At this year’s Summer Camp for Chamber Music, we brought together 35 students as well as 12 mentors and associates. The participants mostly came from various cities of Montenegro, but also from Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Germany, Switzerland and Japan, and thus the camp’s international tradition lived on, with even greater numbers and intensity, as all involved gained new experiences and knowledge, new ways of thinking about and understanding the beauty of musical communion. In addition to our students, distinguished mentors from home and abroad further contributed to the diverse program and exciting work atmosphere at the camp, transferring with passion their knowledge to young talents.

Some of the mentors gave lectures on specific topics.  For example, cellist Maria Di Meglio, who came from the United States, was with us for the first time; in addition to playing in a piano quartet with mentors and students, directing a cello ensemble, and leading the cello section in the chamber orchestra, she gave an interesting lecture on the Suzuki method, of which little is known in our country. We learned firsthand about this method, widespread in America, where Maria teaches at Suzuki Music Columbus in Ohio. Speaking about the origins of this method, conceived by Japanese violinist Shinichi Suzuki over 50 years ago, Maria affirmed its practical application and development and highlighted its useful results in music pedagogy and practice in America. The main motto of this method is “Every child can learn” and the philosophy of learning music is simple – music is initially learned by hearing, and by constantly listening to music and practicing through repetition, which is, after all, also the “method” by which children learn their mother tongue.  The Suzuki method aims to create a stimulating environment that encourages young people to learn wholeheartedly, and also includes the direct involvement and responsibility of parents in the process.

We also had a unique opportunity to learn about new methods in music pedagogy and practice from our UK guest, Naomi Atherton, leader of the Manchester Camerata horn section, who came to camp with Jacqui Barnes, a production assistant at the same organization. Naomi led three music creation workshops with a group of young musicians. The workshops included 15-20 students and their mentors working on improvisation, participatory practice, and community music, all of which are part of the Camerata’s methodological approach. Various exercises in singing, rhythm, and tempo encouraged our musicians to concentrate and become aware of working together; the group work includes improvising and creating music, guiding and conveying musical ideas through specially selected tunes and rhythms, and a hand-sign schema to help establish clear musical leadership. Many participants were interested and enjoyed this new experience, which was intended to demonstrate an approach that comfortably brings art and culture closer to children, as well as to marginalized or vulnerable groups. Developing these specific skills for which this workshop is intended provides space for expression and social interaction within the group. With her approach, Naomi was able to bring participants closer to this new musical method through the ability to listen to one another, pay attention to tempo and tonality and phrasing and dynamics, all without using classical musical notation or sheet music.

Thanks to the imaginative ideas of our mentors and trainees, we were able to create different chamber ensembles at the camp and achieve a rich musical repertoire ranging from Baroque to contemporary. This year’s Summer Camp featured some 30 different compositions and over 20 ensembles, from duos, trios, quartets, and quintets all the way up to our chamber orchestra. Within this framework, we prepared and presented several performances of works new to our campers or mentors, including compositions by Madeleine Dring (Trio for Flute, Oboe and Piano), Heitor Villa-Lobos (Bachianas Brasileiras No.5 for cello ensemble and soprano), the Montenegrin composer Borislav Tamindžić (“Playing” for Flute, Violin and Piano),  as well as the world premiere of Sonata for Clarinet Quartet by composer-clarinetist Ante Grgin. At the camp facilities at Ivanova Korita, we organized two internal concerts, in which all participants performed in front of an audience, consisting mainly of guests of the Lovćen Hostel. The opportunity to play in front of a wider audience at public concerts in Cetinje and Podgorica was given to the best ensembles, totaling 18. Within this year’s chamber orchestra, the strings received extraordinary lessons from conductor and violinist Anton Martinov; after only six days of rehearsal, they were able to masterfully perform Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings, which was the culmination of the final concerts.

The time spent at Ivanova Korita provided our students with a lot of new musical experience derived from their highly motivated work with distinguished professors and artists, as well as new friendships made in the beautiful surroundings of Lovćen National Park. The students drew motivation not only from their musical selections but also from each other and from their mentors, and they were genuinely interested in all additional activities at the camp. We are very happy with the accomplishments of the musicians, as well as the additional programs that contributed to the creativity of the session and made the playing fun for them despite all the demands placed upon them. The Montenegro Summer Camp for Chamber Music has the potential for ever more concerts in the future, with rich repertoire and numerous ensembles, to be played for deserving audiences for the further spreading of the beauty and spirit of chamber music