The Junior Strings Program (JSP) developed by leading violin and viola player Adrian Davis provides a strong musical foundation for young students (aged 8 years and over) at WollCon who are learning a string instrument.
The program is the first of its kind in NSW – a year-long commitment where dedicated students will be fully immersed in a musical experience and will include music theory and history lessons. Applications to begin in 2024 are now open. Parents are asked to fill out the Junior Strings Application Form – now available online.
“From the very start students will be placed in an ensemble to begin developing group playing skills as well as building their musical community. Each student will be assigned a JSP instructor, who they will work with at their own pace to further develop their technical and musical abilities.”
There is also be an opportunity to work with some of the country’s best string teachers through masterclasses, workshops, and holiday camps.
Since its inception in 2022, young participants have attended workshops and masterclasses with WollCon staff and visiting artists such as Goetz Richter of the Sydney Conservatorium and Kees Boersma and Alex Henery of the Sydney Symphony orchestra. Participants have enjoyed a series of holiday camps and performed in the Church on the Mall as part of the inaugural Culture Mix Festival.
The Junior String Spectacular has become an annual event that brings the regions young strings players together. In 2023 the festival brought together junior string groups from the Illawarra, Southern Highlands, Shoalhaven, and Merimbula regions.
Student’s focussed classes and performances with Artists in Residence, the Enigma Quartet, and members of the Sydney Symphony Fellows during 2023, has seen our young string players further develop their skills and inspired them to continue their orchestral journey.
The components of the program are:
1. The Meyer Double Bass Ensemble – for beginner students who are interested in learning the largest member of the violin family – the double bass. Students in this ensemble will perform as a bass ensemble as well as part of the Primrose Training Orchestra. Upon completion of the first-year students will graduate into the Llewelyn String Orchestra.
2. The Primrose Training Orchestra – for students learning the violin, viola, and cello. These students can range from beginners to students who have not yet completed their grade 1 AMEB exam. Upon completion of the first-year students will graduate into the Llewelyn String Orchestra.
3. The Llewelyn String Orchestra – is for students who have completed their grade 1 AMEB exam. In this orchestra students will further sharpen their ensemble skills and broaden their range of musical style, articulation, sound, and colour.
“The overall group ensemble training combined with individual lessons is key to developing student’s awareness of the different roles they and their instruments play in various contexts. Often students spend years building individual skills with no larger context which can be very isolating.”
More About Adrian:
Adrian has had a strong focus on music performance over the years, and was also trained extensively in string pedagogy and music education while in the US.
He has taught at the collegiate level as a graduate teaching assistant at the University of Colorado (CU) Boulder as well as extensively in the US and Australian public and private school systems. He holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa in viola performance as well as a Masters in viola performance from CU Boulder.
