2007 SEASON: SURVIVING DAY ONE

It's well past midnight on the first full day of NYSMF 2007. I'm joyfully exhausted despite the inevitable last-minute changes, problems, and solutions that strike us from all directions. All of it is solvable; all of it is part of the whole NYSMF deal; and all of it is absolutely wonderful to live.

The halls have a life now that they have been missing our entire past week of preparation time. Sure, it was pleasant having virtually the entire Curtis Hall dorm to ourselves, with no classes to teach, ensembles to coach, instruments to play. We could do our laundry any time we felt like it, or order pizza at any hour of the day, and even dance around our suite in our socks to the soundtrack of "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy."

To be perfectly honest, I much prefer having all the students here. My time may no longer be entirely my own, but that is precisely why I shut down my life in Los Angeles and come all the way to Oneonta, NY every summer.

When I'm here, I have the incredible opportunity to touch other peoples' lives. I get to meet new folks yet unspoilt by cynicism or age, and to share with them ideas and knowledge that I consider important. And together, we get to create brand new things, songs that have never been sung before, films that have only existed in imaginations, musical performances as unique as every member of the ensemble.

That's the magic that helps me to survive the hectic maelstrom that surrounds the creators of NYSMF -- Jungeun Kim, Dan Spencer, Colleen Wheeler, and myself, Keisuke Hoashi. As well as all of our talented faculty and staff. We are here because we want to be here, and we want to give something back to the world. Many people before us helped to make us the successes we are today, and we are honored for the opportunity to pass on our forerunners' work to the next generation of fine human beings.

Tomorrow is the first full day of the NYSMF schedule. I get to start with the filmmaking class again (yee ha!), as well as continue my classes in "Practical Acting" and "Original Musical Theatre".

I'm nearly 40 years old and I'm still going to camp. I wish everyone could have so much fun in their lives!

FIVE DAYS TO NYSMF 2007!

Greetings from Oneonta, and the New York Summer Music Festival! (yes, that is a tribute to Dr. Frederic Fay Swift's original tune, "Greetings from Oneonta and the New York State Music Camp", and I am darn proud to be able to do it.)

Keisuke Hoashi here, NYSMF's resident actor and instructor for acting, filmmaking, and original musical theatre, and I'm happy to say that our 2007 season is looking huge, healthy, and diverse to the point of ecstasy. We have students coming from all over the country, including over 20 states:

• New York
• New Jersey
• Massachusetts
• California
• Georgia
• Pennsylvania
• Connecticut
• Washington, DC
• Virginia
• Indiana
• Colorado
• Missouri
• Maryland
• Arkansas
• Illinois
• North Carolina
• Washington
• Kansas
• Texas
• Maine

We are also proud of all of our international students, which includes the great countries of:

• Russia
• Taiwan
• Mexico
• France
• Norway
• Puerto Rico
• Korea
• Newfoundland
• Japan
• Canada
• Spain
• Belize

This equals even the most diverse collection of students of Dr. Swift's original program, NYSMC, which at its peak hosted over 200 students every week, and over 300 for the summer. We are very proud of this achievement, as it would seem that we are certainly doing something right.

Dr. Swift, whom I had the great fortune of knowing back in my own music camp days, created his music camp back in 1947 because he wanted to give talented young musicians a place where they could not just play during the summer, but to learn, grow, and florish under the tutelage of equally dedicated professional musicians and educators.

How tragic is it, for example, when a fantastic young flute player ends her sophomore year of high school, but suddenly has no orchestra to play in for three long months? Or a cellist going into his senior year being forced to spend his summer working stock in the back room of a local pizzaria, instead of being able to continue cultivating his unique talent of making music?

Okay, the world won't end under these scenarios. But like Dr. Swift, everyone here at NYSMF believes that these great young musicians really need a place where they can keep up their skills. NYSMF gives them such a place, where these kids can be surrounded by like-minded, similarly-talented youngsters, and truly come together to form a wonderful, supportive community of musicians, voluntarily bound by their love of music.

Even I feel like my personal "Corny" meter often overflows, but in this case, I am proud to let it spill over like an avalance. I am vastly grateful for this opportunity to bring NYSMF to all of you, and I will never stop thanking you for it.

Five more days to NYSMF. I can't wait.

Keisuke Hoashi
NYSMF Director of Communications

19 Days to NYSMF 2007!

Hello again everybody, Keisuke Hoashi here, your NYSMF Director of Communications and very busy working Hollywood actor. And it is now only 19 days until the start of what we've been waiting for all year long ... NYSMF 2007.

The numbers are even more exciting than last year. As of today, we have around 300 talented young musicians signed up, as well as over fifty faculty and Visiting Artists on our impressive roster. We have people coming from over 20 different states acros America, and a dozen different countries across the globe! Some nations represented include Norway, Korea, France, Russia, Puerto Rico, Taiwan, England, and Belize -- enough that we need a world map to locate them all.

The NYSMF program continues to expand from within, as well. In past years, our instructors have brainstormed, masterminded, and brought to life our most innovative and exciting programs, including:

• David Ludwig's Composition Program (in which students compose their own original works in just two weeks, and have them performed in concert);
  
• Keisuke Hoashi's Original Musical Theatre Workshop (students learn to create their own original show in only 12 days)
• Dr. Paul Cohen's Classical Saxophone Workshop
• The NYSMF/Yamaha Silent Electric Strings program, greatly facilitated by our violin faculty member Sean Neukom and cello faculty member Lauren Riley

This year, we are proud to announce the NYSMF International Flute Institute, headed by our own Bonnie Bokyung Kim. This exclusive program is open by audition to only 15 or so top flute players, and they will be enjoying six daily hours of private lessons and masterclasses, designed to push their skills well into the realm of wildly talented professionals.

I wasn't kidding when I said this was an exciting year! NYSMF ain't just plain ol' music camp -- as you have read for yourself, we're a heckuva lot more!

19 days. Excellent.