site
Information
Contact Martin Clancey
Hotel Reservations
Country Inn & Suites 1605 S. Dayton 515-233-393 (suites only available)Hampton Inn 1450 S. Dayton 515-239-9999
Heartland Inn I-35 & Hwy 30 515-233-6060
Holiday Inn Express 2600 E 13 515-232-2300
*Super 8 Story City I-35 515-733-5281
*Comfort Inn Story City I-35 515-733-6363
*(Story City is a short drive north of Ames on I-35, about 15 minutes.)
STRING TEACHERS OF THE YEAR AWARDS
Each year the Nebraska Unit of the American String Teachers Association recognizes two outstanding string/orchestra teachers in Nebraska by presenting an award to one school orchestra director and one private studio teacher. Below are forms to be used for nominations. We urge you to consider submitting the name of a person whom you believe to represent outstanding teaching in one or both areas. Send nominations to: Deborah Greenblatt, The Old Schoolhouse, PO Box 671, Avoca, NE, or e-mail g-s@alltel.net.
The deadline for nominations for the next awards is November 1, 2003. A decision has been made by the Executive Board of Nebraska ASTA that past winners will not be eligible until ten years after their last award.
PAST WINNERS: 1990 - Bettelee Lewis; 1991- Larry Maupin; 1992 - no awards given; 1993 - Carol Work (private) and Christa Speed (school); 1994 - Morris Collier (private) and Patty Ritchie (school); 1995 - Carol Work (private) and Alice Johnson (school); 1996 - Valerie Knowles (private) and Del Whitman (school); 1997 - David Low (private) and Molly Moriarty (school); 1999 - no awards given; 2000 - Gerald Feese (private) and Dave Klein (school); 2001- Mischa Johnson (private) and Maribeth Lynn (school); 2002 - no awards given.
FIDDLE TUNE COMPOSITION CONTEST!
SECOND PLACE: $50.00
THIRD PLACE: $25.00
The winners will be announced on May 22, 2004, during the Monumental Fiddling Championship held at the Homestead National Monument in Beatrice, Nebraska. The winning compositions will be performed at the Monumental Fiddling Championship, and printed in Stringing Along, the journal of the Nebraska Chapter of the American String Teachers Association. Direct your questions to: Deborah Greenblatt, The Old Schoolhouse, PO Box 671, Avoca, Nebraska, 68307-0671, or by e-mail to g-s@alltel.net.
The 2004 Contest Rules and Guidelines
1. Each submission should be an original composition which must be unpublished and composed after May 24, 2003.
2. Composers may submit more than one tune, but only one prize will be awarded to any one composer.
3. The music must be submitted via computer generated sheet music, or hand-written sheet music.
4. The composer should include their name, address, phone number, e-mail address, and the title of the piece.
5. The entry fee of $20.00 should be sent in at the time of submission. Checks should be payable to Nebraska ASTA.
6. If you wish to receive written evaluation of your tune by the judges, include a stamped, self-addressed envelope with your entry.
7. Nebraska ASTA assumes no responsibility for loss or damage to works submitted.
8. Entries must be postmarked by March 22, 2004.
9. Send your entry to Deborah Greenblatt, The Old Schoolhouse, PO Box 671, Avoca, Nebraska, 68307-0671. The composer is responsible for keeping a copy of their work, as well as for coyrighting their tune.
10. The composer understands that if their tune is one of the winners, Nebraska ASTA has permission to have the piece performed on May 22, 2004, in Beatrice, Nebraska, as well as permission to reprint the tune in Stringing Along, the quarterly newsletter of Nebraska ASTA.
Acoustic Music Plus, Lincoln, Nebraska
Greenblatt & Seay Publications, Avoca, Nebraska
London String Instrument Repair, Lincoln, Nebraska
The Metropolitan String Quartet, Omaha, Nebraska
Nielsen's Violin Shop, Omaha, Nebraska,
Shar, Michigan
SouthWest Strings, Arizona
Hello Nebraska ASTA Members. Warwick's National High School Orchestra Festival has had a very enthusiastic response from 2002 and 2003 students, teachers, clinicians, volunteers, parents and hotel personnel.
Each year we have added events to our schedule, so that the April 23, 24, 25, 2004 festivities include:
1. 3 divisions - String Orchestra, Full Orchestra and Youth Orchestra - each division offering a prize to the top scorer of $1000. Groups also have the option of participating for Rating Only.
2. Adjudications followed by Clinics
3. Workshops for strings in Fiddlin'
4. Workshops for winds & percussion in Jazz Improvisation
5. Technique Classes for each section of the orchestra
6. Master Classes on any instrument with 3 performers
7. Faculty Recital
8. Tour of Providence, including renowned State House, Riverwalk, Providence Place Mall, Brown University and 1st. Baptist Church of America.
9. Awards Banquet with Entertainment, including appearance and performance by Miss R.I., Harvard Graduate and Violinist
10. 4-Star Crowne Plaza Hotel
11. An intimate festival where your individual needs are catered to
For info, refer to our website: www.warwickmusicfestval.org, and/or e-mail Carol Pellegrino, Executive Director at CPMus@aol.com, and/or phone her at 401-884-8172.
To learn more about these items, contact the National Office at www.astaweb.com.
CodaBows for America Community Outreach Program:donates approximately $5,000 worth of CodaBow Aspire bows annually. Applications accepted from ASTA with NSOA members on behalf of schools or studios that outline the particular worthiness, promise, and need of their program. [Next deadline: Oct 1]
Academy Award-nominated film director seeks amateur chamber musicians for documentary about the essence of music and why we play . Need interesting, articulate adults whose on-going chamber music experience has enhanced their lives. Please pass on this request to other musicians who might participate. Send a brief description of past and present chamber music activities and, most importantly, what has kept you playing all these years - perhaps specific illustrations or experiences key to your commitment to playing. Include: age, occupation, musical background and your location/contact information. Please e-mail no more than 150 words and write in the body of the e-mail (no attachments, please). Like amateur chamber music, there will be no pay. The film will be for public broadcasting and educational use to celebrate our love of chamber music and encourage parents to lead their children to music early. We will contact respondees after reading. Thank you. SEND TO: chamberaf@aol.com
©2005 ASTA with NSOA, Nebraska Unit, C. Ellenwood, Webmaster