The program
“There are certain experiences in life that set the bar higher. One of them for me was when in 1974 Rostislav Dubinsky, the Borodin Quartet’s first violinist, spent three hours going over with me every question I had about Shostakovich’s 8th Quartet. This lesson set the bar for me as to what an elder musician ought to do for a younger musician.”
TĀCTUS CHAMBER MUSIC is a program offering musicians of all levels and ages an opportunity to grow their skillsets, expand their repertoire along with their approach to performing with others. Through the lenses of neuroscience and Feldenkrais, they will explore sound-creating movements that develop each player’s sense of tactus and broaden their artistic expression. The aim is to produce complete musicians who are able to function independently at a very high level.
TĀCTUS is also a training program for those who are interested in pursing music as a profession. For advanced chamber ensembles, competitions like Fischoff and Banff as well as extracurricular performance opportunities can be explored.
Coach + Founder
Karen Schulz-Harmon
is an avid chamber musician, orchestral player and teacher. She performs with the Portland Opera, Oregon Symphony, 45th Parallel, Orchestra Next, Eugene Symphony and Cellotropes, a cello quartet she co-founded. Karen attended Northern Illinois University at the invitation of cellist Marc Johnson and was privileged to work with all the members of the Vermeer Quartet. Prior to this she was mentored by the Pacifica Quartet in a 1-year chamber music program at the University of Chicago and performed in a masterclass with the St. Petersburg Quartet.
Karen was a chamber music coach for the Chicago Youth Symphony’s Chamber Music Program for 10 years, a program the Vermeer Quartet both coached at and championed.
Timeline
Fall and Winter Sessions
TĀCTUS CHAMBER MUSIC has 2 options for frequency of rehearsing each session.
The first has 5 rehearsals + 1 concert. These rehearsals will happen every other week over a span of 10 weeks - meeting 2 times/month. This option might appeal to those who want to sample the chamber music program, those whose schedules are too fixed to allow for more rehearsals and/or for adult professionals.
The second is structured with 10 consecutive weeks of rehearsals + 1 concert. This approach allows for maximum consistency and a linear progression in foundational skill set building.
Rehearsals will take place either on Wednesdays from 6:30pm to 8:30pm or Sundays from 2:00pm to 4:00pm.
Each session will culminate with a chamber music concert featuring the repertoire the ensembles have prepared.
There will be a masterclass select ensembles may perform in that will be coached by a guest chamber music specialist. Details will be announced in the Fall.
Tuition
5 Rehearsals - $225 per session*
10 Rehearsals - $450 per session*
Musicians can register for the Fall or Winter session OR both - see the FAQs page for more info on this. Players can also enter TĀCTUS in the Winter session after the Fall session has begun should placements in the program become available.
Payment for each session can be made before the first rehearsal, or it can be divided into installments. More payment details will be given after participants have been accepted into the chamber music program.
In the future, we look forward to offering limited scholarships…
* There is a sibling discount of $50/musician available.
Questions
For more information about TĀCTUS, fill out the form and submit.