This is the betwixt and between time.

Reveille!, the VYO & VYP summer camp, was an intense and wholly absorbing time of music making. When a group of music-loving people get together and focus on it, it becomes like the whole world, and we live it and breathe it. Then, came the concerts at the end of the week, which seemed like the natural culmination of the flow. So, it is a bit like being dunked into cold water to find that it is over, and that “normal” life has to resume.

Now, as school starts up again and strange people all around us seem to believe that other things are just as important as music (!) we get distracted, start thinking in terms of calculus and passive voices and botanical subspecies, and the flourish of Reveille! begins to fade.

But, we are not done with this music yet.

A lot of the music we played during the week of Reveille! is destined for the season’s first big concert at the beginning of October. As the distractions get greater, so too does a different form of excitement build. That adrenalin rush is what we call “concerts.” The ceremonial aspect of a public concert makes it into a completely different experience from playing in a camp amongst our peers.

At a concert, we are really putting ourselves on the line. We are predicting that on October 2nd at St. Mary’s in St. Albans at precisely 8:00 pm, and again at on Sunday, October 4th at 3:00 pm at the Flynn Center; at those precise times and places, we shall all gather together, at our peak of concentration. Despite all the tasks we have to accomplish between now and then, this prediction of the future will happen. All the years of practice and all the hours of rehearsal will emerge as extraordinary skills so that we can coordinate, and offer our astounded public the brilliance of our artistic vision!

Yes, it’s pressure. It’s anxiety that focuses the mind wonderfully.

An actual concert is a more focused and intense short period in time in which we step up to the mark and “do our thing”. And they are great things that we are going to do: A brand new piece by a genuine living musical prodigy, still only 18 years old. A razzle-dazzle show-off violin concerto from our wonderful Sally Bruce. Solid classical music fun from Brahms. Eccentric musical meanderings from Percy Grainger, all topped off by the biggie, Romeo and Juliet in which we’ll strive to get everyone in our audience weeping openly.

Then back into the night, back home to all the other things, strengthened by the knowledge that, yes, we can do this. We can live our lives, but we have acquired the skill to all come together in one place, and deliver something extraordinary that none of us could do by ourselves.

Concert time is coming fast, folks! Show up to rehearsals and keep practicing.

Andrew Massey, VYO Interim Conductor

How I can explain how wonderful Reveille! was for me this year? I made so many new friends and branched out a lot more then I have previously.

Mary McSweeney, viola

It’s always satisfying to finish a concert with my bow high in the air, feeling proud of the work that I have accomplished. At the beginning of the week, I was reminiscing about the tour and missing the orchestra that went to France…and our dress rehearsal left me feeling that things were a bit sketchy (if you know what I mean). However, by the end of the concert on Sunday, I had changed my mind entirely. The orchestra sounded good and the concert was a blast! The repertoire was so much fun to play and Mary McSweeney did a fantastic job soloing on the Berlioz  Harold in Italy.

Troy Peters’ and Andrew Massey’s conducting styles could not be more different…  I can’t say that I prefer one more then the other. Although I enjoyed Mr. Peters’ style, which was sometimes loud and very vocal, I’m also really liking the way that Mr. Massey conducts. He makes these funny faces and gestures – they remind me of the mood we should be conveying at that moment in the music. I find this very helpful!

Overall, my friends and I had a wonderful time at camp. I found myself a bit teary as I closed the door to my room and headed to the final check out on Sunday. Although it’s nice to be home, I really miss camp and everyone there.

At least I have one more year of Reveille! to anticipate…

Daphnee Vandal, violin    (Photo: Stina Plant)

This being my 5th year at Reveille, I’ve grown accustomed to coming to the Music Center every summer to live in the Saint Michael’s dorms for a week.

This year is different. I’m not part of the younger crowd anymore. I’m a high school junior, so suddenly I’m a member of the older crowd…exactly like the older VYO musicians I used to look up to when I was younger! It’s quite strange being the older student…but I’ll admit that it’s pretty nice being at the top of the chain.

Another difference for me:  This is my first experience  as a VYO member without Mr. Peters being the Music Director. I’m not going to lie; it is weird. BUT… I’m getting used to our new conductor, Andrew Massey. I love his sense of the music. And, he is very funny! We work through all of the pieces very slowly, which can be a pain, but we have come a very long way since Monday, the beginning of camp. I always love playing with the new, younger players as they experience a new orchestra and new conductor.

For one of my electives, I’m taking a class called “Meet the Moderns” with our Composer-in-Residence, Rob Paterson. I didn’t know what to expect, but as the week has progressed, I am enjoying his different tastes in music and interpreting with us what we think is ‘Modern Music’. On Wednesday, he played some his own compositions and they were amazing! I especially loved the piece he wrote for his own wedding that featured six trumpets. The harmonies were fantastic and you could almost hear the church bells in the music. I am so looking forward to playing his music and to hearing more of his compositions.

Daphnee Vandal, violin

For the next three years, I will be composer in residence with the Vermont Youth Orchestra Association. Although I live in New York City, I have lived all over the U.S. and even in Vermont for a few years a while back. It is wonderful to experience the musical side of Vermont once again, this time through the VYOA. I am having an incredible time.

My first week involves taking part in the Reveille! Music Festival. There are over a hundred and fifty musicians, and I am spending the week hanging out, getting to know everyone, listening to rehearsals, and teaching two classes: one entitled “Meet The Moderns”, where I play pieces I love written by mostly living composers, and another entitled “Advanced Tonal Theory.”

On the first day of the Meet The Moderns class, I asked everyone what the term “modern music” means. When someone said Schoenberg, I was a little shocked. To help dispel the notion that twelve-tone composers define the word “modern” (keep in mind that Schoenberg died in 1951), I have been playing music by composers such as Luciano Berio, Morten Lauruden and Steve Reich, and I have a few other interesting, living composers planned for the rest of the week. I am putting together an iTunes playlist that contains most of the pieces I am presenting, in case anyone wants to download something they like.

Yesterday I played some of my music so everyone could hear what I compose. I thought this was a good idea, since VYOA is programming one of my orchestral pieces each year for the first two years, and I am being commissioned for a new piece for orchestra and choir for the 2011-12 season.

Today, some of the students brought in pieces they like, and it was an eye-opening experience. My only requirement was that they explain to everyone in the class why they like what they play. We heard everything from Joseph Schwantner‘s Velocities for solo marimba to Summa by Arvo Pärt, as well as music by Eluveitie and Bring Me The Horizon. It was incredibly eclectic. We will listen to more student chosen pieces tomorrow, and I will throw one or two more pieces into the mix as well.

It is not all just about class: yesterday everyone went to Oakledge Park. I think we all appreciated getting away from the campus for a few hours, and Lake Champlain was actually not too cold!

That’s it for now. I will write about Reveille! once more at the end of the festival. Stay tuned…

Rob Paterson, VYOA Music Alive Composer-in-Residence

Robert Paterson is the Music Alive Composer-in-Residence with the VYOA. Music Alive is a national residency program of the American Symphony Orchestra League and Meet The Composer.