Fall Quarter September 5 - December 4, 2005

Save a Stamp and Feed the Birdie

That bird is still there, but we promise he/she won’t attack you if you’d like to drop off your payment in our Drop Box at our book-keeping office at director Nancy England’s home on the corner of West Outer Drive and Mississippi Avenue (driveway off Mississippi Ave.) in Oak Ridge. If you want to leave cash, call ahead (865-482-5614) to make sure we can be there to give you a receipt!

Fund Drive Launch

The Mary Cox Memorial Scholarship Fund is crucial in helping less fortunate students get good music instruction. Our School Visitations program brings up-close-and-personal music demonstrations to school kids, helped with matching funds from the Tennessee Arts Commission. Both programs are made possible by donations from wonderful folks like you

Why not enclose a few extra dollars when you pay your Fall Quarter bill? A donation of $25 will get your name listed as a Sponsor on our recital programs. $50 to $99 will list you as a Benefactor, while $100 to $199 make you a Mentor, and $200 or more gives you our highest accolade: Grantor.

We’ll accept any amount, of course, and will be grateful for your support. Even a few dollars helps. And don’t forget: we’re nonprofit, so it’s Tax Deductible!

Last year’s visits to county and rural schools were immensely successful, and we’re looking forward to getting another grant to visit third graders in the Oak Ridge School System - matched by donations from you!

One of the earliest donations made to the fund this fall was from one of our long-term students, Emily Backus. We think that says a lot about the value of our programs!

Haven't Been in a Recital Lately?

Our recitals are not grueling marathons! They’re designed to last about one hour, with smaller audiences. Everyone loves the Intermission Quiz, where students are rewarded with mystery prizes for correct answers to musical questions. Let your instructor know that you’d like to be included. And if you’re not quiiiiiite sure about appearing in one, come and be part of the audience. It should reassure you that we don’t make people miserable!

Back on Schedule

Thanks to a rather different 14-week summer schedule, our calendar is now back to the ideal of 13 week quarters with the first lessons of each quarter falling on the First Mondays of September, December, March and June!

Visiting Your School?

Music Arts hopes to visit classrooms in all third grade (and hopefully fourth grade) in the Oak Ridge School System this school year. Last year’s visits to a number of rural schools were very well received, and we are looking forward to again being funded by the Knoxville Arts and Culture Alliance and the Tennessee Arts Commission to enable our instructors to make individual visits!

Meet Our Newest Instructors

Beth Sampsel, Flute

Our newest flute instructor, Beth Sampsel, has not one, but two Bachelor’s degrees from UT – one in Flute Performance and one in Instrumental Music Education. In addition she’s done some work toward a Master’s degree, but presently finds her life rearranged by the addition of two young children. As a result, she’s teaching from her home on Outer Drive.

“The thing I like the most is helping my students learn a skill that they can be proud of, and be confident in sharing with others,” she explains. “I believe that through music, students can learn to express emotion, develop self discipline and improve their abstract thinking skills, all the while having a great time and learning a skill that they can use and enjoy for the rest of their lives.”

Sampsel tries to strike a good balance between technical aspects, in terms of theory, scales and sight reading, but notes that each lesson depends on the particular skills her students are working on.

Neil Newton, Guitar

Neil Newton classifies himself as an enthusiastic eclectic musician with interests and experience in many musical styles. He studied intensively with jazz guitar teachers, giving him a firm grounding in diatonic theory and jazz theory, enjoyed a very brief classical guitar stage, and finally, blues and bluegrass using both acoustic and electric guitars.

Newton feels that his more unique musical attributes is his love of “fingerpicking,” a mixture of melody and accompanying bass line, which he applies to acoustic blues, folk and a smattering of pop. He also flatpicks in several styles on both acoustic and electric guitars. He has spent several years in an acoustic duo in New York City, as well as a few other band projects.

Newton accepts students as young as five or six years old.

Carmen Bonnell, Harp

Our new harp instructor, Carmen Bonnell, is a master at the classic pedal harp as well as the folk harp and lap harp. She has a rich music background, having started violin and piano at age five, taking on the harp when she was eight years old. She’s a third generation harpist, with both her grandmother and mother being professional harpists in the Washington State region. She’s given hundreds of performances, in venues as varied as beaches, forests, church balconies and, in the Pacific Northwest, the Seattle Space Needle and in a Faerie Circle on the Ides of March

Bonnell accepts adult students as well as younger students. She explains that children as young as age five can start studying harp, but that age seven or eight is more appropriate. For small children, she suggests starting on folk harp, which is light, small and portable.

More detailed information on these instructors is available in our Faculty section. For lessons with any of these fine musicians, call our office at 865-482-5614.

News flash: Baby Grand Piano for sale. Call our office for more information!