I was introduced to the concept of a summer music festival my freshman year of undergrad. I didn’t think much of it—it just sounded like an expensive summer camp where I’d do the same things I do at school, right? I didn’t apply to any that year, but fast forward to now and I’ve attended five summer festivals as a student and now am about to start my sixth summer as the harp faculty for the Mostly Modern Festival (MMF), a program I hold dear to my heart and look forward to every year.

Summer music festivals give you a taste of the real world that is hard to replicate in school.

Summer music festivals give you a taste of the real world that is hard to replicate in school. Flying through repertoire, getting new music every week, and working with people you just met are par for the course as a professional musician. There’s also a level of independence you experience at a summer festival, and, for better or worse, it is up to you to make the most of it. All festivals are a little different, but I can use the Mostly Modern Festival to give you a sense of what the experience is like.

The festival always begins with an orientation meeting inside the concert hall of Zankel, the music building of Skidmore College that hosts the festival. Along with introducing all the people you’ve been emailing with for months, this event has become a highlight for returning students as they anticipate the presentation from Skidmore safety. This man has been affectionately nicknamed “Batman” for his detailed discussion of the animals found in central New York state, including bats. This is followed by the first major social event—a pizza party in the outdoor amphitheater—where faculty often casually organize their first studio introductions. 

The next day things kick off in earnest. Private lessons and studio classes are organized, chamber music groups are formed, and the first of many faculty presentations is held in the lecture hall. Along with members of full-time orchestras and universities, Mostly Modern has many faculty who make their living as freelancers and have incredibly diverse careers. Two of these faculty traditionally give the first presentation of the year, where they discuss the realities of how their careers work and how to make it in the freelance world. I always host my first studio class that same afternoon where we discuss how the festival works specifically for harpists and give tips on working with composers. We have such a unique opportunity and duty to help instruct composers on how to write for our instrument, especially if we want better music in the future!

The evening has the first orchestra reading of the week and is also the first time all the students and faculty are in one room along with their instruments. This often feels like a second introduction, now getting to hear and see everyone do the thing they came here to do. The composers of Mostly Modern all have the opportunity to have a piece of theirs read by the orchestra, and it takes two nights to get through them all. The harp parts are always a mixed bag, but I’ve seen many great collaborations emerge between these composers and the harpists as they edit and polish their work. By the end of the readings, two pieces are chosen and programmed on the orchestra concerts. Considering this is modern music, harps are potentially included in every single piece, so we are always busy right off the bat!

The next day has another aspect of the festival I look forward to every year: the concerto competition. As a student at other festivals, I noticed a pattern where every concerto competition winner seemed to be either a violinist, pianist, or a Mozart concerto. I’m proud of the diversity of instruments represented in the winners of the MMF concerto competition, including two harpists so far in the relatively short history of this festival. Students are encouraged to prepare a five-minute highlight of their concerto to present to the committee, and winners are invited back the following year to perform the full work. 

From that point on, the festival begins to settle into a routine. Orchestra rehearsal every morning; lessons, chamber rehearsals, or lectures in the afternoon; and concerts in the evening. Every area has established their traditions, and ours included a “harp and friends” outreach concert at the Saratoga Springs Visitor’s Center, which is always a hit with the locals, and an ice cream adventure to one of the many places downtown. However, my favorite has to be bonding as we work together to get two Salzedo model harps out of my car at the start of the festival and then fitting them back in at the end. Teamwork! 

The festival winds down with the final chamber concerts and the last orchestra concert, often featuring the largest pieces that were prepped over the full length of the festival. All three orchestra concerts of the festival end with a celebration. The first is hosted at the home of the founders of the festival, Rob and Victoria Paterson, and they make full use of their outdoor pizza oven. The second is hosted at the historic Surrey Inn just across from campus. The final is a celebration on campus that is bittersweet as it is the night before everyone heads home. There are games, an open-mic for any last performances, and a new tradition of giving out endearing and silly awards to both faculty and students. The three weeks feel like the perfect length to be there, not too long but not too short either. Many final goodbyes are said at this party, vowing to stay in touch, or looking forward to seeing each other again next year at MMF. This always has me looking forward to the next summer, already thinking about the possibilities and plans for another great season. •