Carnegie Hall's Professional Training Workshops

For most people, the name Carnegie Hall evokes mental images of famous performers sharing their talents and gifts with the world on stage. But did you know that Carnegie Hall also offers broad-based music education programs for budding artists? The Weill Music Institute, part of Carnegie Hall, provides opportunities to young aspiring musicians ages 18 to 35, to explore the life of being a musician. Leading artists from around the world are brought in for week-long workshops that give young people the tools and insights necessary to nurture their artistic senses and allow them to network with other artists to share and collaborate.

The tuition for the workshops includes free travel to New York City, even international travel, as well as hotel accommodations while you're there. Students are involved in intensive coaching sessions and are treated to master classes taught by world-renowned music greats. Each workshop is capped off by attending performances in Carnegie Hall.

Students are provided with resources to help them develop their music career, including personal discussions with famous artists and other guest speakers. Instructors take students on tours to New York City destinations and community performances at local theaters. Special classes give students information on how to speak to an audience, how to maintain good physical health while touring and performing, and similar topics that deal with the life of being a performer, rather than just the mechanics of performing.

Past seasons have included workshops featuring Bobby McFerrin on vocal improvisation; Yo-Yo Ma on traditional innovation in strings and percussion; Meredith Monk on vocal expression; and classes by Dianne Reeves, Paquito D-Rievera, and Leon Fleisher, among many others. This year's workshops will include, among others, Marilyn Horne teaching about vocal performance; Dawn Upshaw and Osvaldo Golijov giving insights into composing for composers and singers; and Zakir Hussain speaking about how to explore, express, and create expression through classical Indian music. There also 15 public events with tickets as low as $15.

For music enthusiasts who do not want to participate in the entire workshops, most workshops are open to auditors. Auditors may be music teachers, instrumentalists, or simply music lovers who want a glimpse inside the artistic process and experience a personal insight from world-renowned musicians. Auditors attend a group collaboration or a single day of a workshop, rather than participating for a full week.

To join the mailing list for the Professional Training Workshop at Carnegie Hall's Weill Music Institute, you can call (212) 903-9733, or send an e-mail to ptw@weillmusicinstitute.org including your mailing address, the instrument you play, and whatever workshops you may be interested in attending or auditing (singing, instrumental, composition, world music, jazz, conducting, or American roots).