All in the Family
by: Colette Hebert
The ensemble started small, with just one violist and four violins. Today, there are 26 members—ranging in age from 9 to one member in her late 70s—who perform together biannually. Herrle now admits that the intergenerational ensemble exceeded her expectations: “I never expected there to be the camaraderie there is. The younger kids love it as much as the older people do,” she observes. “There’s a genuine affection among the players.”
Rising to the Challenge
One reason for this affection is obvious: many of the players share family ties. Mary Miett, a 51-year old physician from East Haddam, Connecticut, and 13-year-old Patrick Miett are just one example.
Having studied piano for seven years, Mary was already musical but had dreamed of playing violin since she was a girl. “As a left-hander though, I thought I couldn’t play. Plus, I went to a Catholic school that didn’t have a music program,” Mary recalls, adding, “My son is left-handed as well.”
Patrick began taking the piano in first grade, and in third grade he took up the recorder. He turned to the viola but was also told that his left-handedness would make learning the viola especially tricky. “It’s different, because you’re not using your hand with the fine motor skills for bowing,” Mary explains. “It’s a challenge.”
However, a teacher was brought on to the faculty at the Community Music School who was known for teaching left-handed students. “We received a call when she joined the school’s faculty, because she said she was able to teach my son,” says Mary. The method Patrick learned by was the Suzuki method—the music education philosophy that encourages young children to learn through immersion in a musical culture—taught at the Centerbrook school. The method encourages very young children to learn instruments with the belief they can pick up music in the same way they learn their native language.
Solidifying a Relationship
Patrick first picked up the viola four years ago, and Mary began playing viola a year later, because she wanted to participate in the musical learning experience with her son. Patrick precociously challenged his mother to practice with him.
“Playing viola is something we do together that’s unique,” says Mary, who began the experience of learning with her son by sitting in on his lessons. “It’s a parent-child bonding. Being part of the ensemble with my son solidifies our relationship.”
Specifically, says Mary, there are two ways playing in the intergenerational ensemble benefits her son. First is the chance to interact meaningfully with people of all ages. “My son is interacting with people in their 60s and 70s,” she explains. “You’re not just sitting with age-matched peers.” Secondly, there’s the quality-time factor, difficult to come by in these days of over-filled schedules. “We also have a half-hour car ride to and from rehearsal. That’s when we can talk and have quiet time together.”
“It’s really unlike anything else I do in my life,” Mary continues, speaking of her place in the maturing string ensemble and the personal benefit she gets from participating. “I don’t have the same degree of pressure. I’m part of a larger picture, so it’s a form of relaxation for me.”
A Motivating Factor
Penny Smyth, 53, of Lyme, Connecticut, is a nurse by profession but currently works in real estate sales. She began playing the violin three years ago and her son began six years ago at age 4. “When my son Nolan started violin, he learned by the Suzuki method based on imitation,” Penny explains. “Then I rented a violin, and that’s when we started playing together.”
He first became interested in the violin when he joined the Community Music School’s Kindermusik program at age 18 months. “At Christmas Nolan asked, ‘How come Santa didn’t bring me a violin?’” Penny remembers. “I’m not a parent who pushes their child to do something, but I honored his request.”
Penny has since found that playing the violin has benefited her life. “Some people have golf; this is my golf. Playing violin takes me away,” she says. “It carried me through a personal crisis, and it really helps me with my self-esteem.”
The benefits of playing with her son in the Suzuki method and in the string ensemble are self-evident. Having known a woman who took up cello with her child, Penny had a frame of reference for her decision to join his adventure. “It’s the modeling for the child that’s important. It’s good for the child, and that’s why we do it,” Penny says. “I do it as a mother; my child is the motivating factor.”
“Nolan’s 10 years old now, and to be able to share something that brings us both pleasure and joy is wonderful,” Penny continues. “It’s one thing to take lessons, but the string ensemble is all about joining a group of people and playing together and making music.”
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A Sense of Pride
“We want to keep it fun. We’re amateur musicians, who want to share the experience together,” says Penny, considering how the ensemble works together as a community. “It really provides a constant outlet of relief from the stresses of daily life. A lot of activities, such as sports, are difficult to share with kids, but it’s remarkable to share making music together. It brings you a sense of pride. I can’t praise the Community Music School enough for providing me and my son with this experience. He realizes the importance of making time for the group.”
Selecting the music for the ensemble—diverse in age, experience, and skill level—is one of the most significant challenges Martha Herrle has. “The music has to appeal to a variety of people,” She begins. “When I pick music, I choose a variety of pieces that interests the different generations in the ensemble.” The group’s repertoire consist of traditional classical music, but the director also throws in folk fiddle tunes, show tunes, and other popular pieces from time to time.
“I didn’t want to exclude anyone,” asserts Herrle, remembering the philosophy of togetherness that drove her four years ago. “Although I thought that the adults might not want to play with the younger students, and vice versa.” However the members of the ensemble proved her wrong. It turns out that generations are only too happy to be brought together with a common interest and that music has never heard of the “generation gap.”
For more information on community music schools, visit the National Guild of Community Schools of the Arts at www.nationalguild.org.
