Zephyr Chamber Music Festival

I am excited to announce that I have been one of 21 musicians selected to attend the Zephyr international chamber music festival. http://www.zephyrmusicfest.org/index.html
I will be traveling to Courmayeur, Italy in July. This is an intensive chamber music course where I will collaborate with other string musicians and pianists in a variety of ensembles. I am very much looking forward to working with the faculty and other musicians at the festival. Bettina Mussumeli is one of the violin professors at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. This is a great opportunity to explore the possibility of studying there in the future.

As most of you know I aim to participate in a music festival every summer which is an important part of my professional development. I have attended the Aspen Music Festival that offered me development in orchestral playing as well as other aspects of musicianship. When I first came to study in America I had little experience playing in an orchestra and it felt uncomfortable. I can now say I am totally comfortable and enjoy every aspect of playing in an orchestra from the practice, rehearsals, and the performances. I benefited immensely from participating at the Aspen Music Festival on more than one occasion. This year I really want to focus on my chamber music. I haven't participated in a chamber music festival since leaving New Zealand, and I really miss working closely with a small group of musicians. At the University of Michigan I was placed in a Piano trio, working on the Arensky's piano trio. We met twice a week and had one coaching session each week and performed it after two months. It was great fun and extremely enjoyable. I realized then that I need to work more on some of the techniques involved in this area of music.
While I am in that part of the world I plan to travel to London to attend the proms, experience the music scene, and maybe have a lesson with one of the professors at the Royal College of Music before I return to the USA to finish my last year at the University of Michigan.

My Piano trio at Michigan University

**Lets talk money**

The Zephyr Music Festival costs $2800. I was very fortunate to receive a scholarship which will contribute to the costs of attending. However I also need to fund travel costs to and from Italy. I am fundraising $3000 to cover the remaining costs of the festival and travel to Italy.

What am I doing to help with costs of this trip? 

Well in January I started boarding/looking after dogs because I wasn't getting enough orchestra jobs at the time. I will be using the money I have saved from that towards this trip. 

One of the dogs I look after
If you have made it this far down the page you might be interested in what else I am doing. Well I have just finished my first year at the University of Michigan and now I am preparing music in a 2 violin piano group for a tour in Mexico in June. This is very exciting. We will be giving master classes to children and performing for retirement homes as well as giving two recitals and visiting an indigenous group of musicians in the mountains of Oaxaca.

I acknowledge and greatly appreciate all of your support throughout my career and professional development thus far, and will equally appreciate any support you can give me to attend the Zephyr Festival in July. I will keep this space updated with my travels this summer.