Garth Newel Music Center

JULY 26, 2010
Hot Springs, VA – Garth Newel Music Center is pleased to announce that Richard Riley has been named Executive Director of the Garth Newel Music Center and will arrive to begin work by mid-September. The selection of Riley was the culmination of an intensive two month nationwide search by a committee comprised of board members, musicians, staff and friends of Garth Newel.

Riley comes to Garth Newel with broad general and artistic management experience in non-profit arts and education sectors. He brings extensive experience as an executive manager, proven success in fundraising, and a specialized knowledge of the chamber music field. As Managing Director of the Brattleboro Music Center in Brattleboro, VT, Riley was responsible for leading a capital campaign to build a new home and establish an endowment for an organization whose programs include a music school, chamber music series, two choruses, and a community orchestra. Before moving to the Brattleboro Music Center, Richard was a faculty member at Cornell University where he was Concert Manager for the Cornell Concert Series and Director of the Sage Chapel Choir.

Nancy Coddington, President of Garth Newel’s Board of Directors, is excited about Garth Newel’s new leader. “Dick’s experience and strengths align well with the current and future plans for Garth Newel. We will look to him to not only sustain, but also to enhance the Garth Newel experience comprised of our world-class musicians, outstanding food and hospitality and our commitment to education. He is also eager to become involved in the community as is his wife Susan, an accomplished artist, writer and musician.”

Riley received his B.M. in Performance of Early Music from the New England Conservatory followed by an M.M. in Choral Conducting from the Peabody Institute of The Johns Hopkins University. The Rileys are looking forward to making their home in beautiful Bath County. Riley says, “We wouldn’t have considered moving just anywhere. Garth Newel is a national treasure and Bath County is a special place.” Coddington adds, “We are very excited to have him join Garth Newel at this critical juncture and become a member of our community.”

The Recorder printed a great article on our July 4th concert with Mark O’Connor including a private session he attended with some local violin students who performed music from his newly released method.

PDF of the Recorder Article

The Garth Newel Piano Quartet—announces its first Composition Competition Prize: $2000 plus a premiere performance during the 2011 Garth Newel Summer Festival.

Compositions for Piano, Violin, Viola, and Cello are being accepted through December 15, 2010. For Competition Guidelines download the PDF below:

Composition Competition Guidelines

There was a great article in the Charleston Gazette about our Summer Season- see it online below:

Charleston Gazette Article on GNMC

There is a great article in the Summer Guide of the Highland-Bath Recorder on the Garth Newel Piano Quartet and what’s going on at Garth Newel this year! Pick up a Summer Guide at Garth Newel, or check it out below online (start on page 10):

Online PDF of Recorder Article

Our beloved old Hamburg Steinway had reached the point where it needed to be replaced for us to maintain the quality of our music. We were able to work with Steinway to trade the old piano toward the cost of the new “D”.

The Garth Newel Piano Quartet and a few friends made a trip to the Steinway Factory in New York City this week to choose a new piano to live in Herter Hall here at Garth Newel! It’s official identification number is D587686.

Please consider joining with us in celebrating this newest family member with a gift toward the piano, and be sure to join us on May 28th for the inaugural concert Memorial Day Weekend!

Pictures of the Steinway tour and the new piano available here:

Garth Newel Gallery on Flickr.com

Read Lura Johnson’s blog about touring the Steinway Factory with us- lots of neat information:

Lura Johnson’s Website Blog

GNMC CLELBRATES
MUSIC IN THE SCHOOLS

Hot Springs, VA – March is Music in the Schools Month and the Garth Newel Piano Quartet (GNPQ) celebrated with programs in our local Elementary & High Schools.

On Monday, March 15, band students gathered in the high school auditorium to hear the GNPQ use the Vasks Piano Quartet to discuss music making and working together. The Vasks is an ideal work for grabbing their attention- it has great variety from very tuneful melodies to chaotic and intense sounds that most young people don’t often associate with “classical” music.

Tuesday, March 16, the Garth Newel Piano Quartet presented three programs at Valley Elementary School and every grade was able to attend. The musicians engaged the children in activities designed to help them identify melodies, to understand the instrumental roles within a string quartet, and creating a musical story using characters from a movement of Dvořák.

The musicians from Garth Newel enjoy spending time in the local schools and used this opportunity to build on previous visits in recent years. “It’s rewarding to know the students look forward to our visits. They are a very enthusiastic audience!” said Evelyn Grau, Garth Newel’s Artistic Director and violist in the Garth Newel Piano Quartet.

The Garth Newel Piano Quartet is comprised of Teresa Ling, violin; Evelyn Grau, viola; Tobias Werner, cello; and Andrew Harley, piano. They were joined at Valley Elementary School by Jaime Letourneau, violin.

Garth Newel Music Center will be presenting the JACK Quartet on
August 14-15, 2010

The young hip group has been generating a buzz wherever they play- here’s what the NY Times has to say about them:

JACK Quartet in the NY Times

Hot off the press- the Washington Post ran an article about Garth Newel Music Center on Wednesday, June 25th. If you didn’t grab a copy from the newsstand you can still read it here:
Bath County, VA: Singing Despite the Rain