How do you get to Carnegie Hall? Practice, of course! After months of dedicated preparation, nine piano students from the Mason Community Arts Academy (MCAA) performed at the legendary Carnegie Hall in New York on October 21. MCAA students have been participating annually in this international event organized by the Instituto Superior de Artes of Costa Rica since 2019. This year’s participants Kiran Das, Eva Gafurova, Jakin Jordan-Brangman, Ryan Miller, Michael Nguyen, Lucas Schnotala, Nicholas Stavrou, Audrey Tan and Margo Xiao, performed music by a wide variety of composers, ranging from Burgmüller and Clementi to Chopin and Debussy.
It was a bustling weekend for the students and their teachers, Masha Feygelson and Dr. Misha Tumanov, who traveled to support them in New York. While many students left for New York City after school on Friday (arriving late in the evening), and had a 9 a.m. dress rehearsal ahead of Saturday’s afternoon concert, they were able to spend the rest of the weekend enjoying the city through sight-seeing, visiting museums, or catching a Broadway show. Inspired by the historic venue, our students demonstrated an exceptional level of preparation and musicianship. Congratulations to all the performers on this extraordinary achievement!
Quotes from parents and students:
It has been wonderful to watch our daughter grow as a musician and a person from participating in the Carnegie Hall concerts. Working on a few pieces for a big performance has pushed her to develop her artistry and discipline. While piano is often one of the more solitary instruments, events like this bring together a community of kids at all different levels. We enjoy watching everyone perform and the older students are an inspiration for the younger ones. She is also learning so many skills that go beyond the piano — like persistence, hard work and staying calm under pressure. Plus it’s a lot of fun to spend a weekend in NYC!
Thank you so much for giving me the chance to perform at Carnegie Hall for the first time; I feel so lucky and honored. The piano was amazing and the sound filled the hall beautifully! This is one of the best memories in my student life.
Performing at Carnegie Hall has been an incredibly enriching experience for my daughter. She has done it three times starting when she was just 8 years old. Even though she did not know what Carnegie Hall was during that first trip, she could feel the magnificence and musical importance of the venue. I could see her being inspired to rise to the occasion and do her best with confidence. To this day, her best performance each year is when she is playing at Carnegie. It is as if all the history of musical excellence shared on this esteemed stage, along with the support of a great audience during these recitals promote her music to the next level. It’s always an unforgettable experience for all of us — and we always celebrate by going to a Broadway musical afterwards.
Congratulations to our piano students, faculty, and family!
Written by Masha Feygelson
Edited by Regina Schneider
This season, our faculty and staff had the privilege of working with over 1,800 students across our programs in Music, Acting, Visual Art, Film & Video, and Professional Development. While we streamlined our programs into seven weeks, we grew by an additional 130 registrants this year!
In addition to the return of our most popular programs, including Summer Acting Camps, Filmmaking Camps and Creative Discoveries visual art classes, MCAA presented our brand new Children’s Choir Camp!
The Children’s Choir Camp and Kodály Side-by-Side supplemental program was once a years long dream now come to fruition. Through this program, our young choral students participated in choir practice, folk dancing and song, rhythm based games, and so much more, guided by Kodály teachers in training.
This year, our second annual Mason Summer Band Camp under the direction of Dr. William L. Lake, Jr. and featuring several guest teaching artists, welcomed over 120 young musicians from all over the region. The Mason String Camp combined the High School Strings Institute and String Camp into one program. Directed by George Mason University’s Dr. Soo Han and Professor June Huang, along with fantastic guest faculty, students were divided into two ensembles and also learned through chamber ensemble rehearsals, private lessons and master classes.
Thanks to the recommendations of our Music Technology faculty, the popular Music Producer program was divided into two sections: Song Production and Mixing Techniques. In Song Production, students were introduced to the artistic and technical skills needed to produce professional-sounding music tracks. In Mixing Techniques, students learned how to shape a mix for emotional impact, how to make musical elements fit together, and how to tighten pitch and timing of recorded parts.
Again this year, our Orff and Kodály teacher training programs provided music teachers with the opportunity to earn credit or gain professional experience in these intensive courses of study. Nine hundred fifty students attended our Acting for Young People theater programs. Our Visual Art classes, under the leadership of Dr. Justin Sutters and Dr. Hayon Park, provided young students with the opportunity to learn various art techniques and make visits to the campus libraries and other locations. While campus was bustling, over 210 students attended private music lessons each week at our Academy building!
A huge thanks to each and every one of the faculty members who shared their expertise in all of these programs. We are ever grateful to our colleagues in the College of Visual and Performing Arts and the Arts Support Umbrella staff, who welcome us into the campus spaces each year and make our programming possible. As always, we thank our students and families who attended a camp, class or lesson this year.
Last but certainly not least, please join me in thanking and congratulating our incredible MCAA staff. None of this would happen without their tireless efforts. Before the summer season is even over, they are already hard at work, reflecting on this year and making plans for next! Stay tuned for exciting updates coming in early 2025, and of course, we look forward to our Fall Group Classes and private music lessons.
On behalf of all of us at MCAA, we wish you a happy end of summer and beginning of fall. We can’t wait to see you again soon, and to continue watching you create and grow!
-Mary Lechter, Executive Director
Mason Community Arts Academy is the community arts education unit of George Mason University’s College of Visual and Performing Arts. The Academy offers classes, lessons, and workshops in all of the arts disciplines to the community at large.
“Most people know us through our award winning Summer Arts Camps that we bring every summer to the Mason Fairfax Campus,” said Matt Geske, MCAA Operations Manager, “where a total of 1,500+ K-12 students fill the College’s arts classroom and performance spaces with activity, creativity, and fun.”
However, somewhat removed from that limelight is the official Mason Community Arts Academy building, housing small classroom and lesson room spaces and administrative offices, located less than a mile from the George Mason Fairfax campus at 4260 Chain Bridge Road. Year-round arts classes and lessons take place in the building, averaging 400+ visitors weekly during Fall and Spring.
“We are so grateful to be able to use this building, owned by the GMU Foundation, to provide quality and accessible arts education activities to the local community,” continued Geske. “That being said, it is an aging building, which comes with the usual wear and tear over time.”
One of those wear and tear elements referred to was the state of the landscaping adjacent to the Academy building. Existing vegetation had become unwieldly and unhealthy, and some plants had even died out all together, leaving a rather forlorn scenic view. While this state of affairs began posing an aesthetic challenge, at the same time it had another more subtle effect.
“For half of the year, in the warmer months, the afternoon sun can be quite merciless, heating up the two-story building to the point where the AC needs to run constantly to try and keep up,” stated Geske. He went on to explain that the declining landscape vegetation only worsened the situation, as much-needed shade from the foliage began disappearing. But funding for new landscaping posed a challenge for the non-profit organization.
Noting an intersection between landscape aesthetic beautification and energy cost savings, Geske began seeing potential for a Patriot Green Fund supported project, having been awarded a PFG grant several years prior for a musical instrument recycling program, Instruments in the Attic. In November of last year, after a discussion with MCAA Executive Director Mary Lechter and CVPA’s Facilities Manager Tyler Conway, Geske sent in a project proposal to the PGF, with PGF staff quickly responding favorably to pursue a full application.
Forming a collaborative team between himself, Mary Lechter, Tyler Conway, and George Mason Grounds Manager Erich Miller, Matt was able to construct and submit a full grant application in February, which consequently brought in PGF staff members who assisted with assessment and guidance. Erich Miller and his team were essential to planning the landscape design and plant elements and providing mock-ups.
Happily, the PGF Committee approved a grant award for half of the cost of the project. Mary Lechter then approved funds to cover the other half from a separate private foundation grant award received earlier in the year. With the project being greenlit (pun intended), the team moved into full action in March, as plans were confirmed and Miller’s final landscape design was approved. Being familiar with the Patriot Green Fund’s process of expense reimbursement, Miller and Conway were able to navigate the heavy-lifting accounting aspect, while Geske coordinated with Miller and his crew on the work schedule and other on-site elements of the project.
Regarding the final landscape design, it is important to note that Miller, knowing the full spirit of the project, was very intentional in selecting specific plant species native to northern Virginia, that were categorized as “drought resistant” so as not require excessive watering, that provided bloom and/or leaf color interest year round, and through standard species height and spread would maximize shade coverage of the building without compromising structural concerns.
Finally, during a week in the beginning of April, Miller and his landscaping team arrived on the scene at the Academy building and began the process of clearing existing vegetation and debris, installing the new plant elements, mulching, and watering. A few inspections would follow the next week, concluding with a discussion between Miller and Geske on the maintenance plan going forward. This plan involved a collaborative effort between the grounds team and Geske to ensure plant health was monitored effectively and watering occurred as needed. Furthermore, the long term maintenance would be folded into the larger George Mason grounds plan.
Geske put a finishing touch on the project by placing yard signs amongst the landscaping acknowledging the support of the Patriot Green Fund and George Mason’s University Sustainability. “PGF’s support was pivotal in allowing this project to move forward,” commented Geske, “and just like its support of our musical instrument recycling program several years back, the impact will be felt (and seen!) for many years to come.”
Although it will take a few years to be able to evaluate the resulting energy cost savings to the building, as it will take some time for the vegetation to grow and fill out, the aesthetic improvement has seen immediate response. Academy staff, faculty, students, and visitors were quick to provide positive and excited feedback to the Main Office of the improvements, and a real sense of rejuvenation has been felt. Furthermore, with university student townhomes located directly behind the Academy building, the George Mason students living there have enjoyed walking past the new landscaping on their way to campus.
Edited by Regina Schneider
This week, Delegate Kathy Tran presented our Executive Director Mary Lechter with House Resolution 804, in honor of Acting for Young People’s 25th anniversary in 2022. Co-signed by Delegate David Bulova and unanimously approved by the entire House of Delegates, the Resolution highlights AFYP’s long history in the surrounding community, and the even greater impact these programs have had, made possible in collaboration with Mason Community Arts Academy.
“I’m truly humbled by this honor.” notes Ms. Lechter. “This recognition is especially meaningful, as we have had the opportunity to work with children from both the Tran and Bulova families in our Acting and Music programs over the years. Perhaps most important of all is the feedback Delegate Tran shared in person, and includes in the Resolution itself, commending our staff and faculty for the authentic experiences they provide for our students. It has always been my goal to provide a warm, welcoming, and inclusive environment in which students can learn and grow. I am touched that we’ve been acknowledged for this core value of our programs.”
We look forward to providing quality arts education to the community for the next 25 years and beyond!
Written by Mary Lechter
Edited by Regina Schneider
