 A Journey of Musical Growth The Hoff-Barthelson Music School community extends a welcome of warmth and caring to all who walk through its doors and into its musical home. At Hoff-Barthelson, students embark upon a journey of musical growth under the guidance of our distinguished and dedicated faculty, and are encouraged to explore their musical ideas, tastes, and potential in a familial setting of friendship and support. Hoff-Barthelson is committed to uncompromising standards of a comprehensive musical education for everyone. Students, parents, faculty and administration strive for excellence while sharing the joy of accomplishments, and establish lifelong bonds of friendship through their love of music. The interaction of our young students with their teachers and peers is a significant facet of their development as musicians and as people. Just as a cherished family heirloom is lovingly passed from parent to children, we seek to nurture the love of music in our students as a treasured gift from generation to generation. Private Instruction is at the core of the Hoff-Barthelson curriculum, with private lessons offered on all instruments and voice in both jazz and classical idioms. A Suzuki program of classes and private lessons is available for violin, viola, cello, and flute; a modified Suzuki approach is offered for piano lessons. There are two 16 week semesters in the school year. Students are carefully matched with the appropriate teacher after an interview with the school Dean or Executive Director. Students enrolled in private lessons are encouraged to participate in musicianship classes and ensemble groups offered by the School at no additional cost. Musicianship classes are offered without charge to students enrolled in private lessons. Students are placed according to age and level of advancement. Classes include basic musicianship, composition, vocal ensembles, Advanced Placement Prep, Advanced Placement Theory, Music Technology Lab and College Prep, a further exploration of diatonic harmony for serious students who have completed the AP Course or its equivalent. Jazz Musicianship classes are offered without charge to students enrolled in private lessons. Students in grades 7 and higher with a basic knowledge of Diatonic Major Scales may enroll in Jazz Improvisation and Arranging, which explores the rudiments of free jazz improvisation, or Jazz Theory, which investigates music theory as it relates to the jazz idiom. Composition Classes are offered as part of the Musicianship Program and through special programs such as Compose Yourself!, a composition project supervised by faculty composers and noted guest composers that culminates in public performances of completed works as part of the Music of Our Time Festival. The Music School has a professional relationship with the Aaron Copland House through which students work on compositions under the direction of composers associated with the Copland House. Conducting offers the fundamentals of conducting and baton technique. Students are introduced to basic conducting patterns of meter and learn to communicate dynamic color, mood and expression through gesture. Honors Program The Honors Program for gifted and committed students has produced prize-winning performers in national and international competitions. Many choose to pursue careers in performance and teaching. Auditioned at the recommendation of their teachers, students in the Honors Program must enroll in chamber music, orchestra or chorus and are required to attend and successfully complete musicianship courses in addition to their private lessons. They are expected to perform a segment of a recital for a faculty jury at the conclusion of each semester. A full recital is required for graduating seniors. An Honors Program Certificate is awarded annually, and a special Graduation Award is presented at the Graduation Recital. Successful participation in this rigorous program is often beneficial in the college application process. Graduation Certificate Students who complete the required courses in musicianship, composition, music history and ensemble work, and demonstrate an ability to analyze and perform examples from each significant period of music literature, are permitted to present a Graduation Recital and receive the Hoff-Barthelson Music School Certificate. Community Outreach Hoff-Barthelson outreach brings student musicians to senior citizens, children and the disabled throughout the community through RING concerts, performances at Blythedale Children's Hospital, retirement facilities, and Arts-In-Education programs. Performance Opportunities Individual Performance Students are encouraged to perform in student recitals, Teenage workshops, "Informals," repertoire recitals, honors recitals, and outreach concerts. Ensembles Students are encouraged to join one of the many performing groups at the School from their very earliest stages of proficiency. Performances take place in a warm, familial setting, and help children to understand that the joy of music-making is an experience to be shared with one's peers throughout a lifetime. Students explore music literature appropriate for the level of each ensemble. Hoff-Barthelson is the only community music school in Westchester with a four-tiered orchestral pyramid. The Hoff-Barthelson ensembles include four levels of orchestra: Young People's Symphonette for elementary grade students; Wind Ensemble for wind players in Junior and Senior High School; Chamber Orchestra for string players in junior high school; all of which may culminate in membership by audition in the Festival Orchestra, a full symphonic orchestra for high school students at the highest level of technical ability and musical artistry. An elaborate program of chamber music duos, trios, quartets and quintets for students at all levels, four choruses, several Jazz Improvisation Ensembles, and a World Music Drumming percussion ensemble complete the Music School's extensive array of ensembles through which students may enjoy participatory music-making geared to all levels of proficiency. The Jazz Studies Program The Jazz Department offers study in a variety of jazz techniques and styles, with winds, brass, piano, percussion and guitar lessons. Faculty for the department includes some of the most renowned instrumentalists on the jazz scene today. Faculty members and students perform throughout the year at a variety of concerts, ranging from the JazzJam Workshop, to which students from outside the School are invited, to Jazz A to Z, a highlight of the School's annual celebration of contemporary music, The Music of our Time Festival, Winter Blues and All That Jazz! Preschool Program The Preschool Center for 3 and 4 year-olds is the only one in Westchester housed in a music school facility. It incorporates music classes twice weekly into the core preschool curriculum. The preschool activities offered for young children include weekly classes in Dalcroze eurhythmics for children ages one to five, including Mother/Child classes, Musicianship, The "Guppies" for 12 - 18 month old children, Love and Lullabies for 0 - 4 month old children, Learning in the Lap for 4 - 12 month old children, and Recorder Classes. Adult Program Private instruction is offered on all instruments and voice. Group courses for avocational adults include the Festival Chorus, chamber music, Flute Choir, Vocal Workshop, Sightsinging, and Jazz Ensembles. The Music School is also a Dalcroze Teacher Training Center. Sight-Singing WorkshopSummer Arts Program Music, theatre, and art for second through ninth graders, with the focus on individual lessons and a daily rotation through choices such as chorus, orchestra, arts and crafts, chamber music, drama, jazz band. The five-week basic program meets daily in the mornings; extended day options include World Drumming, HB Rocks Advanced Guitar Ensemble, Music Technology Lab, Composers Corner, Piano for Non-Pianists, Creative Keyboard, Simple Symphony, Wind Serenade and Jazz and Chamber Music Workshops. There are weekly concerts. The Musical Theatre Workshop for ages 9 - 14 incorporates scene study, vocal technique, pantomime, movement and basic theatre dance. The program culminates in a final performance. Public Events The Music School hosts dozens of concerts each year that are open to the public. These include the Faculty Artists Series, Festival Orchestra Winter Concert, the Baroque and Beyond Festival, Classics in Concert, The Music of Our Time Festival, Student Recitals and Master Classes. Recent performers at the School have included members of the New York Philharmonic such as concertmaster Glenn Dicterow and harpist Nancy Allen; soprano Dawn Upshaw; jazz pianist Dick Hyman; violist Karen Dreyfus and violinists Pamela Frank, Daniel Phillips and Midori; flutists Paula Robison, Gary Schocker and Wissam Boustany; pianists André-Michel Schub, Misha and Cipa Dichter, Mitsuko Uchida, Richard Goode and Garrick Ohlsson; cellists Steven Doane and Carter Brey; and clarinetists Stanley Drucker and David Krakauer. THE MUSIC RESOURCE CENTER The MRC is a music reference library which houses a comprehensive collection of music CDs, pedagogy materials, books on music for adults and children, audio and video materials, and summer camp brochures. It is also a center for continuing education for music teachers and performers, students, and avocational musicians. Events and Courses: Parents, Kids, and Practice Compose Yourself Showcase of New Materials and Music Sale Focus on Pedagogy Summer Programs Advisory College Advisory Hours of Operation By appointment through the Business Office. 914-723-1169 STUDENT HANDBOOK The HBMS Student Handbook is available for viewing through this link: http://www.hbms.org/pdf/2009-2010-Student-Handbook.pdf top of page |