the Crowden Letter
Adult Chamber Music Program Celebrates Tenth Anniversary Crowden is well-known for sparking a lifelong love of chamber music among its young musicians. For adult players, it provides a haven to deepen and enrich that love through expert coaching, performance opportunities, and community between fellow aficionados.
Crowden’s Adult Chamber Music Pro-
portation, and other challenges. Crowden’s
gram is celebrating its tenth anniversary this
program solves most of those problems:
2017-18 season! Founded in 2007-08, the pro-
interested students are placed into groups based
gram was created to provide adult players with
on schedules, skill levels, and instrumentation,
the rewards of extended collaborative musical
then meet for coachings and rehearsals over an
study and performance, while solving the many
eight-week period.
logistical barriers faced by adult players wishing to participate in small ensembles.
Pianist Debbie Carton, a music librarian at the Berkeley Public Library, has participated
Playing chamber music poses special
in Adult Chamber Music since 2009. “I’m
challenges to amateurs with busy lives. Most
a dedicated amateur musician—I’ve played
opportunities for adults to study outside of a
solo piano and chamber music and studied
college music department last only a day or a
privately for over 50 years—but the coaching at
weekend. To form an ongoing group, players
Crowden is truly exceptional. We get to work
must first find one another, then negotiate
with fantastic musicians who are also amazing
different schedules, rehearsal locations, trans-
teachers. They work with students at whatever