Enthusiastic crowds gathered at each of three Vero Beach International Music Festival concerts at the First Presbyterian Church’s McAfee Hall. The concerts, which featured a mix of Americana, Celtic, Indian, bluegrass, jazz and folk music, showcased the talents of the world-class faculty and participants in the 13th annual Mike Block String Camp.
Led by Grammy Award-winning cellist Mike Block, the faculty included Block’s wife, Hanneke Cassel, a former U.S. National Scottish Fiddle Champion, as well as Western/Indian violinist Trina Basu, jazz violinist Zach Brock, multi-instrumentalist Colin Cotter, fiddler Casey Driessen, cellist Natalie Haas, fiddler Kimber Ludiker, violin/fiddler Taylor Morris, Indian classical and crossover violinist Arun Ramamurthy, viola/violinist Lauren Rioux, classical and jazz violinist Curtis Stewart, multi-instrumentalist Joe Troop and mandolin player Joe Walsh.
During the second concert, the transfer of the Daniel Pearl Memorial Violin saw Emri Stenn relinquishing the special instrument to Olivia Breen. The violin had been gifted to the MBSC several years ago in memory of Pearl, a journalist and violinist who was murdered by terrorists in Pakistan. The violin is awarded to a camp student for a year before it is handed off to the next person.
Stenn began attending the camp in 2014 as a student at Vero Beach High School and has since graduated with a degree in Irish Music and Dance from the University of Limerick in Ireland. He is currently working toward a cybersecurity degree from Indian River State College.
Of the violin, Stenn said, “It’s just been so much fun playing it and it has made me play so much better.”
Breen, who is pursuing a dual degree in violin performance and aerospace engineering at Colorado University, Boulder, and her twin sister Audrey, a cellist, have attended the camp for four years.
“It’s an honor to know that they believe in me to give me this. The first thing I thought when I played it is that feels like butter. It’s magical,” said Breen.
“The friends that I made the first year at camp are still like, super good friends. They fill my heart every year I’m here. The faculty too. I know I can reach out to them through the year if I have any questions or if they come to town and play a gig.”
Giggling with delight, she recalled going with friends to hear the American string band Mr. Sun, which Joe Walsh plays in. When he greeted her, she said, “It was so cool, because all of my friends were like, ‘How do you know Joe Walsh?’ This camp has honestly changed our lives.”
Other participants have since become music teachers in their own right, including Evan Robinet, a cellist, who teaches Gifford Youth Orchestra students.
“Some of my favorite musical moments have happened at this camp, especially at night, when we’re all just playing together. It’s all very free flowing and everyone really fits with each other well,” said Robinet.
“One of my favorite parts of the camp is definitely the collaboration. I feel like I’m surrounded by world-class talent all the time. It has this really cool environment. You feel really safe to try new things,” said bass player Jacob Heglud, now the orchestra director at Tampa’s Gaither High School.
“It’s so great to have our students become the next generation of teachers,” said Block.
Explaining that they teach playing music by ear, rather than sheet music, he said it is a new concept for many students.
“And so we’ve been developing new skills, learning by improvising, grooving, ensemble plan, and all of it’s been done in a collaborative setting,” said Block.
In the collaborative track, students learn multiple tunes from multiple faculty members and, after forming bands from their peer groups, put their own personal stamp on the music. In the apprentice track, professional and college-age participants worked with “all-powerful, all-knowing” faculty bandleaders who “whip them into shape from zero to performance” in a few days’ time.
“We’re trying to answer a few questions with our participants,” said Block. “Which is: How can we connect to the world through music? How can we learn more about ourselves through creativity? And how can we collaborate with other people to create something bigger than any one person?”
Photos by Joshua Kodis
