February 22, 2018
PERFORMATHON IS BACK!





Performathon 2018 is a two-day musical and fundraising extravaganza featuring the  Alice S. Pfaelzer Tuition-free Conservatory. The event will be held on  Friday, February 23, 2018 and  Saturday, February 24, 2018 and will draw hundreds of music lovers, family members, and friends to Merit's halls to hear amazing music performed by Merit's most advanced students.

Performathon is also the Merit Parent Association's largest fundraiser and will feature an ethnic food fair, raffle, and more! For more information, visit:  http://meritmusic.org/support-merit/special-events/performathon/.

All Performathon proceeds support Merit's scholarship and financial fund - which makes high-quality music education accessible to thousands of children across Chicago.

All concerts will be held in the West Loop at Merit School of Music's Joy Faith Knapp Music Center and are free to attend.
MERIT STUDENTS COMPETE AND PLACE IN MUSIC COMPETITIONS OVER LONG WEEKEND

Presidents' Day weekend was full of achievements by Merit students. On Sunday, February 18th, Merit's very own Purple Hippopotami flute quartet and Nova Piano Trio competed in the   Purple Hippopotami flute quartet won the open division and Nova Piano Trio took an honorable mention. Both of these groups may have the chance to perform at a Winner's Recital on March 10th.

The classical voice NATS ( National Association of Teachers of Singing) competition for the Chicagoland area also took place. Four Merit students competed and all of them advanced to the finals.  Isabella Carrasquillo (Female 9th grade Division) and  Daniela Reyes (Female 10th grade Division) took third place.  Gabrielle Bast (Female 12th grade Division) and  Henry Lunn (Male Upperclassmen 11&12th grade Division) placed first in each of their divisions.

Congratulations to these Merit students for their excellent performances!
EARLY CHILDHOOD
Saturday, February 24
No Saturday classes.

Your family is welcome to attend any of the performances during Merit's annual Alice S. Pfaelzer Tuition-free Conservatory Performathon on February 24. See  Merit's website  for the concert schedule. All performances are free and open to the public.

Saturday, March 3
Saturday classes resume. 

Music Masters 2 Students: Early Family Time.
Grown-ups should plan to join their students for the string family instrument demo!

Notes from your teachers: 
Ms. Brigid and Ms. Clementina look forward to seeing their Music Masters 2 students on March 3 rd  for Lesson 18.   Dynamics, the String Family, and the String Family Instrument Demo will be the star attractions!

Spring Session registration is open! Visit Merit's website to enroll. Classes begin the week of April 2. 

Merit's Early Childhood classes now have a second Spotify Playlist:  Merit Winter 2018 II  which is filled with even more engaging songs to listen, dance and, sing along with!  

Also, enjoy our  Merit Winter 2018 I Spotify playlist
INSTRUMENTAL & VOCAL MUSIC
Monday, February 26
Registration opens for the Merit Young Musician's Competition. 

Saturday, March 10
Registration deadline for the Merit Young Musician's Competition.
MERIT MUSIC IN COMMUNITIES
Thursday, February 23
World Percussion classes begin at Moving Everest Charter School in partnership with By the Hand Club.
 
Tuesday, February 27
General Music classes end at Perez Elementary. 

Wednesday, February 28
6:00 pm = Carson Beginning Band Informance
(Carson Elementary School - Middle Building Gymnasium) 

Thursday, March 1
6:00 pm = Burley Winter Band Concert
(Burley Elementary School - 4th Floor Gymnasium)
ALICE S. PFALEZER TUITION-FREE CONSERVATORY
Friday, February 23 - Saturday, February 24
PERFORMATHON - Merit's 36th annual Performathon weekend is this weekend! Please be sure to arrive to your warmup rooms on time. The finalized schedule has been emailed out. Please contact Amy Bischoff with questions.

In This Issue
MPA Events
Performathon Parent Volunteer Sign-Up
To sign up to volunteer for Performathon, please visit the sign-up link here

Performathon Food Fair Donations Sign-Up 
To donate food for the Performathon Food Fair on February 23th & 24th, visit the sign-up link  here. Non-perishable items can be dropped off.

Performathon Raffle Tickets
Raffle tickets in support of Performathon can be purchased  here. Prizes this year include a Martin Guitar from the  Reverb Foundation, Cubs tickets, and  YoYo M portable bluetooth speaker from Cambridge Audio. 

Come Early and Support Performathon at Pizza Nite!
Friday, February 23 | 4:30 pm
Special Events
Merit is proud to welcome internationally renowned cello soloist Mihai Marica to Merit on Tuesday 2/27 for a special guest masterclass at 6pm in Gottlieb Hall, where he will work with 3 of Merit's top Alice S. Paelzer tuition-free Conservatory cello students. The masterclass is free and open to the public, so don't miss this chance to see a rising star work with some of our best and brightest!

Merit thank Harris Theater for funding the Masterclass as part of their Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center series. You can learn more about Mr. Marica HERE.
Student Achievements 
Congratulations to Moses Ning (student of Mio Isoda-Hagle) for winning a gold medal at the CAMTA's Sonata Festival. Moses also had the opportunity to perform at the winner's recital on Sunday, February 11 at Sherwood Community Music School. 

Good luck to pianist Joshua Mhoon who will be performing at Symphony Center on Saturday, March 3 with the Civic Orchestra of Chicago as one of four finalists in the 2018 Chicago Symphony Orchestra Young Artists Competition. Joshua will be performing Piano Concerto No. 2, Op. 18-III. Allegro scherzando and the winner of the competition will be announced at a reception later that afternoon. Visit the CSO's website for free tickets.
Student Services Updates
Regular Office Hours
Monday - Thursday 
   2:30 - 6:30 pm
Friday 
   Closed
Saturday 
   10:00 am - 3:00 pm
Sunday 
   Closed

Additional appointments available by request.

Tuition Statements
Families will now be receiving monthly tuition statements via email as well as paper statements in the mail. Stop by Student Services to ensure we have the correct email address on file. If you would like to opt out of paper statements, please contact us at studentservices@meritmusic.org.
Library Notes
Library Open Hours
Monday
   Closed
Tuesday - Thursday
   4 - 7 pm
Friday 
   By appointment only
Saturday 
   9 am - Noon,  12:30 pm - 3 pm
Sunday
   Closed

Instrument Rentals
All Library payments must be paid in full at the time of instrument rental, renewal, or pickup.  No payment plans will be applied to accounts.

For appointments, instrument or rental questions, please contact  Annaeka Johnson via email.
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