The Boulder Cello Project

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I have been a member of the Boulder Cello Project almost since its inception in June 2012, and I think this group is doing great things and want to share a little about it.

What is the Boulder Cello Project? The Boulder Cello Project is a group of beginning through advanced cellists who meet once a month to learn about the cello and make music together. In addition to their monthly meetings, members can attend classes led by local experts on specific subjects of interest related to the cello. The group also gives back to the community and gains performing experience by doing regular concerts at retirement communities.

What to Expect The Boulder Cello Project is a friendly and supportive group and no audition is needed to join. When you come to a meet-up, you can expect to meet cellists and eat snacks during our optional socializing time, then play lots of cello music during our organized play-in sessions. The group consists of over 60 members, and typically about 15-30 attend each play-in. The music we play is written by local and national composers who collaborate with us to provide a wide range of parts of varying difficulty so there is something that everyone will enjoy playing.

How to Join Joining the Boulder Cello Project is free, but donations are encouraged to assist in keeping up with expenses and maintaining the quality of the meetups. You can learn more about the Boulder Cello Project and join the group on the The Boulder Cello Project Meetup Page or the Boulder Cello Project Website.

Boulder Cello Project Holiday Recital at the Academy Retirement Community

Upcoming Studio Events and Competitions

Volunteer Opportunities: Volunteer to help the Charlotte Piano Teacher’s Forum with the Concerto Auditions or the Solo Auditions and receive lots of volunteer hours for school and the satisfaction of helping the music community.  Let me know if you would like to volunteer or have any questions about what it involves.

Christen’s Music Studio Flute and Piano Winter Recital (required for all students): DATE: Saturday, December 11 PLACE: Held at Harvest Chapel in Indian Trail TIME: 2:00pm, with the practice for flutists beginning at 1:00pm

Festival Hymn Playing Event: DATE: Saturday, February 5, 2010 PLACE: Matthews United Methodist Church, 801 South Trade Street, Matthews, NC TIME: Your child's time to play will be announced one week before the Festival. REPERTOIRE: The student will perform two hymns from the required Federation List (with music) for the judge.

Federation Hymn Playing is a NON-COMPETITIVE event, meaning that students are not compared with each other, they are simply critiqued on how accurately they express details of the music as it is printed.

Festival Piano Scholarship (Charlotte District): DATE: Saturday, February 12, 2010 PLACE: Queens University of Charlotte E.H. Little Fine Arts Center, corner of Selwyn and Wellesley Avenues TIME: Your child's time to play will be announced one week before the Festival. REPERTOIRE: The student will perform two pieces from memory. One piece is from the required Federation List, the second piece from a non-American composer. Student must play a piece from the higher levels of the Federation list, beginning with the Moderately Difficult I. SCHOLARSHIP: Students who place (1st or 2nd in their category) at the District Level have the opportunity to compete for a scholarship on the state level on April 17th at UNC Greensboro.

Festival Piano Solo Event: DATE: Saturday, February 26, 2010 PLACE: First Baptist Church, Queens University, and CPCC TIME: Your time to play will be announced one week before the Festival. REPERTOIRE: The student will perform two pieces from memory. One piece is from the required Federation List, the other is taken from appropriate classical repertoire chosen by the teacher and student.

Federation Festival is a NON-COMPETITVE event, meaning that students are not compared with each other, they are simply critiqued on how well they express what the composer has written on the page.

Charlotte Piano Teachers Forum Auditions: DATE: Saturday, March 12, 2011 (Auditions and Theory Test) PLACE: Queens University of Charlotte, E.H. Little Fine Arts Building (corner of Selwyn and Wellesley Avenues) Finals: Sunday, March 13, 2011 Place: Queens University TIME: To be announced one week before the Auditions DIVISIONS: Grades K-12 REPERTOIRE REQUIREMENTS: Students must perform from memory three compositions from the required Piano Teacher's Forum List (one piece from each of three musical eras). THEORY TEST: All entrants are required to take a theory test, either before or after they perform for the judge(s). The entrants must take the test in the same division in which they played. The theory test must be taken by 1:00 PM. FINALS: Students who have won top scores in their studio on Saturday are eligible to compete in a finals competition the following day. Theory test scores are used to break ties in playing scores. AWARDS: The Forum recognizes the three top winners of each division in the Auditions by awarding Scholarships to those entrants at the May Honors Recital. At the discretion of the judges all available scholarships may not be awarded. Winners must perform in the honors recital in order to receive monetary awards. HONORS RECITAL: The three Forum Auditions winners in each of the six divisions shall be eligible to perform in the Honors Recital on May 6, 2011 at Sharon United Methodist Church

Christen’s Music Studio Flute and Piano Spring Recital (Required for all students): DATE: May - TBA PLACE: Harvest Chapel in Indian Trail