Suzuki Valhalla Institute 2012

August 5th - 10th, 2012
(Advanced Chamber Music Program begins August 3rd)

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Our new on-line registration system is now live!
If you prefer to mail in a paper form, see this link
ACM Teacher Recommendation Form also available here.



Outdoor practicing
 The Suzuki Valhalla Institute is a warm, friendly, well-organized institute now in its eighth year. It provides an inspiring musical program in a beautiful, natural setting well-suited for a family vacation. The SVI provides instruction in violin, viola and cello, from a faculty of highly trained and skilled Suzuki teachers with experience teaching at all levels, from Twinklers to advanced students. The SVI has been approved by the Suzuki Association of the Americas.

The main program provides 4 hours of daily instruction, including small master-classes (no more than 4 students per hour), group classes, a music enrichment class and a variety of ensembles and orchestras as appropriate. It is assumed that all students will have mastered, memorized and maintained all the Suzuki repertoire up to their current level. Classes are scheduled between 8:30 and 4:30, Monday to Friday (inclusive) with breaks for meals, snacks, relaxing, socializing and practicing. Parental attendance at all classes is expected. Solo recitals, concerts, play-ins, social events and other optional events are also scheduled. The program begins on Sunday afternoon at 4:30 with a "play-in" and finishes with a final concert on Friday evening.

Master class
Play-in A Mini-Institute option is available to younger siblings of fully registered students. It includes 2 hours per day of individual and small-group instruction. Students must already be Suzuki students with home teachers and must be playing on-instrument.

An Advanced Chamber Music Program is available to advanced students. It begins two days prior to the main program, on Friday evening August 3rd, with a weekend of chamber ensemble and string quartet work which continues as part of the regular program during the main SVI week. Acceptance is contingent upon teacher recommendation and upon the instrumentation balance of applicants. Students should be highly motivated, have previous chamber music experience and have the maturity necessary for some self-direction.

Advanced Chamber Music
Dusk swimming The Setting. The quiet villages of Silverton and New Denver are known for their artistic vibrancy, inspiring beauty, recreational opportunities and welcoming hospitality. They are located on the shores of clean, glacier-fed Slocan Lake in the West Kootenay region of British Columbia. Nestled between teh Valhalla and Kakanee Mountain ranges, the Slocan Valley is approximately 1 hour north of Nelson and Castlegar, 2 hours south of Revelstoke, and mid-way between Vancouver and Calgary (about 8 hours from each). Weather in early August is usually sunny and warm, with an averae datime temperature of about 25C (77 degrees F).

Accommodations in the area are limited, so we encourage you to book early. See the Housing page for details.

Lucerne School hosts our regular lasses, group lessons and ensembels. The school remains comfortably cool even during the summer afternoons and is adjacent to shaded playgrounds. The school is two blocks from the main downtown street and five blocks from teh lakefront. The Silverton Memorial Hall, 5 kilometers south of New Denver, is the site of the opening Play-In and the Final Concert.

Street Map of New Denver
Highway Map of the region

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Slocan Lake view
percussion

Chamber orchestra
 Additional Program Details:
  • Registration, Play-In & Orientation: Registration will occur on Sunday August 5th at Lucerne Elementary-Secondary School (LESS) in New Denver from 2:00 - 4:00 pm. The opening "play-in" and a short orientation meeting will occur at 4:30 pm on Sunday at Silverton Memorial Hall.
  • Extra Activities: There are playgrounds, a ball field, an art room and a friendly lounge area available for activities during the day. Some informal evening social and enrichment activities will be offered. We strive to maintain a balance between extra activities and the down time that allows families to be well-rested and get the most out of the program.
  • Solo Recitals: All students are welcome and encouraged to play a solo performance on an Institute recital. Selections must be mastered and well-polished well in advance of the Institute. Registrants will be contacted during May concerning their repertoire choices.
  • Final Performances: The final concerts will be held at Silverton Memorial Hall in the late afternoon and early evening on Friday. All performances are free for registered families and open to the public.
  • Repertoire Preparation: It is assumed that all students will have mastered, memorized and maintained all the Suzuki repertoire up to their current level. To facilitate more advanced students in focusing their review preparation for the Institute, we may send information at a later date concerning post-Book-4 repertoire likely to be emphasized in group classes and group performances. Where possible, chamber music repertoire will be sent out to students through the mail for advance preparation. For master classes, students should come prepared to play a well-polished piece that has been learned in the past 6-12 months, as well as a more recent piece that they might wish some input on.
  • Bursaries: A small bursary fund is available. Criteria for evaluation of applications include financial need, benefit to the student and chamber music instrumentation balance at the institute.
  • Accommodations: For more detailed and up-to-date information about accommodations of all types please see the Housing Exchange Website.
    • Private Home Rentals: For families wishing a home-like atmosphere, a number of private homes are normally available for rent or exchange. For information concerning these options please visit the Housing Exchange Website. The greater number of listings tend to come available by late spring.
    • Camping: Many families choose to camp during their Valhalla summer music experience. The SVI rents a black of campsites in the Silverton Village Campground on behalf of SVI families. This campground has a limited number of sites suitable for tents or campers (no pull-throughs) in a treed area beside the creek. Toilets and showers are available on-site. A village playground is close at hand, and a large lakeshore park is a couple of hundred metres away. These sites must be reserved in advance via the SVI registration form. In addition there are a number of other campgrounds within and near New Denver. Most are only available on a first-come first-served basis although there are a couple within half an hour which take reservations. See the Housing Exchange Website for details.
    • Commercial Accommodations: For information and availability please contact businesses directly via the Housing Exchange Website.
  • Meals: The New Denver area has stores that carry groceries and a few options for eating out. Family-friendly lunches for Monday through Friday are available for pre-order on the SVI Registration Form.
Group class

orchestra



Get stoked for 2012! Watch this video overview of SVI
with scenes from past years.
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