Category Archives: Classes

Chamber Music, Classes, for Adults

Chamber Music Class Starts April 7th

Classical string, wind, and keyboard players of all skill levels and musical interests are invited to join the coached Chamber Music Workshop for five weekly meetings, plus an informal recital for members of the workshop and their invited guests.

The workshop meets Sunday mornings from 10:00 am to Noon, starting  April 7, under the guidance of violinist Kathy Marshall.  A member of both Marin Symphony and Santa Rosa Symphony and a faculty member at Marin Community Music School, Kathy is an experienced chamber music coach who excels in helping amateur musicians achieve their ensemble goals.

Participants play music from the Baroque, Classical, Romantic, Modern, and Contemporary chamber literature.  Good music-reading skills are essential; experience playing with others is a definite plus but not essential.  Our goals are to help you enlarge your familiarity with chamber music literature; become a more confident and proficient ensemble player; and meet others who share your interest in chamber music.

If you are new to our program, please inquire here.

If you have participated in the past, please inquire here.

SPRING 2024  Chamber Music  Class 

coach:  Kathy Marshall

dates:   April 7 – May 5, 2024,  plus recital TBA

hours:  Sundays, 10 am – noon

$150  for the  5 week class

Students will be formed into groups and coached on specific pieces of music during the  course.  At the end of the five-week session, groups will perform their pieces at an informal concert.

Chamber Music

Chamber Music Workshop Begins April 7, 2024

Classical string, wind, and keyboard players of all skill levels and musical interests are invited to join the coached Chamber Music Workshop for six weekly meetings, including an informal recital for members of the workshop and their invited guests.

The workshop meets Sunday mornings from 10:00 to Noon, starting April 7, under the guidance of violinist Kathy Marshall.  A member of both Marin Symphony and Santa Rosa Symphony and a faculty member at Marin Community Music School, Kathy is an experienced chamber music coach who excels in helping amateur musicians achieve their ensemble goals.

Participants play music from the Baroque, Classical, Romantic, Modern, and Contemporary chamber literature.  Good music-reading skills are essential; experience playing with others is a definite plus but not essential.  Our goals are to help you enlarge your familiarity with chamber music literature; become a more confident and proficient ensemble player; and meet others who share your interest in chamber music.

If you are new to our program, please inquire here.

If you have participated in the past, please inquire here.

Chamber Music, News

Summer 2023 Chamber Music Workshop Report

Nothing is more delightful for musicians than playing with others in a small group. Whether it’s a jazz trio, a bluegrass band, a rock group, or a string quartet, small groups offer us the chance to share music with others in the most personal way. Instead of watching the conductor’s baton, we watch one another and communicate with small gestures, nods, raised eyebrows, and, of course, through the music itself.

Since its founding in 2009, Marin Community Music School has always attracted amateur classical musicians to its coached chamber music program. And while COVID restrictions put the program on hold for a couple of years, it’s happily come back to life with a wonderful new coach, flutist Carol Adee, who brings a fresh, welcoming approach to her students.

“Playing with other people is not only interesting and fun and rewarding, it makes people more aware of how music comes together,” Carol says. “It accustoms us to holding an inner sense of time while also being aware of other people.”

The Summer program met Wednesday evenings from July 26 through August 23.  At the final meeting, the players entertained one another with informal performances of Kuhlau’s Grand Quartet for flutes, Beethoven’s opus 11 Piano Trio, and the Piano Quartet opus 1, number 2 by Johann Gottlieb Naumann (1740-1801), pictured above.

The program resumes on October 4, 2023, under the guidance of violinist/violist Tara Flandreau. Learn more here.

Classes

Join the Band Workshop

Want to learn how to play in a band and perform on stage? Sign up for MCMS Fall Band Workshop today. Or attend a free information session on Sunday, October 1, from 2:00 to 3:00 pm.

Who Can Join?
If you are between the ages of 8 and 18 and can sing or play an instrument of any kind, you are welcome. You do not need to be currently enrolled as a private student at MCMS.

How Does It Work?
You attend five ninety-minute Band Workshops in October and November where MCMS faculty members teach you how to sing and play with others and help you rehearse your songs. In December, your band takes the stage at the MCMS Fall Recital and you perform for a live audience.

What Kind of Music Will You Play?
Your band will pick two or three songs from a list of pop, rock, country, and singer/songwriter styles. Some of the songs were huge hits, while others may be less well known. All are chosen to help you get the most from your band experience.

Who Are the Teachers?
Guitarist Joe Marquez, violist/violinist Tara Flandreau, bassist Tommy O’Mahony, and drummer Sean Nelson. They will coach and accompany each band as needed.

How Much Does It Cost?
Band Workshop costs $150 per participant, payable upon registration. Sheet music is provided.

When Does It Meet?
Sundays from 2:00 to 3:30 pm on 10/15, 10/29, 11/5, 11/19, and 12/3. The bands perform on Saturday, 12/9, at 2:00 pm.

How Can You Learn More?
Attend a free informational session at Marin Community Music School on Sunday, October 1, from 2:00 to 3:00 pm or ask your teacher for more details. Register for orientation here.

Ready to Sign Up Now?
Fill out this registration form.

Classes

Summer Cello Choir

Join your fellow cellists to read and rehearse music for cello ensemble in a relaxed, collegial environment. We’ll play chorales by Johann Sebastian Bach, original compositions by Julius Klengel, arrangements of works by Robert Schumann, and other enjoyable music in six 90-minute sessions.

No performing, just geeking out on the pleasure of hearing cellos, cellos, and nothing but cellos.

Meeting dates for 2023, all from 7:00 to 8:30 PM:

June 5
June 19
July 10
July 24
August 7
August 14

Fee: $90, payable in advance.

To enroll, please submit this form. No prepayment required.

Questions? Email the class leader.

Classes, for Adults, for Teens, Theory and Composition

Music Fundamentals for Guitarists

Taught by David Lusterman

Wednesdays, 7:00 to 8:00 pm

Do you already know some chords and songs on the guitar, but feel like you’re speaking bits and pieces of a foreign language?

Do you marvel at guitarists who can easily change the key of a song to fit their vocal range or improvise a solo on the spot?

They’re not doing magic tricks. They’re just speaking a musical language they’ve taken time to learn from the ground up.

In this series of hour-long weekly classes, I’ll teach you the basics of that language — notes, intervals, scales, chords, and keys — as they apply to the guitar.

With our instruments in hand, we’ll use fretboard diagrams and simple exercises to learn the fundamentals of music. We won’t be reading music notation or tab. Instead, we’ll train our ears to show our hands what to do.

No matter how long you’ve been playing the guitar or how old you are, I can help you understand the vocabulary and grammar of music-making and hear the patterns common to pop, rock, folk, and classical music.

I can’t work wonders, so you’ll need to pay attention and apply what I show you to your guitar playing. But don’t worry, I’ll give you the tools you need with simple exercises and drills you can do at home.

You’ll start to understand how music actually works — the alphabet, the vocabulary, the phrases, sentences, and paragraphs — so you can play more confidently and tell your own musical stories.

Topics
The Major Scale and Two-Note Chords
Notes and Intervals
Scales and Modes
Three-Note Chords
Keys and Four-Note Chords
Key Changes and Improvisation

Logistics
Wednesdays, 7:00 to 8:00 pm

Location: Marin Community Music School, 55 San Anselmo Avenue, San Anselmo, CA 94960

Fee: $25 per class for new students, $15 for students already enrolled in lessons.

NOT CURRENTLY ENROLLED? CLICK HERE.
CURRENTLY A STUDENT? CLICK HERE.