BrewsterConnections - Brewster Academy

2005-06 Annual Report
1
On the reputation front, BASS also is making a major contribution.
The best source of reputation, word-of-mouth, is running in high gear.
Both students and parents gave BASS extremely high marks and state
that they look forward to sharing their views with other families. Their
views are strongly positive. In our end-of-program evaluations, in which
respondents were asked to rate the program on a scale of one to five, the
students gave us 92 fives (strongly agree) out of every possible 100. The
scores the parents gave us were even higher! As an example of the level
of enthusiasm we are experiencing, allow me to share with you part of
the latest parental evaluation that came across my desk even as I was
writing these words.
“Words cannot express how grateful we are for all that
you accomplished with K. this summer. Your care,
compassion, professionalism, and insight are superior and
second to none. Our son’s academic growth far exceeded what
we ever could have hoped for or imagined in our wildest
dreams. When we met with you and interviewed for the
summer session you said, “we don’t perform miracles, but
we come close.” I beg to differ with you. In this instance,
you performed a miracle. From the bottom of our hearts, we
thank you.”
The Heifetz International Music Institute is our third major summer program.
It is different from the other two in that we host the program by providing
logistical support, but do not create, design, teach, or administer it as we do with
our own programs. Those roles and responsibilities are in the hands of Daniel
Heifetz, a retired virtuoso violinist who has performed throughout the world. The
Institute, which distinguishes itself from other youth summer music programs
by emphasizing interpretation and communication in performances, brings to
our campus A-level musicians/teachers from many of the world’s top schools
and orchestras. There are numerous wonderful student concerts presented all
through the six-week program, but the highlights are the weekly Celebrity concerts
performed by members of the visiting faculty in Anderson Hall. The quality of
these performances reflects well on Brewster, especially with the local citizenry.
There has been a desire for an enhanced cultural life locally for years. Now, there
are concerts of a quality that one might only expect to find in large cities.
The Heifetz Celebrity concerts are not the only high-end performances at
Brewster in the summer. The Great Waters Music Festival conducts a summer-long
series of concerts in a 900-seat acoustical tent situated at the lake’s edge at Two
Pine Point. Unlike the Heifetz concerts, the Great Waters performances span the
musical genres from jazz to folk to Broadway hits to choral to pop, to name a few.
An array of national and international musical luminaries come to our campus
every summer. These shows attract an audience from a wide geographical area
and bring attention to the Academy.
In addition to these events, there are sports camps, conferences, educational
programs, meetings, weddings, and other celebrations that take place here. In all,
the Summer Programs Office planned and carried out 59 separate activities in 2006.
These ranged in length from several hours to eleven weeks. •
BrewsterConnections l Fall 2006