As a parent of a participant in the Marian Anderson String Quartet Classical Music Institute (MASQ-CMI) I am able to enjoy seeing the younger generation enjoy great music. I hope that you will support MASQ-CMI because that program provides great motivation for students to develop their sense of proportion, harmony, and beauty, thereby increasing their interest in other liberal and fine arts and enhancing their lives generally. The MASQ-CMI provides an element of balance to the everyday emphasis on sports. Please support the fine arts, a premier example of which is the MASQ-CMI. Thank you. – -

Robert Bretzlaff
Arts Supporter and Father Bryan, Texas

I want to express my appreciation for your generous support that enabled me and many others to attend the fourth annual Marian Anderson String Quartet Chamber Music Institute on scholarship. This was my second year at the institute. This year, as the camp continued to grow, there were two sessions and I participated in both, playing piano for the Schumann piano quintet in the first session and violin for the Beethoven first piano trio in the second session. I was one of the students in the advanced division. It is difficult to assemble a group that can study and perform at a high level, even in a larger city, and it would be impossible to find world class coaching in this community otherwise. We were able to do both thanks to the efforts of the Marian Anderson String Quartet. The CMI presents one of only a few such opportunities in this region of Texas, and also a unique opportunity.

The members of MASQ are expert teachers and can switch readily between beginners and doctoral music students. I believe the camp is structured in a way that maximizes the benefit to all types of student. In particular there are many beginning children for whom this is their only exposure to chamber music. Over the course of the camp, they receive training and make significant technical and musical progress. At the end of the camp session we all participate in a well-received concert in which all groups are called to perform at their very best. This was underscored by one experience we had in the second session, where several advanced players including myself had assembled a side group that MASQ determined was not sufficiently prepared for the recital. In another camp we might have argued that because of our years of experience, our group might still give a better performance than young children who had spent more time, but the spirit of the camp was that every player must give his or her best effort, and a halfhearted effort would be discouraging to those who put in a real effort. I admire this approach, and I believe it shows up in the final performance.

I believe that attracting advanced players is critical for the success of the camp. Because MASQ makes every effort to open the camp to advanced players, many of the advanced players in the area and also a number who travel from around the country are given training for their own benefit, but equally importantly, the advanced players serve as an inspiration and model for the younger players. Providing financial support for advanced players is critical to the camp. It is important to attract advanced players because parents who might be considering sending their children to the camp would prefer a prestigious environment, which MASQ has been able to create. Many older students are supporting themselves and would be more readily get involved if they did not have to weigh the tuition against other factors in their life, especially when other summer institutes provide scholarships.

MASQ has an ongoing commitment to share their artistic talent and experience with the community. This year thanks to donations they were able to extend their teaching to introduce children at the Boys and Girls Club to violin playing. These children were featured playing several songs in the final recital alongside MASQ. MASQ is different from other professionals in that they are willing to trust children with their delicate instruments when introducing them to them and also to share the stage with them. I have also been given both these honors (more importantly the second), as are several camp participants each year from different levels of experience. In contrast, elsewhere I have seen a university boast that its students are so good that some of them can play in a chamber concert featuring faculty artists. The MASQ philosophy on the other hand is that once one has acquired a high level of skill, it is something to be shared with students from all skill levels and backgrounds. They also seek to spread the spirit of outreach to the camp participants, arranging for us to conduct a free performance and lecture demonstration in the community, as they have done themselves many times.

I think it is very important to help MASQ continue to expand its outreach and teaching to bring world class music to Bryan/College Station in years to come. In a time when the influence of the fine arts is dwindling, it is more important than ever to raise the awareness of the next generation of artists and fans. I think our area arts scene is in unexpectedly good shape for the size of the town, thanks to the efforts of MASQ, the Brazos Valley Symphony, and numerous special programs, all of which rely on private financial support for their survival.

Thank you very much again for your support!

Eric Rosenquist
28 years old
Violin, Piano, CMI 2008,2009
Computer Scientist
College Station, Texas

This is the second year my daughter has participated in the MASQ summer workshop. She continues to enjoy the opportunity to play in a smaller setting, an ensemble, as she normal plays in a large high school orchestra. She is seriously considering teaching music in the public school setting, especially high school orchestra. After participating in this summer’s MASQ’s workshop, she has a deeper knowledge of how teaching various students from all economic, social, and ethnic backgrounds can be rewarding.
The enthusiasm, smiles, and warmth generated by the beautiful ladies of the MASQ, as well as the camp nurse, positively affected all of the participants, especially those younger ones from the Boys and Girls Club who had their first experience with a stringed instrument!
I am a school nurse at a local public high school, and have many encounters with students from all backgrounds. I can truly say that any confidence gained through learning a stringed instrument…which is portable, easily cared for, and lovely to look at establishes a desire in the education of oneself, and an incentive to hang on, push through, and perfect the end product….success in life.
These are truly giving, talented ladies, and I cannot tell you how blessed Bryan/College Station area is to have them located here.

Most sincerely,

Mrs. Elizabeth Amdor,
Mother of
Jackie, 15, violin, CMI 2008,2009
College Station, Texas