ASTA National Conference
March 15-18, 2023 | Orlando, Florida
2022 MASTA Chamber Music Festival
By Mary Kothman The 31st annual MASTA Chamber Music Festival was held on Monday, March 7, 2022 at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo. Guest artists and competition judges were the string faculty at Western Michigan University: Megan Crawford, violin; Igor Fedotov, viola; Bruce Uchimura, cello; and Michael Hovnanian, double bass. Enrichment classes were presented by
Interview with Marilyn Kesler – A Michigan Teaching Legend
Candace Chappell, MASTA Notes Blog Editor In the upcoming days, music teachers from all across the state will be attending the Michigan Music Conference in Grand Rapids. The conference will feature many wonderful speakers, clinics, events, and performances, including the String Teachers Orchestra. This year, the Teachers Orchestra will be led by cellist and master
Tone, a Voice Comes from the Heart to the Strings
By Dr. Fangye Sun I am honored and thankful to receive the MASTA Professional Development Grant in 2021. Being a member of MASTA, there are many opportunities and much support provided to string educators and students to develop and engage new ideas and projects. MASTA grants are among those. I have always wanted to learn
MASTA Chamber Music Festival 2022
The MASTA Chamber Music Festival will be held at Western Michigan University on Monday March 7, 2022. The festival is open to grades 7-12 and the competition is open to grades 9-12. Faculty will include: Megan Crawford and Mary Kothman, violin, Igor Fedotov, viola, Bruce Uchimura, cello, and Michael Hovnanian, bass. Please look for registration
Setting up your Virtual Studio
Shawn BouckeSeptember 2021 Virtual teaching has gone from a niche area of music lessons, to becoming essential for nearly all private teachers. I never thought I wanted to teach virtually as it felt limiting; and like many people, was forced into it in the Spring of 2020 and now I wish I had gone virtual
MSBOA String Orchestra Reading Session – September 18, 2021
Orchestra Teachers, join us for the annual reading session of new string orchestra literature on September 18, 2021. The repertoire list of more than 30 new titles ranges from the beginning level to advanced level. Bring the stringed instrument of your choice and let’s make music together as we play through the selection for this
LET’S WELCOME OUR NEW MASTA BOARD APPOINTMENTS FOR 2021!
Dear MASTA members, I am writing to give some updates on the MASTA board. We have some departures and some new appointments that I’d like to share with you. Allie Holden will be leaving as membership chair to take on a leadership role in MSBOA. For the past five years Allie has done an excellent
2021 MASTA Chamber Music Festival Results
The 30th annual MASTA Chamber Music Festival was held virtually this year due to the pandemic. Eight student groups submitted videos and received online coaching from Katri Ervamaa, Kathryn Votapek, and Aaron Berofsky. Students also participated in an enrichment class with Melissa Knecht. The winning ensemble of the 30th annual MASTA Chamber Music Festival Virtual
MASTA PD Grant – Summer Master’s Degree
By Joe Harmsen This past year looked a little different than most. Plans were altered or cancelled, masks were worn, and large gatherings were avoided by most in order to do our part against the all-too-familiar pandemic. For those of us in “summer school”, this meant that college courses were moved completely online. Last summer,
MASTA Solo Competition Winners
The 20th biennial MASTA Solo Competition was held online November 1, 2020. Guest competition judges were two principal members of the Toledo Symphony: Kirk Toth, Concertmaster and Amy Cheng, assistant principal cello. The judges decided to award two gold and two silver prize winners this year, due to the high level of competition participants. Gold