September 2024 Newsletter

President's Message

Kim Farrell, President

Dear Members,

I hope that your summer has been a time of rest, relaxation and rejuvenation. My heartfelt thanks go out to all our board members, chairs, committee members, sponsors & underwriters, our members and their students. You all give so generously of your time and talents to support our music organization. You are truly appreciated!

CNYAMT has had a busy and productive summer, starting with a delicious luncheon that was held at Drumlins on June 12th. It was so wonderful to see and talk with many of you who attended. Thank you to Barb Irwin for all her hard work in planning a very enjoyable afternoon. I’d also like to thank the West Genesee String Quartet and the Presley Family for providing excellent musical entertainment!

Congratulations go out to Mary Whittington for coordinating and planning a CNYAMT float for the Fourth of July Parade in Manlius. This is the third year that we’ve participated in the parade and the students had so much fun taking turns performing on our float.

Thank you to Phil Eisenman who coordinated three Community Outreach Recitals at The Oaks at Menorah Park and at The Nottingham. Our competition winners were able to perform and show off their amazing talent. Thank you also to Dan Sato and Robbie Padilla for being the collaborative pianists for these recitals.

Keep an eye open for our Teacher Forum coming up in early November. Mary Whittington has some great ideas for discussions with guest speakers. The first topic is an informational meeting

about our yearly competitions.

I am looking forward to another wonderful year with you all. Our chairs and their committee members have been busy planning the next few months of events and competitions. Mark your

calendar for the following upcoming dates, and refer to our website for more information, applications, registration forms, and updates at cnyamt.org.

10/1/24 – DEADLINE for Membership Renewals

10/27/24 – Halloween Recital at Piano & Organ Center, 2:00-4:00 p.m.

11/24 – DTA Teacher Forum on Zoom

12/07/24 – Holiday Recital at Barnes & Noble Rt. 31, 9:30-8:00 p.m.

All members are welcome to join us at the next Zoom Board Meeting on 11-13-24 at 10:30 a.m. Email Kim for an invitation at farrellka4@gmail.com.

Kim

CNYAMT 2024-2025 Calendar

Visit us at cnyamt.org

Email us at cnyamt@gmail.com

SEPTEMBER 2024 BOARD MEETING MINUTES

2024-2025 Board and Chairs

Executive Board 

Terms are 3 years with 3-term limit. (Numbers listed indicate the present term year)

President – Kim Farrell (3)

Vice President – Phil Eisenman (1)

Treasurer – Mary Ellen DiPietra 

Recording Secretary – Gayle Ross (8)

Board of Directors

Terms are 3 years with 3-term limit. (Numbers listed indicate the present term year)

Michelle Wilcox (7)

Mary Whittington (5)

Joanne Mroczek (3)

Bernadette Kessler (2)

Barbara Irwin (1)

Kathy Montcrieff (1)

Committee Chairs

Luncheon – Barb Irwin

Membership – Phil Eisenman

Newsletter – Joanne Mroczek

Senior Scholarship – Dana DiGennaro

Senior Scholarship/Tuition Assistance – Bernadette Kessler

Scores for Scholars - Bernadette Kessler

Sponsorship – Barb Irwin

Sunshine – Kathy Montcrieff

Teacher Forum – Mary Whittington

Website & Social Media – Joanne Mroczek

Event Chairs (listed by calendar dates)

Halloween Recital – Barb Irwin/Robbie Padilla

Barnes & Noble Holiday Recital – Bernadette Kessler/Beth Scott

Community Outreach – Kim Farrell

String Community Workshop – OPEN POSITION

Baroque, Classical & Sonatina Piano Festival – Lynn Moroz

Artist Piano Advanced Piano Competition – Amy Heyman/Ya-Wei Tseng/Bernadette Kessler

Instrumental Competition – James Krehbiel/Dana DiGennaro

Vocal Competition – Gayle Ross/Laura Enslin/Kathy Montcrieff

Luncheon/Scores for Scholars – Barb Irwin

Find a Music Teacher

Don't forget about our "Find a Music Teacher" option on our website. Membership in CNYAMT includes your biography being listed here, along with your information for students and parents to find music teachers. Take a moment and check the link in your biography to make sure it is accurate. Are you currently accepting students? Make sure you let us know if you aren't so we can change your status. Changes to your information can be made by simply emailing your changes to cnyamt@gmail.com

CNYAMT is committed to the longevity of the Instrumental Competition. We are humbly asking for your assistance in order for us to sustain the financial health of this competition. We believe the opportunity for our students to perform and receive valuable comments from professional musicians, as well as the opportunity for them to perform in our Winners Recital, is pivotal for the growth of our young musicians. If you believe in our mission, please consider making a donation to the organization. Every dollar counts!

Your support will ensure that the CNYAMT Instrumental Competition remains on our calendar moving forward. Please accept our deepest gratitude for those of you willing to join us in keeping the Instrumental Competition thriving. Thank you!



Donate to our Instrumental Competition:

PayPal – click here

VENMO – Send your donation to @MaryEllen-DiPietra

Check – Send to Mary Ellen DiPietra at 4312 Lazybrook Cir. Liverpool, NY 13088

CNYAMT Membership

This is just a reminder that CNYAMT 2024-25 membership dues pf $75.00 must be paid by October 1st in order to retain full membership privileges (student eligibility for scholarships, some competitions, etc.) You may renew via PayPal at https://www.cnyamt.org/become-a-member. Just fill in your email and the appropriate membership option. If your email is not clearly indicative of your identity, please let Phil know that you renewed via email:  phil.eisenman@gmail.com.

Alternatively, you may send a check to our treasurer:

Mary Ellen DiPietra

4312 Lazybrook Circle

Liverpool, NY 13088

If you are in need of any assistance in facilitating your renewal, please let Phil know. He's happy to help.

If you have already paid, you are all set!



We hope to see you at a number of our events!

During the current membership renewal period, use PayPal or Venmo by selecting the blue membership button found center right on the CNYAMT homepage, the third item down from our Events Calendar, or by clicking this link!

Student Lesson Tuition Assistance

CNYAMT is offering assistance towards private music lessons for students for the fall semester: September 1-December 31, 2024. The purpose of this fund is to provide assistance toward the tuition of private music lessons for students who lack the financial means to further their training due to their current economic conditions. The amount of the tuition assistance is based on our availability of funds, as well as the applicant’s referral from their CNYAMT teacher.

Eligibility:

• Teacher must be a current 2024-2025 CNYAMT member.
• Teacher AND student are active participants in CNYAMT events

(recitals, festivals, competitions, community outreach, masterclasses)

• Teacher must be the instructor of the major instrument the applicant will study.

Awards will be distributed across applications on a rotating basis, one student at a time, per teacher, in order of need. Please submit one application per student. For questions or further information contact:

Bernadette Kessler

bckessler@twcny.rr.com

(315) 569-8241

It’s Almost Time for Scary Scores!

A Mad Medley of Mysterious Music

Sunday, Oct. 27th ~ 2:00 and 3:00 p.m.

Piano and Organ Center, 102 Lawrence Rd. E, North Syracuse, NY

Students and teachers are encouraged to wear their Halloween Costumes!

If you are planning to have your students participate, please email Barb Irwin by October 19th at: birwin1@twcny.rr.com and include the following information:

• Teacher’s name
• Names of students participating
• Pieces to be played, including composers/arrangers, accompanists, and timing

Each teacher is limited to 10 minutes total (set up and performance time).

Indicate if you would prefer the 2-2:45 or 3-3:45 recital.

It will be SPOOKTACULAR!

Barbara Irwin and Robbie Padilla

Scary Scores Co-Chairs

Barnes & Noble Bookfair Fundraiser

3956 NY-31, Liverpool, NY 13090

It’s that time of year again and we are ever grateful for the support of our teachers, students, families and friends for making last year’s event so successful! This fundraiser is vital in funding our Senior Scholarship, Senior Merit Scholarship, and Tuition Assistance Programs.

Our Barnes & Noble Bookfair Fundraiser is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 7. Studio performances will be from 9:30 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. On that day, Barnes & Noble will donate to CNYAMT a percentage of our total sales purchased in the Liverpool store at NO cost to you! This event is great for CNYAMT community awareness and as you know, our students love this event!

To sign up your studio to perform, send an email with your choice of 3 performance times to Beth Scott at: d.beth.scott@gmail.com



Bernadette Kessler and Beth Scott, Co-Chairs

Click the pictures for more pictures and information on these great events we had over the summer!

Photo Release Form For A Minor

CNYAMT will now be using a PHOTO RELEASE FORM for ALL performance events. If the performer is a minor, the parents/guardians must sign our form to give consent for their child’s photo or video recording to be used on our website, Facebook page or in other media.

Members can find this form on our CNYAMT website under “Forms and Logos” in the Get Involved section.