MSO’s CAPA Virtuosi Initiative at Colonial Middle School and Overton High School Nothing excites and inspires young music students more than working closely with professional musicians. Through the CAPA Virtuosi Initiative, students at Colonial Middle School and Overton High School in the Memphis City Schools’ Creative and Performing Arts (CAPA) optional program, have the opportunity to do just that. From September through April, twelve Memphis Symphony musicians coach string, woodwind, brass and percussion students. Some of the students receive one-on-one coaching while other students work together in groups.
MSO cellist Ruth Burgess works one-on-one with a cello student at Overton.
The musicians address a range of challenges such as preparing students for auditions and competitions, improving ensemble performance, and of course working on repertoire and playing techniques. An important aspect of the program is for MSO musicians to encourage peer review in which students give positive feedback and constructive suggestions to their fellow classmates during master class sessions. This process affords students the opportunity to evaluate performance, offer constructive criticism, selfexamine, and receive criticism. Most importantly, this initiative provides students with the experience of working with professional musicians to increase their own level of playing. These experiences help students develop skills and abilities to work together to attain excellence, widen their knowledge of musical repertoire, and foster a sense of personal growth and accomplishment. In the first year of the program, the impact the MSO coaches had on the students’ playing abilities was evident: the Overton Orchestra received a superior rating at the 2011 Concert Festival, and Colonial Band students achieved higher All West audition scores. According 40
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