Spring 2012 - What we're up to

As the third week of the Spring semester begins, we'd like to share what we're up to as we finish up our degree at UT. Our main priority these days is preparing for our final Masters' recital and auditions for graduate quartet residencies! We're playing works by Haydn and Dvorak, as well as a few other shorter works, on February 24th in Jessen Auditorium. We hope you all can make it!

Academically, we're fully immersed in our quartet studies this semester; every class we're taking is directly related to string quartets! Here's what we're taking at the UT Butler School of Music:

• Weekly quartet coachings with Will Fedkenheuer of the Miro Quartet
• A seminar with John Largess of the Miro Quartet on the subject of preparing outreach performances
• An independent study with Prof. Sandy Yamamoto on the subject of preparing grants, press kits, and other business related functions
• Individual lessons with our respective teachers
• UT New Music Ensemble

In addition to our studies at school, we're still teaching at the UT String Project, where we maintain private studios and teach various classes (orchestra, group, and beginning music theory). We're also working in two area high schools with CHAMPS (Chamber Music in Public Schools), a local non-profit that provides free weekly coachings in public schools. Our student quartets from Anderson and Akins High Schools performed a few weeks ago at the CHAMPS Winter Recital. Just this last Saturday, the students from Akins performed their Mozart once more in a masterclass with Maestro Peter Bay, conductor of the Austin Symphony. We're very proud of all that our various students have accomplished!