Nicholas Diaz: Plucking a Masterpiece Out Of Thin Air

“Making singing so central,” says Nicholas Diaz, Kinhaven’s choral director, “reminds kids that they’re already artists before they even pick up their instrument, and they’re capable of plucking a masterpiece out of thin air. Singing can be one of the …

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Mary Watt: A Huge Gift To Us As Teachers

Kinhavenites have enjoyed oboe teacher Mary Watt’s wonderful qualities every summer since 1982. Over her almost 40 years at camp, she has come to embody Kinhaven’s noncompetitive spirit. Mary radiates an upbeat, determined calm in everything she does, whether coaching …

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Erin Keefe: Kinhaven Deeply Fostered My Love of Music

“My four years at Kinhaven were really meaningful to me and definitely fostered my love of music and shaped who I am today,” says Minnesota Orchestra Concertmaster Erin Keefe (’90–’93), reflecting on her time at Kinhaven, which first introduced her …

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Julie Landsman: A Supportive Community of Loving Souls

Brooklyn-native and world-renowned French hornist Julie Landsman was the principal horn of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra for twenty-five years (1985-2010). She has also served on the faculty of her alma mater, the Juilliard School, since 1989, in addition to holding …

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Bill Quillen: Where I Realized What Music Could Be

It is not unusual for a person to identify a space in their lives that has been “flagged,” a moment they consider essential and pivotal. These moments are not just life changing, but have become so deeply tied to our …

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Sarah Whitney: Nurturing a Special Type of Musician

Sarah and I grew up attending Kinhaven Music School together in the 1990s. I recently had the privilege of reconnecting with Sarah and talking about our Kinhaven memories and our continued musical journeys since our childhood. “As a young kid …

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