Fall 2015

the crowden Letter

Crowden: a “Must-Visit” Destination for Musicians

Crowden continues to enjoy visits from a rich array of distinguished touring musicians. Drawn by the reputation of our students’ thoughtful love of music, guest artists leave inspired by Crowden’s unusual blend of expertise, passion, and collaborative spirit.

This summer, the great St. Lawrence String Quartet visited Crowden’s Summer Chamber Music Workshop, treating participants to a fascinating hour of Haydn quartets. SLSQ’s recently appointed second violinist, Crowden alumnus Owen Dalby (’98) observed, “To come back to Crowden is really gratifying… I think about studying with Anne, and how she instilled in all of us this love of chamber music. To have it come back full circle is just really awesome!”

In September, American styles superstars Mark and Maggie O’cO nn O r treated Crowden School students to a master class on beginning fiddler styles and improvisation

techniques. Afterwards, Mark held faculty members in thrall with an unexpected kitchen jam session.

Later that month, Cal Performances generously brought an ensemble from Venezuela’s renowned Si MÓn B OLÍvar Sy M ph O ny Orche S tra to perform for Crowden School students. Ensemble 7/4 performed Venezuelan folk ‘Gaitas,’ the Habanera rhythms of Argentine tango, and jazzy arrangements of classical orchestral works, introducing students to unusual instruments and giving advice on practice ethics.

Just one week later, Crowden School alumnus k enneth r en S haw (’08) vis-

ited his alma mater in advance of his concerto solo performance with the Oakland Symphony. Kenneth treated an exceptionally proud assembly of students and Crowden members to Bach and a mesmerizing Debussy Violin Sonata, then answered questions from his many fans in the audience. Kenneth advised students that although they may not see it now, “Everything you’re doing at Crowden now whether academic or musical, is going to really help you later in life. Even more than high school!”

The d e L phi t ri O, a faculty ensemblein-residence for Crowden’s summer chamber music workshop, also visited the Crowden School’s morning music program to give a pre-

News Flashes

• Crowden launched a new website this August: www.crowden.org!

• After we make the final payment on our mortgage this August 2016, we will own our historic landmark building outright. Our 2016 Gala Keys to Crowden will celebrate this momentous accomplishment.

• The Crowden Board of Trustees approved new officers and members and fêted

view of their Sundays @ Four concert, featuring masterworks of the piano trio repertoire.

In October, the esteemed c avani Quartet spent two hours with Crowden School musicians, sitting in on small ensemble coachings before giving a master class to the full school assembly. Using spirited energy and humor, Cavani members encouraged students to experience and embody the music physically as they played. “Crowden students are so lucky to have technical strings at such a high level,” observed cellist Merry Peckham, while violist Kirsten Docter complimented a Schubert performance as “Exquisite—they really captured Schubert’s personality.”

When jazz violinist and composer Mad S tOLL ing came to visit Crowden School students this November, he gave the all-school orchestra his transcription of Michael Jackson’s Smooth Criminal to sight-read. A recipient of two classical crossover Grammy Awards, Mads taught students unusual bowing techniques like “the chop” and the “bow slap.” Smooth Criminal could be heard emanating from classrooms for the rest of the day.

Also in November, Finnish-born k ai J a Saariah O, widely considered one of the world’s great composers, delighted young musicians in the John Adams Young Composers Program with an hour-and-a-half workshop.

departing members this fall. cO urtney d uffy and Brian Sa MSO n stepped down after tremendous service. Former Board Chairs Sa LL ie a ren S and nO reen a xe LSO n, former Vice Chair f red kO nke L, and longtime member J O hn LOwitz were honored for their innumerable contributions throughout years of exceptional service. Sallie Arens and John Lowitz will serve on Crowden’s Advisory Board. ED Doris Fukawa remarks, “I know the entire Crowden community joins me in deep gratitude toward our departing trustees, many of whom provided invalu-

able stewardship through crucial points in Crowden’s history, including the purchase of our historic landmark building, our incorporation as a non-profit organization, weathering the financial crisis, and renovating our Hoefer Auditorium. I am eternally grateful!”

The Board welcomed new trustees a nge L a J O ne S, JerOM e Matthew S and Ja SO n wang e ar L rupp continues as Board Chair, t i M d er is Vice Chair, z achary g riffin Treasurer, and a nge L a a rchie Secretary.

PHOTOS THIS PagE, lEFT TO RIgHT: Cavani String Quartet with TCS Music Director Eugene Sor and students; violinist Mark O'Connor. CO v ER Pag E PHOTO: Ensemble 7/4 from the Simon Bolivar Symphony Orchestra. all photos by g eoffrey Biddle.

East Coast Reunion

old photos and memories, they swapped updates on their lives at present, met partners and children, and exchanged contact information.

Not surprisingly, the attending Crowden alums are all immersed in fascinating activities, from working as a Google engineer to releasing a new single for an orchestral pop duo.

Please Support the Annual Fund

Your support ensures that Crowden can continue to use chamber music as a learning model for young musicians to cultivate confidence, commitment and teamwork. The special role Crowden plays in the lives of young people is nicely captured by Crowden alumnus Owen d a LB y, who is currently an artist-in-residence at Stanford University and a member of the St. Lawrence String Quartet:

When Crowden’s Executive and Artistic Director Doris Fukawa realized she had to travel east for personal reasons, she immediately decided to capitalize on the trip to connect with former Crowden students and friends. The opportunity came at short notice, but luckily eM i Ly a da MS (’97) and her partner George Adams kindly offered to host a ‘Meet & Greet’ at the George Adams Gallery in Chelsea. Doris also met alums uptown for a happy hour at the Hotel Beacon Bar on the Upper West Side.

Armed with old yearbooks and photo albums on both occasions, Doris met with small but exceptionally engaged groups of alumni— all eager to spin Crowden yarns and to connect with other classmates. After browsing through

Both reunion events proved heartfelt, invigorating experiences. Plans for more East Coast events for alumni are certainly in our future!

TOP P HOTO, l EFT TO RI g HT: Emily adams (’97) is a visual artist in NYC; Daniel Holtmann-Rice (’00) attended with his wife liz Bospflug and has been working at g oogle for the last six months as an engineer; Christo logan (’97) attended with his wife and four-month-old son. although he and his wife met as architects, Christo recently changed careers and is currently designing his own line of hardware (lighting and fixtures); Doris Fukawa; Oliver Konkel (’09) is a junior at Columbia University studying Civil Engineering. He wants to work on large scale transportation projects—his eye is on California; gideon lazarus (’08) is a junior at the New School majoring in Performance Studies, and working on a musical theater project.

B OTTOM P HOTO, l EFT TO RI g HT: Sophia Kessinger, a former student of anne Crowden, attended with her husband Shmuel and daughter Hanna; lyly li (’07) is a graduate student at the Juilliard School; Doris Fukawa; Mariko Wyrick (’03-’06) is a student at the Juilliard School, Rachel Ruggles (’00-’02) is a working violinist and founder of the orchestral pop duo gracie and Rachel, living in Brooklyn; Sam adams (’00) recently moved to Chicago where he is a composer-in-residence with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

Photos by Kerri g awryn.

The education I received at the Crowden School was some of the most formative of my life. My years at Crowden showed me that chamber music is the perfect intersection of discipline and fun, and that it’s this wonderful shared and social experience that kids rarely have at this level. Learning to play chamber music at Crowden is all about when to lead, when to follow, how to support each other, and most of all how to LISTEN to your peers and create something beautiful together. These abilities, learned early, have made me not only a better musician but a better learner, a better leader, and simply a better person. I am so proud to watch the school turn out generation after generation of kids who also know these skills and whose many achievements can, I believe, be traced to that unique shared experience among middle schoolers and their teachers. Bravo, Crowden!

The joy Crowden students experience in playing music together nurtures a zeal to create, explore and listen while fueling a lifelong passion for music. Please consider making a gift, as Crowden’s capacity to transform lives through music depends on the generosity of people like you.

Crowden School alumni gathered in New York City this October for the first of hopefully many reunions for alumni on the East Coast.

Mancini Lectures Examine Interdisciplinary Arts

Launched last year in honor of our school’s academic founder, Piero Mancini, the Mancini lecture series presents experts speaking on interesting musical topics.

Last year focused on science and music, presenting sound engineer J O hn Meyer, who designed the state-of-the-art acoustic system in Crowden’s Hoefer Auditorium, and physicist c ar L h a B er, a Crowden alum dad and MacArthur Fellow who is restoring audio historical treasures long thought lost to posterity. This season, the Mancini Series focuses on interdisciplinary arts with two lectures connected to 2015-16 programming by Cal Performances and the San Francisco Ballet.

On November 19, composer and double bassist Shin J i eS hi M a presented his lecture, “Bach, Ballet, Buddhism, Bodhisattvas, and Anne Crowden.” Over the course of a fascinating hour, Eshima used his composition process for two works commissioned by the San Francisco Ballet—including one the Ballet will perform this March—as a framework for his thinking on music, Buddhism, and artistic inspiration. His lecture began with

performances of a Buddhist chant, performed by monks from the San Francisco Zen Center, and a Bach prelude performed by a Crowden School pianist. It ended with Eshima’s own composition, combining an unchanged Buddhist chant with the same Bach prelude to beautiful, celestial effect. In between, Eshima traced a connective arc between practicing Buddhism and practicing music as Anne Crowden taught her students to—both with a purpose of “putting people on this path toward their own happiness.”

Eshima claims he came to epiphany considering Buddhism’s Noble Eightfold Path in comparison to Anne’s life and actions as a teacher: “Anne’s behavior for all those eight elements was so heightened, so admirable, it came to me... I think of her as a Bodhisattva—someone who is already enlightened, but decides to stick around on earth to help the rest of us. I’m beginning to think that music is a practice like Buddhism is a practice—it requires all of the same things.”

The Mancini Series will continue on February 25, when photographer d e BO rah O'g rady discusses her multimedia collaboration with the St. Louis Symphony on Olivier Messiaen’s Des Canyons aux Étoiles (From the Canyons to the Stars). A project of majestic

proportions, Des Canyons aux Étoiles premieres in Berkeley at Cal Performances this season to celebrate the centenary of the National Park Service, and was commissioned by Cal Performances, Los Angeles Philharmonic, St. Louis Symphony, Washington Performing Arts, and Sydney Symphony.

Crowden members receive two complimentary tickets to Mancini Series lectures and artist receptions.

3 4

Scott Johnston painted this portrait of Shinji Eshima with his Plumeral bass, which was also painted by Degas.

Allegro con brio

David McCarroll Headlines Winter Benefit

Crowden’s Winter Benefit Concert features Crowden School alumnus David McCarroll (tcs ’99), recently appointed violinist of the illustrious Vienna Piano Trio.

David has been described as “a violinist of mature musicality and deep understanding of his repertoire whose playing is distinguished by clarity of form and line” by Musik Heute. Winner of the 2012 European Young Concert Artists Auditions and Silver Medalist at the Klein International Competition, he made his concerto debut with the London Mozart Players in 2002 and has since appeared in major concert halls including the Konzerthaus Berlin, Concertgebouw, Wigmore Hall, Kennedy

Center, and Carnegie Hall. His performances have been broadcast on radio stations including WGBH Boston, WQXR New York, National Public Radio, and the BBC.

David will perform an evening of violin masterworks for the concert on Thursday, January 7, mingling with guests at a post-concert dessert and wine reception. Tickets are $125, with proceeds benefiting music education programs and scholarships at Crowden.

Crowden members at the Patron ($500) level and higher receive complimentary tickets to the Winter Benefit, as well as to an exclusive reception prior to the concert.

For more information on Crowden's membership program, or to rsvp as a Patron member or higher, please contact Kerri Gawryn at kgawryn@crowden.org or 510.559.6910 ext 120.

Winter Benefit with David McCarroll, violin

January 7, 2016, 7 pm

Crowden Music Center

sponsors

Sallie and Edward Arens

Shelby and Frederick Gans

Meyer Sound

Purchase tickets online at:

DavidAtCrowden.bpt.me

David McCarroll (right) wowed Crowden audiences when he made a guest appearance at last year's Winter Benefit, which featured Noah Bendix-Balgley ('97). Photo by lenny g onzalez.

With Your Support, Music Changes Everything!

The Crowden Music Center gratefully acknowledges the support of the following Crowden families, employees, individual members, government agencies, foundations, and businesses between December 1, 2014 and November 30, 2015. Kindly notify us of any inadvertent omissions. Thank you!

Crowden School Families

Timothy and Cathy Der

Jessica and Robert Duran

Donna and James Eyestone

Jane Gottesman and Geoffrey Biddle

Zhi Min Huang and Gui Zhou Liu

Leslie and Jay Ifshin

Casey and Kobi Ledor

Myla and Charlie Manese

Sue Martin and Brian Viani

Bonniee Mookherjee and Ivan Amodt

Alexander and Sonya Delwaide-Nichols

Anthonia Roller and Wayne Heiser

Monica Scott and Dominique Pelletey

Ilknur and Ilker Sozat

Iris and Tom Stone

Emanuela Tallo and Dylan Riley

Tim Wilkinson and Nomi Harris

Jovina and Vita Yee

Faculty and Staff

Charlene Brendler

Rachel Durling

Doris Fukawa and Marijan Peve

Mori Achen and Maryann D'Onofrio

Annie Nalezny

Marion Atherton and John Reager

Betsy Marvit

Michael Tillotson

Maria and John Danielson

Alyona Marenchuk

Individual Donors

conductor ($25,000 & up)

Anonymous

Shelby and Frederick Gans

Ann and Gordon Getty

Helen and John Meyer

benefactor ($10,00–24,999)

Anonymous (2)

Sallie and Edward Arens

Jennifer and Elwyn Berlekamp

Soo Hyang Kang and Jacob Pak

James Marks and Edna Lee Warnecke

Deborah O'Grady and John Adams

Amy and Eddie Orton

sponsor ($5,000–9,999)

Anonymous (2)

Angela Archie

Lois De Domenico

Patrick Golden and Susan Overhauser

presenter ($2,500–4,999)

Anonymous

Joan Balter

Liza and Michael Dalby

Peter Fang and Erlinda Sy Fang

Zach and Peggy Griffin

Bonnie Hampton

Cary Koh

Elizabeth McCoy and Carl Haber

Anne Nesbet and Eric Naiman

Marjorie Randolph

Earl and Rosalinda Rupp

composer ($1,000–2,499)

Tracy Dooley

Ann and Jack Eastman

Charles and Harriett Feltman

Nick Gerson

Cara and Timothy Hoxie

Sukey Lilienthal and David Roe

John Lowitz and Fran Krieger-Lowitz

Ingrid Madsen and Victor Rauch

Bennett Markel

Claire Max and Jonathan Arons

John and Annamarie McCarthy

Fernando Olivas

Bernard and Mrs. Barbro Osher

Sangam Prasad

Michael Rubinstein

Robert and Debbra Wood Schwartz

Lisa and James Taylor

Jane Tom

patron ($500–999)

Elizabeth Axelson and Don Regan

Noah Bendix-Balgley

Carol Franc Buck

Scott and Peggy Cmiel

Dorianne Cotter-Lockard

John Croizat

Daniel and Janet Der

Bob and Ann Dynes

Gregory Freidin and Victoria Bonnell

Rick Irving and Valerie Lagueux

Martha and Vaughan Jones

Faye Keogh

John S. T. Mark

Seth Mazow

Richard and Myriam Misrach

Jaleh Niazi and Esfandiar Imani

Sally Nichols

Ann and Michael Parker

Traudel and Stanley Prussin

Yuen Ron Shen

Richard Thalheimer and Christina Simonelli

Julia Wenk

June Wiley and Bruce McCubbrey

friend ($250–499)

Susan and Norman Abrahamson

Alan and Helen Appleford

Noreen Axelson and Don Archer

Howard Bulos and Linda Tedjakusuma

Tzu Ching Chang

Elisabeth Christensen

Shinji Eshima

Roger and Joan Glassey

Catherine Graff and Douglas MacLaughlin

Jørn Hansen

John Jackson

Uyen and Chinam Kry

Victoria Leonard and Noah Kahn

Keally McBride and John Zarobell

Christopher McKee

Ray Meister and Mary Lynn Miller

Youwen Pan and Judy Xiong

Daniel Pitt and Claudia Bloom

Madeline Prager

Carol Robertson

Elizabeth and Frank Sor

Emilie Steiner

Arne Stokstad and Karna Jean Nisewaner

Robert and Helen Thompson

Christina and Gordon Ting

Linda Walls

associate ($100–249)

Keith Alward

Dorian and George Bikle

Robert and Gloria Bloom

Tami Bobb and David Otero

Dario Boffelli and Tomoko Asagami

Norman Bookstein

Eleanor Briccetti

Roberta Brokaw

Melinda and Bob Buchanan

Jean Chastain

Hsiaomei Cho

Dean Curtis

Owen Dalby

Linda Deaktor

Laurence and Barbara Delaney

Tamara Dishnica

Jacqueline Divenyi

Patricia Durham

Rachel Eidbo

Robert Ellis and Jane Bernstein

Roland and Lois Feller

Henry Field and Lessly Wikle Field

Mary Ellen Fine

Paul Fogel and V. Yvette Chalom

Mary Gaillard

Janet Garvin and Bob Shumaker

Dessa and Wendell Goddard

Robert and Gunilla Haegerstrom-Portnoy

Harriet and Peter Hanauer

Nathaniel and Christine Hardin

Nancy and Nicholas Haritatos

Dr. John Hege

Fran Hill and Larry Frost

Barbara and Alan Hodgkinson

Helga Holtmann and Ronald Rice

Susan Ingerman and Arlene Siegelman

Garry and Kitty Jowe

Ken Kalman and Robin Bernstein

Philippa Kelly and Paul Dresher

Michiyo and Paul Kessinger

Fred Konkel and Kathy Kaspar

Robert and Ileana Krumme

Michael and Ayelet Lindenstrauss Larsen

Deborah Lee and Kaipo Baysa

Alan and Portia Lee

Andrea Liguori and Jeremy Cohen

Marcos and Janet Maestre

Robert and Taeko Mao

Richard Muller

Joan Murray

Brenda and James Nirenstein

Warner and Cheryl North

John Palmer and Camille Crittenden

Catherine Leeson Pelizzari

James and Diane Pennington

Joseph Phillips

Ron and Gail Rubenstein

Sharon Seim

Nina and Nathan Shoehalter

Jeanne Stark

Julie and Robert Stokstad

Barbara Strauss

Rosalie and Peter Streett

Tammy Tsai

Lillian Varga

Lawrence and Elizabeth Waldron

Florence Wong

Peter Yu

Diane P. Zimmerman

supporter ($50–99)

Barbara and Mark Altenberg

Susie and Schuyler Bailey

Marci Buskala and Bart Bush

Josephine Chen

Frances Colyer

Linda Copenhagen

Don Cornejo and Madelyn Weiss

Carolyn Doelling

Jacob Feldman

Doris Fine

Rachel Fine and Christopher Hawthorne

Lillian and Richard Goodman

Ellen Hahn

Lorraine Hauser

Keiko and Peter Hjersman

Councilwoman Linda Maio

Michiko and Stephen Luzmoor

Nancy Merrill and Wesley Underwood

Etsuyo Nishikimi

Nancy Oldham

Chunfen Pierce

Kit Ratcliff and Janet Tam

Normita and George Santore

Timothy Smith

Margaret Traylor

Leslie and Troy Tyler

In Kind Gifts

William Amory

Vincent Arroyo

John Beardsley

Rosemary Bower

W. Zacheus Cande and Darien Spencer Cande

Dorothy Chang

Jordan Christensen

Sandra Downey

Elisabeth Ely

Andrew Freeman

Roger and Joan Glassey

John & Mel Harte

Peter Jaffe

Bruce Klimoski

Janet Madden

Patti Marsh

Katherine Perl

Suhaila Salimpour

Alex Sanner

Anthony Scarr

Ben Shemuel

Donna Stoeing

Julie and Robert Stokstad

Nannie Turrell

Businesses & Organizations

AmazonSmile

Bank of America Matching Gifts

D.J. Grubb and Company

Dealey, Renton & Associates

Ifshin Violins

Kaiser Permanente Matching Gifts

Meyer Sound

PG&E Matching Gifts

Salesforce Matching Gifts

Target Take Charge of Education

Wiggles N' Tunes, Inc.

Institutional Donors

Anonymous (2)

Alameda County Arts Commission / ARTSFUND Grants

Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation

Berkeley Civic Arts Commission

Bernard Osher Foundation

California Arts Council

Clarence E. Heller Charitable Foundation

HEDCO Foundation

Crowden

Board of Trustees

officers

Earl Rupp, Chair

Timothy Der, Vice Chair

Zachary Griffin, Treasurer Angela Archie, Secretary

members

Joan Balter, Kate Berenson, Tracy Dooley, Angela Jones, Cary Koh, Bennett Markel, Jerome Matthews, Anne Nesbet, Jacob Pak, Sangam Prasad, Jason Wang, and Doris Fukawa, ex officio

music advisory board

John Adams, Bonnie Hampton, Gary Karr, Michael Morgan, Sir Simon Rattle

advisory board

Sallie Arens, Patrick Golden, John Lowitz, John McCarthy, Helen Meyer, Deborah O’Grady

Hurlbut-Johnson Charitable Trusts

Mervyn L. Brenner Foundation

Pacific Harmony Foundation

Silicon Valley Community Foundation

Tides Foundation

Gifts in Tribute

in memory of virginia baker

Keith Alward

Keiko and Peter Hjersman

Kitty and Ryan Jowe

Tammy Tsai

Diane P. Zimmerman

in honor of joan balter

Susan A. Ingerman and Arlene Siegelman

Madeline Prager

christine c chu cello scholarship

Stella C. Wu-Chu

in memory of grethe clarke

Dorian and George Bikle

Melinda and Bob Buchanan

Tzu Ching Chang

Josephine Chen

Hsiaomei Cho

Tamara Dishnica

Bob and Ann Dynes

Mary Gaillard

Jørn Hansen

John Jackson

Christopher McKee

Roseanne and Richard Packard

Traudel and Stanley Prussin

Yuen Ron Shen

Emilie Steiner

Julia Wenk

Peter Yu

in memory of anne crowden

Linda Deaktor

Gregory Freidin and Victoria Bonnell

in memory of ken durling

Rachel Durling

founder Anne Crowden (1928–2004)

honorary president

Lord Yehudi Menuhin (1916–1999)

founding president Colin Hampton (1911–1996)

Administration

Doris Fukawa, Executive and Artistic Director

Marion Atherton, Associate Director, Community Programs Director

William Betts, Community Programs

Assistant

Janet Ceja-Orozco, tcs Secretary

Maria Danielson, Staff Accountant

Lauren Eigenbrode, Admissions and Alumni Relations Manager

Monica Frame, tcs Counselor

Kerri Gawryn, Director of Development

Brad Johnson, tcs Principal

Heidi Mattson, tcs Assistant Principal

in honor of mary ellen fine

Rachel Fine and Christopher Hawthorne

in honor of doris fukawa

Dorianne Cotter-Lockard

Nancy Merrill and Wesley Underwood

in honor of shelby and frederick gans

Rick Irving and Valerie Lagueux

in memory of barbara jackson

John Jackson

in honor of hildred merrill

Nancy Merrill and Wesley Underwood

milly rosner scholarship fund

Patricia Durham

in honor of arne stokstad

Karna Jean Nisewaner

in honor of jen strauss

Barbara Strauss

Debra Mauro, Director of Finance

Lucas McGranahan, Development Associate and Grants Manager

Jorge Mendoza, Building and Grounds Assistant

Stacy Neale, Development and Communications Coordinator

Juan Rodriguez, Building and Grounds Supervisor

Eugene Sor, Assistant Artistic Director, Director of tcs Music

Jennifer Strauss, Director of Publications and P.R.

Michel Taddei, Director of Artistic Administration

Crowden Letter

Jennifer Strauss, editor, writer, graphic designer

Kerri Gawryn, Lauren Eigenbrode, writers

Geoffrey Biddle, photography (except as noted)

Music Changes

Everything

In this Issue

1. Discover what makes Crowden a “must-visit” stop for touring musicians.

2. Travel to New York for our Crowden School reunion.

3. Explore the connections between Bach, Buddhism, and Anne Crowden.