Performing Arts School

The new PAS Referral Program and four things you didn’t know about Student Services with Kristen Wuest, Director of Student Services

Wharton Arts has a new Director of Student Services: Kristen Wuest took on the expansive role this season after serving in various administrative capacities at Wharton Arts for over 7 years. Wuest joined the faculty of the Performing Arts School as a flute instructor in 2007 when it was then the Suburban Community Music Center (SCMC) in New Providence.

Says Wuest, “I had just graduated with my undergraduate degree and was very pleased to learn that SCMC was looking for a flute instructor. I started with a small studio of six flute students and in the spring of 2012 stepped into Student Services part-time. The role evolved organically. Today, I’m in the Student Services office over 30 hours a week with Skye Pasek as my assistant.”

Q: What are the main functions of Student Services?
A: Student Services facilitates relationships with new and current families, supervises faculty, and manages programming at the Performing Arts School. Finding the right teacher and program for new students is crucial, and we pride ourselves in guiding families towards what is best for their needs, and pairing them with the instructor that is the perfect fit. We also assist with online registration for the New Jersey Youth Symphony and Paterson Music Project when needed, as well as answer inquiries about all of our programs at the main office in Berkeley Heights.

Q: What is something about Student Services that may not be obvious to an outsider?
A: Student Services not only strives to grow enrollment and retain existing students at the Performing Arts School, but we are truly the first responders for the organization. Whether it’s moving a piano, handling a billing issue, assisting a sick student, or contacting emergency services—all of these things and more are filtered through Student Services. We always have a first aid officer on premises with CPR training and staff look to us in emergency situations.

Q: Whew. That’s a lot. What else does Student Services handle beyond customer support?
A: We play a big part in programming for the Performing Arts School. Almost all new educational initiatives originate or are co-created with Student Services. We also produce all of the events at the Performing Arts School.

Q: What are some of the benefits that Performing Arts School students receive from having access to Student Services?
A: It can be overwhelming for a family new to the study of music to navigate through choosing the right private teacher. To take one example, we are fortunate to have ten piano instructors at the Performing Arts School with all different teaching styles and personalities. We offer this wide range of options when it comes to instructors because it allows students to be matched with a teacher that will be a good fit—and if it is not, there are alternatives available. Every student is different and looking for something specific to study, and we strive to provide the best experience possible. We love getting to know each and every family that walks through our doors and as a lifelong musician myself, I have a deep understanding of the performing arts which I tap into on a daily basis to help families get started.

Q: The Performing Arts School recently launched a Referral Program (read about it here). What can you tell us about that?
A: The highest percentage of new students at the Performing Arts School come from word-of-mouth referrals. Without our community’s support, we wouldn’t be able to do what we do. The need to reward our student families with an incentive became apparent, and we want to encourage them to continue to spread the word about our mission and exemplary programming in performing arts education.

Concludes Wuest, “As an alumna of the New Jersey Youth Symphony (1999-2003), Wharton Arts is my second home. I am extremely proud to work for such an incredible organization and every day I come to work happy that I get to help provide students with the same amazing experience I received as a young musician.”

Drop by Student Services and say hello—you may even find a jar of candy waiting for you along with a welcoming smile.

Kristen Wuest, a New Jersey Youth Symphony alumna who served as principal flute for two years, has been playing the flute since the age of nine. She performed with the New Jersey Youth Symphony in Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center in May 2003. Read more here.

Day of Winds: Performance, Education & Exploration

What to Expect with NJYS Clarinet Ensemble, Concertino Winds, and CL4tet Conductor & Director Bryan Rudderow

DUE TO AN UNEXPECTED PERFORMANCE COMMITMENT, AFENDI YUSUF WILL NOT BE ATTENDING DAY OF WINDS. MAUREEN HURD, HEAD OF WOODWINDS AT RUTGERS MASON GROSS SCHOOL OF THE ARTS, WILL ATTEND IN HIS PLACE.

We are very excited to present the first Day of Winds at the New Jersey Youth Symphony, an event designed for advanced young musicians in grades 9-12 to explore refined elements of their instrument. The event has three distinct components: performance, education, and exploration.

Performance: We are thrilled to welcome MSU’s Montclair Wind Quintet (Janet Arms, flute; Ryan Walsh, oboe; Ben Baron, clarinet; Sasha Enegren, bassoon; and Emma Wahlstrom, French horn) to demonstrate techniques and nuances of the art of chamber music. Our dynamic student performers in the NJYS Fortissimo Flutes and the newly-formed clarinet quartet CL4tet will also perform.

Education: Select students will have the opportunity to perform from this year’s NJMEA All-State Solo Audition pieces with members of the Montclair Wind Quintet on their respective instruments. This is a treat for both the performers and the audience and an opportunity to hear some of the high impact points for the upcoming auditions. Bring your journals and sheet music to take notes about important tips that will undoubtedly benefit your own performance!

Exploration: D’Addario Product Manager and Saxophonist Kristen McKeon will give a presentation about some of the great things happening at D’Addario: reeds, maintenance, and gear. Other vendors on hand include Elefante Music, who will offer minor instrument repairs, and K&S Music. Finally, our Day of Winds concludes with special guest Afendi Yusuf, recently named Principal Clarinet of the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra. CL4tet, comprised of top clarinetists at NJYS, will perform and interact with Yusuf during the final hour. He will not only speak about the music presented but also touch on concepts and philosophies of making music. Certainly a unique and special way to end our first Day of Winds!

The Day of Winds master class will take place on Friday, November 22 from 4:00-8:00pm at the New Jersey Youth Symphony and features the Montclair Wind Quintet (Janet Arms, flute; Ryan Walsh, oboe; Ben Baron, clarinet; Sasha Enegren, bassoon; and Emma Wahlstrom, French horn) and Afendi Yusuf, Principal Clarinet of the Cleveland Orchestra. Day of Winds will focus on the 2020 High School All-State Solo Audition pieces. Also featuring performances by NJYS Fortissimo Flutes, Clarinet Ensemble, and CL4tet.

Day of Winds is FREE for Wharton Arts students – $5 at the door for all others. Must sign up online by November 8 at https://bit.ly/32xm4qE.

Bryan Rudderow is the conductor of Concertino Winds, Clarinet Ensemble, Director of CL4tet, and Director of the NJYS Summer Winds Camp. He also serves as Adjunct Music Faculty and Wind Ensemble Conductor at Kent Place School in Summit, and Adjunct Instructor of Clarinet and Saxophone at The Farbook School in Short Hills. Rudderow has appeared on three continents as conductor, composer, and clarinetist, focusing his energy on music composed in his lifetime. Read more here.

In Rehearsal with Simon Lipskar: What to Listen For November 3

The Conductor’s Notes with NJYS Youth Orchestra Conductor Simon Lipskar

This Sunday afternoon, the New Jersey Youth Symphony presents the second concert of its 2019-2020 season with performances by the NJYS Fortissimo Flutes, Clarinet Ensemble, and Youth Orchestra (YO) at the College of Saint Elizabeth’s Dolan Hall. YO conductor Simon Lipskar gives us some insights into the second half of the program, which includes Tormis’ Overture No.2, two movements from Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite, and Borodin’s Polovtsian Dances No. 17 from the opera Prince Igor.

Q: Can you tell us a little about the rep for this concert?
A: The three pieces that YO is playing all share some common DNA, but at the same time offer quite distinct challenges to the students. All three come from the Eastern European classical tradition⁠—specifically the Russian and Baltic traditions. The Borodin and the Stravinsky have as their subjects aspects of Russian history and folklore, and the Tormis specifically evokes a new Baltic style that reaches back to Estonia’s past while throwing off the requirements of Soviet-era composition. So there are commonalities. But coming from three very distinct periods⁠—the Borodin from the great flowering of nationalist Romantic era composition in Czarist Russia, the Stravinsky from the transition and rise of musical modernism in the early 20th century, the Tormis from the explosion of late 20th century creativity across the whole Baltic region⁠—each piece demands very different things in terms of performance and interpretation, coming together to make a very satisfying musical experience.

Q: What should the audience listen for in particular?
A: Try to listen for the similarities along with the obvious differences. There is a folkloric underpinning to all three works that is quite identifiable, particularly in the use of repeated rhythms whether for harmony or melody. All three composers use folk-like motoric rhythms to underpin the structure, and I think they are quite easily heard across the three pieces, despite the strikingly different sound worlds conjured by the composers.

Q: How long have the students been working on the rep for this concert?
A: This is a very short concert period, just eight weeks of rehearsal, and YO has worked very hard to put this concert together in the time allotted. I think anyone coming to the concert will be hugely impressed by the way the students have risen to the challenges of the repertoire, both in terms of execution and style.

Come experience the traditions of Russian and Baltic symphonic masterworks at this Sunday’s New Jersey Youth Symphony concert at Dolan Hall. Tickets are $20/Adults, $15/Seniors & Students available online.

A conductor focused on inspiring and educating young musicians, Simon Lipskar has been the conductor of the NJYS Youth Orchestra since 2006. He conducts in the summers at the Kinhaven Music School where he was a student as a teenager. He has guest conducted at the Third Street Music Settlement in New York City and served as Assistant Conductor of the Brooklyn Philharmonic under Robert Spano, as well as for a number of other orchestras and opera companies. A member of Tanglewood’s prestigious Conductor’s Seminar led by Robert Spano and Gustav Meier, Lipskar took part in master classes led by Seiji Ozawa, Bernard Haitink, André Previn, and Joseph Silverstein. Read more here.