Arts academy tunes up summer music camp offerings

The Academy of Visual and Performing Arts will hold its 5^th annual music camp programs from June 13 to June 24, offering K-2 Junior Music Camp, Grades 3-6 Music Camp, Grades 7-12 Core+ Program, and summer academies in piano and voice. 

The camp for children in kindergarten through 2^nd grade, a new addition to the summer camp lineup this year, focuses on social-emotional growth and learning in a small-group environment. Themed activities include music and movement, percussion circle, story telling, and junior choir. 

“We are very excited to add this program,” said AVPA Director Martin Glicklich, a faculty member with the university’s music department. “There is a true need for early childhood music as the benefits are lifelong. It has been proven that children involved with music at an early age develop increased math and language skills. The creative process is definitely stimulated, and the child’s ability to collaborate with others is enhanced while also building self-esteem. We are very proud to offer this program to our community.”

Camp for kids in grades 3-6 is designed to accommodate all levels of musical experience. Programs will incorporate musical performance, history, theory and composition. Participants will be grouped into performing ensembles by skill level. Those with little or no experience will receive expert instruction in music fundamentals through classes in guitar, keyboard, recorder hand bells, ukulele, and choir. Those with a musical background will perform in chamber ensembles led by La Sierra music faculty.

The Grades 7-12 Core+ Program involves a music curriculum of history, theory, and chorus, in addition to an emphasis on instrumental chamber music. Optional tracks are available in applied lessons and film/music composition. 

The summer academies in piano and vocal studies are respectively directed by pianist Elvin Rodriguez, chair of La Sierra’s music department, and vocal faculty member Javier Gonzalez. The academies are designed for serious young musicians who will receive private lessons and participate in master classes as well as other focused activities.

“This year we’ve expanded the number of program offerings to provide more intensive study for those who already have experience with piano and vocal performance, and who want more focused study,” said Glicklich. “We added these programs for intermediate to advanced students  after receiving requests from families. We felt there was a true need for this programming designed for this age group.”

This year’s summer programs will conclude with grand finale concerts highlighting various group and solo performances by camp participants. The piano and vocal academy students will perform the evening of June 23, and the remaining programs will perform on June 24. The performance times will be forthcoming.

Additionally guest artists M.B. Gordy, a Los Angeles percussionist and drummer, and violinist Sam Fischer, concertmaster for the Riverside Philharmonic, will give performance clinics and master classes during the two-week program.

Gordy has worked with many famous acts and top-tier groups including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the National Symphony, the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, REO Speedwagon, Neil Diamond, Three Dog Night, John Tesh, Frank Zappa, Josh Groben, and many others. For four years he served as percussionist/drummer for the Doobie Brothers, and is currently playing drums for Rita Coolidge. His film, television and theater credits include work on “Red Dragon,” “Transformers,” “Mad Men,” “The Mentalist,” “The Tonight Show,” “Good Morning America,” “Battlestar Galactica,” “The Lion King,” “The Color Purple,” “West Side Story,” “Camelot,” to name a few.

Fischer, a graduate of The Juilliard School in New York, has performed as a soloist throughout the United States, Europe, and Japan. He appears regularly as soloist with orchestras throughout his native Los Angeles, including the Riverside County Philharmonic, the Los Angeles Doctors Symphony, the Golden State Pops Orchestra, Orchestra Santa Monica, and the Caltech-Occidental Chamber Orchestra. He performs with many top orchestras including the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, the Los Angeles Opera Orchestra, and the Pacific Symphony, and has recorded extensively for motion picture soundtracks, record albums and video game soundtracks by many of Hollywood’s top composers and artists.

As an educator, Fischer is on the faculty of the Colburn Community School of Performing Arts, the Idyllwild Arts Summer Program, the Montecito International Music Festival, and other organizations.

AVPA Summer Music Camp tuition ranges from $200 to $450 with additional costs for emphasis tracks in the Core+ program. For registration and information visit www.avpamusic.com, call 951-785-2086, or email avpa@lasierra.edu. Classes and programs will be held in Hole Memorial Auditorium. La Sierra University is located at 4500 Riverwalk Parkway, Riverside. A campus map is available at https://lasierra.edu/campus-map/.