It’s almost like an old school musician apprenticeship. We’re talking about a program conducted by Camerata San Antonio, the four-piece chamber ensemble. First, a reminder of who they are and what they do.
“We perform music from the baroque to today, and we try to keep every program eclectic,” said Camerata’s co-founder and violist Emily Freudigman. Not long ago in the hill country, while conducting a master class, the group realized something.
“Not only do we perform well together, we teach well together,” said Freudigman.
So they decided to do master classes in all the cities they play. As to what a master class is, she puts it this way.
“A private lesson in a very public space, in front of an audience. It’s a very old tradition in classical music studies and it’s kind of a rite of passage to any serious music student,” Freudigman said.
As I noted, it must be kind of daunting to have your performance critiqued in front of others. She agreed, but added that "that’s why I call it a rite of passage for any serious music student."
There’s an added plus for those who come to view it.
"It helps every single music student that’s in the audience," Freudigman said.
Camerata San Antonio is conducting this master class for five different high schools, as Freudigman explains.
"We have five string quartets: They are coming from Taft High School, Jay High School, O’Connor High School, Churchill High School and the Northeast School for the Arts," she said.
The free event happens downtown this Saturday at the Radius Center at 3:30 p.m. Freudigman said there’s one more thing those competitors should note.
"We will select one quartet from this master class to open our June first season year-ender," she said.
- For more on Camerata San Antonio visit: www.cameratasa.org
