Salisbury Symphony’s summer music camp continues instruction for strings and piano

Salisbury Symphony’s summer music camp continues instruction for strings and piano

Published 12:06 am Wednesday, June 11, 2025

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The first week of beginner strings on stage during the first week of camp. — Submitted by Elizabeth Cook

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Advanced strings campers have a practice session during the camp at Livingstone. — Submitted by Beth Cook

Karen Kistler

karen.kistler@salisburypost.com

SALISBURY — Providing an introduction to music and instruments for beginners and helping those who have some knowledge of music continue their musical education is a goal of the Salisbury Symphony’s Summer Music Camp.

Elizabeth Cook, who serves as the camp director and education director of the Salisbury Symphony, said at the camp they offer instruction for beginner, intermediate and advanced strings and piano campers.

Several of the instructors for the camp are members of the symphony and others are teachers at either Livingstone College or a local high school.

In addition to Cook, who is retired from the Rowan-Salisbury Schools, others serving as music camp staff include the following:

• Liz Burns, who teaches advanced strings. She is assistant principal cellist with the Salisbury Symphony and conducts the Salisbury Symphony Youth Orchestra.
• Kate Middel, who teaches intermediate strings. She is associate principal violist with the Salisbury Symphony and teaches in the After School Strings program.
• Carter Bradley, who teaches beginning strings and plays viola in the Salisbury Symphony. His assistant is Maria Guild, who teaches chorus at Roberta Road Middle School in Cabarrus County.
• Dr. Lawrence Quinnett provides private lessons and a studio class to piano campers as well as teaching theory. He is chairman of the music and theater arts department at Livingstone.
• Katie Blevins is assistant camp director and teaches theory. She is West Rowan High School’s band director.

This year, said Cook, they had 12 campers the first week with ages ranging from eight to 22, and 18 campers were expected to attend the second week.

A part of that number of attendees was seven sets of siblings, she said, something she doesn’t remember ever having before. Five of the sets are two siblings and there is one set of three siblings at the camp.

The siblings, who Cook said encouraged each other to do their best, were in different programs with some in the beginners group, some in the advanced level, and one was in the piano camp.

For the second year, Livingstone College is serving as the host for the camp. It is offered for two weeks, with two separate one-week camps for beginners, which is for those who have no experience. This camp for beginners is free, said Cook, adding that it is “an opportunity for them to come in and try out an instrument, so to speak, to see if it might be something that they are interested in doing.”

Instruments are provided for the beginning campers so they can use them at camp and then take them home to practice and return them at the end of camp.

These, said Cook, are provided “through a terrific collaboration with Band Attic in Spencer, which provides instruments for our beginners at no cost.”

She said that she works with Keith Howe and his son Tyler Howe, and once they receive a list of the students and their ages, “they bring a truckload of instruments so the kids can use them while they are here.” 

The other higher level students and piano students have their own instruments, she said.

This summer camp doesn’t include woodwinds, brass and percussion, as Cook noted that the school system doesn’t teach strings, and “so we feel like if we’re going to continue to have symphony musicians, we’ve gotta have a way to teach kids about violins and violas and cellos. They can learn woodwinds and brass and percussion at school because the middle schools and high schools all have bands, but they don’t have orchestras.”

During the first week of camp, which was June 3-6, they had a group learning to play violin, viola and cello. Two adult students, sisters aged 19 and 22 were included in this camp.

Intermediate level is for those who have had one year of experience in the symphony’s After School Strings program or one year of private lessons, and advanced level is those who have had two or more years of experience in the After School Strings program or private lessons. These two levels and the piano campers, which started three years ago, all attend the full two weeks, which concludes June 13, said Cook. 

“It is amazing how much progress a young musician can make in two weeks,” said Cook.

Camp begins at 9 a.m. and following a welcome and announcements, Cook said they have instruction time, followed by group time when, if weather permits, they go outside. However, in the event of rain, like they experienced the first week, they remained inside and played games.

Snacks are provided each day by the symphony guild. “So there’s always a really good snack in the morning,” she said.

The day ends for beginning campers at 1 p.m. as Cook said, “they don’t have quite enough music to play for a full day, and all the rest of the campers stay until 3 p.m.”

A new scholarship, named the Charles Bernheim Scholarship, is available for campers to receive. It is specifically designated for the string campers to come to summer camp. The fund was established by Charles’ widow, Rachel Bernheim.

Cook said when those wishing to attend camp register, they can at that time indicate if they would like to be considered for a scholarship and they will receive another form to fill out.

A concert was held June 6 at 1 p.m. to demonstrate what the first group of beginners had learned, and on June 13, another concert will be held for the second week of beginners at 1 p.m., with piano campers performing at 2 p.m. and the remainder of the strings playing at 3 p.m.

The concert, which will be held at Varick Auditorium at Livingstone College, is free and open to the public.

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