VMTA Spring Newsletter

June, 2026

President’s Message

When My Students Leave

Over the years, as I’ve gotten older and more knowledgeable in the art of teaching, I still experience a bittersweet moment when a student has their last lesson with me. This year, I have three graduating seniors who, following that last lesson, I will miss very much. The years and energy I spent in supporting them in their musical journeys have been very rewarding – and sometimes, I have to admit, a bit draining. But isn’t that the nature of teaching? A few students will pursue music professionally, but the majority of them will choose another field as a career. Nonetheless, my hope is that they all benefit from their studies, their musical performances, and their experiences and that they will always harbor a love of music.

Long ago I had a very young and gifted student who consistently performed at high-level events and excelled at winning competitions. A colleague once asked me what I planned to do with her. I really couldn’t answer the question because I didn’t think it was up to me to decide. It was up to the student.

As private music teachers we strive to instill in our students the proper techniques, values, knowledge and love of playing music; after that, it’s up to them to decide what to do with their skills. So today, as I do most every year at this time, I say goodbye to my high school seniors and hope that they will always have music in their lives – and that they will one day have families of their own and support their children’s music education. Years ago, another colleague asked me, “doesn’t everyone deserve a music education?”

I think you’ll agree that the answer is unequivocally “yes.”

-Laurel Ann Maurer

_{VMTA CALENDAR}

Saturday, October 3

2026 VMTA Fall Conference

Trinity Baptist Church, Williston

from Patricia Bergeron

Below is an article written by Lisa Nagel, Donor Systems Manager/ Administrative Assistant at the Ronald McDonald House. Both Marie and my students that visited the house with me when I delivered our donation were touched by Mike's presence.

For 43 years, Ronald McDonald House Vermont has been a home away from home for families and caregivers with a hospitalized child.

Last year we provided 1565 night stays, free of charge, saving thousands in meal, transportation and lodging expenses. Families already stressed with an ill child do not need the overwhelming tasks of arranging affordable hotels and covering mounting meal and travel costs. The average stay at Ronald McDonald House is two weeks, many need to stay longer. The House provides everything a family needs to remain close to their child and focus on healing, while also finding respite for themselves after a day at the hospital. We have been so fortunate to be named recipient of the Vermont Music Teachers Association biennial Play-a-Thon fundraiser and you all have been a tremendous support to Ronald McDonald House. We are grateful for your generosity and in awe of the talented young musicians you inspire. You have played an important role in our mission of providing a warm home, meals and kindness to each family that stays with us. Thank you all for your support!

An Interview with Mike the Therapy Dog at The Ronald McDonald House

We encourage our guests who stay with us to make themselves comfortable and at home but we do not allow them to bring their pets to the House while they are guests. It can be hard for those with family pets especially since we know how they can help us feel better. At Ronald McDonald House, Mike, the therapy dog does what he can to fill that gap. Mike is our “Director of Love and Comfort” and greets families when they come and go. Mike always knows when someone needs a little more love and comfort when staying at Ronald McDonald House Vermont. Mike, who is about to turn 10, was asked to “sit and speak” about his career at Ronald McDonald House Vermont and for this newsletter.

How long have you been working for Ronald McDonald House Vermont?

I officially joined the Ronald McDonald House family in 2016 when I was just a puppy! Before starting at the House, I was carefully trained to be a Certified Therapy Dog.

What is your job at the House?

My official title is Director of Love and Comfort. I am responsible for being a calm and comforting friend to all our guests. I greet everyone with my favorite toy and I love to play ball and run around the yard with children and their parents. I can tell when someone isn't feeling their best and I try to help.

What inspired you to pursue a career at Ronald McDonald House Vermont?

Our Executive Director was hiring for my position and when I arrived at the House for an interview, someone was in the kitchen baking cookies. I saw all the spaces where I could work and I noticed that the humans staying at the House smiled when they saw me. I accepted the job when I heard that some of the humans have to leave their pets at home when they come to stay at the House. I know how hard it is to be away from my human so I am here for shaking paws and accepting treats.

What are some fun facts about yourself?

I am an Australian labradoodle and I am hypoallergenic. This comes in handy for any guests with allergies. My favorite toy is a hedgehog. I was named after Father Mike Cronogue from St. Mike’s College. Father Mike was a beloved volunteer at the Ronald McDonald House before my time, who passed away suddenly. When I came along, everyone noticed that I have a small white area just under my collar. And that is how I was named Mike!

Save the date: Saturday, October 3

2026 VMTA Fall Conference

Trinity Baptist Church, Williston

9 am – 12 noon

Optional lunch to follow (location TBD)

Mark your calendars now to join with VMTA colleagues on Saturday, October 3 at Trinity Baptist Church in Williston. We are excited to welcome Dr. Laura Amoriello as our presenter.

Laura holds a Doctor of Education degree from Teachers College, Columbia University, with a master’s degree in piano performance and pedagogy from Penn State and a bachelor’s degree from Westminster Choir College. She is certified in a number of techniques and approaches, including the Art of Practicing®, MNDFL and Open Heart Project Certified Meditation and Mindfulness Life Coaching. She has been a faculty member at Ithaca College, Westminster Choir College, and The College of New Jersey. You can find out much more about Laura at her website, https://lauraamoriello.com/.

Drawing on her interest in applying practices of mindfulness to the experience of music teaching, learning, and performance, she will present two sessions for us covering this intriguing approach. While Dr. Amoriello is herself a pianist and piano teacher, the concepts she will cover are applicable to teaching and performance across all instruments and areas.

Workshop sessions:

How to Make Music Mindfully: A Guide to Ease, Confidence, and Joy for Music Teachers

Making music demands the best of mind, body, and soul. Mindfulness can help. In our first session, we’ll deepen our understanding of this ancient practice and explore ideas for incorporating it into our playing and teaching. Participants will be invited to try short mindfulness meditations and other practices they can share with their students.

Our second session will dive deeper into performance anxiety and how mindfulness can help us learn to work with fear. Three practices will be shared to help us remember our why, access courage, and tap into generosity onstage.

Throughout both sessions, we will explore additional techniques from The Art of Practicing,®️ a pioneering approach that guides students toward their natural abilities and helps them form a deeper connection to their artistry. This approach seeks to bring ease, curiosity, and inspiration to our music-making so we can unlock our full potential, both onstage and in the teaching studio.

Following the morning sessions, we plan to hold an informal lunch at a restaurant near the conference location, where Dr. Amoriello will join us.

Look for additional details later, but please make a note of this exciting event date.

-- Michael Sitton

Equinox Wind Quintet Concert June 20, 2026

Formed in 2024, the Equinox Wind Quintet has already established itself as one of the premiere wind ensembles in Vermont. Its five members share a wealth of performance experiences, from playing in the Vermont Symphony Orchestra to gigging in pit bands to recording movie soundtracks.

Their next program, “Inspired Styles,” features innovative music by German composers Ludwig Van Beethoven and Paul Hindemith, and American composers William Grant Still, Vincent Persichetti and former Braintree resident Gwyneth Walker.

The concert will take place at 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 20, 2026, at the Braintree Hill Meeting House, 2756 Braintree Hill Road in Braintree, Vermont.

Equinox Wind Quintet are Laurel Ann Maurer, flute; Elise Conti, oboe; Matt Casazza, clarinet; Ron Wold, horn; and Molly Finkel, bassoon. For more information, call 802-881-9153.

The concert is free and open to the public. Donations gratefully accepted.

2027 COMMISSIONED COMPOSER SELECTION PROCESS:

YOUR PARTICIPATION ENCOURAGED

The 2027 Quad State Conference, where we will hear a new commissioned work by a Vermont composer, may seem far off, but we must identify our next composer and secure a commission agreement this fall as part of the award and commissioning timeline. As when we selected our 2025 Commissioned Composer, I encourage members of VMTA to submit the names of potential composers whom you feel are worthy of our consideration. Please send potential composer name(s), brief comments on the individual being nominated (speaking to your reasons for suggesting this composer), and links to any additional information you may have, especially examples of the composer’s work and achievements. Please send these to me at michael.sitton1@gmail.com by the end of July.

Eligibility for this award is not strictly defined, but of course we want to commission a composer with significant ties to Vermont, whether a native or a longtime resident/active composer in the state. An expectation of the commissioned composer is to arrange for the premiere performance of the new work at the fall 2027 Quad State conference. VMTA has commissioned both very experienced composers with distinguished productive careers and promising younger composers who are gaining attention in emerging careers (and some in between).

VMTA has been commissioning composers for this honor since 1989. Our commission for the 2027 Quad State will be our twentieth. After writing a new work, our commissioned composer then becomes part of the MTNA Distinguished Composer of the Year national competition, with her or his premiere recording submitted for consideration following its performance at the fall 2027 Quad State. Funding for the commission is shared between VMTA and a grant from MTNA.

From the list of composers suggested, I will develop a list of potential candidates, from which, in consultation with the VMTA Board, we will identify a composer to invite for our the 2027 commission.

You may be interested in an article in the current issue of Seven Days featuring our 2025 composer, Callum Robechek, with news about his current activity:

https://www.sevendaysvt.com/arts-culture/young-randolph-composer-arranges-vermont-state-song-for-orchestra/

Thank you for your participation in this process!

-- Michael Sitton, Commissioned Composer Chair

Member News

News from Paul Orgel

Sophia Lu, a senior at Essex High School, was this year’s winner – she also won in 2024 -- in the solo piano category of the Vermont All-State Festival, at which she performed music by Bach and Rachmaninoff in early May.

Sophia will continue studying piano at Dartmouth College in the fall. Her departure is notable, as she has been my last remaining private student, ending what has been a 30-year run as a private piano teacher in Vermont. Starting with one student in my living room in 1996, I developed a studio of approximately 15 students over the years, cutting back significantly during Covid, and reducing further, as I live part-time in another state.

It seems like a good time to gratefully mention some of the VMTA teachers who helped me to get started: Catherine Baird, Barbara Williams, Joyce Flanagan, and especially Liz Metcalfe and Sylvia Parker, my colleagues at UVM where I remain on the keyboard faculty. Above all, I’m tremendously proud of the many fine students that I taught, a significant number of whom have gone on to performing and music teaching careers.

I continue to perform, and honestly, to improve, as a solo pianist. Please look for my area recitals in the fall, (Sept 20 at the Montpelier Performance Hub, Sept. 27 at UVM) featuring the complete Debussy Prèludes, Book 1, Bach Preludes and Fugues, and other music.

Hello From Elaine Greenfield

In this non-stop end of the season, Greenfield Piano Associates looks back on an exciting February Workshop, and an exceptional April Guest Artist Recital and Masterclass, featuring visiting pianist Matthew Manwarren. Our Annual Recital, "the Dynamic Piano,” was performed both in person on June 7th at the Richmond Free Library, and over Zoom, June 10th. On May 21st it was my delight to present student Judith Wright Battista in a solo recital for St. Paul's Cathedral Arts series. Judith has studied with me for 38 years! This Summer my 10-day Masterclass occurs in August, with pianists attending from out of state and Vermont. We travel for one day to the Frederick Collection of Historical Keyboards, Ashburnham, MA, then a recital ends the class. During the session I perform a solo recital for attendees and guests. Other performances continue with soprano and Vermont Public Music Director and Morning Host, Helen Lyons, next one coming up in September.

Opportunities

Vermont Creative Network Grants, Funding, and more!

A recent notification from the VERMONT CREATIVE NETWORK, associated with the Vermont Arts Council, provides this link that shows information about Grants, Funding, Fellowships, Residencies, Trainings and Professional Development for artists of all kinds: https://www.vermontartscouncil.org/vermont-creative-network

Choose to Teach Initiative

Here’s a different link for the video series provided by the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) - words of encouragement and support from respected colleagues - brought to you by the Music Achievement Council.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLWy7ZAnb00SWbVUa9e4RgAVmwQ0bvyT4w

And the former link is this one:

https://www.nammfoundation.org/educator-tips/supporting-music-education-choose-teach

Noteflight Learn Enrollment and Resources

One of the perks of VMTA membership is access to the Noteflight Learn online program for teachers to develop lesson content for composition, performance, and theory (for example), and for students to explore composing, sharing, and collaborating as part of their music study. More details and links can be found on the VMTA website under Teacher Resources. In addition, many interesting articles from the Noteflight BLOG (no login required) are available here.

Contact Sarah Griffith or complete and send the Enrollment Form on the VMTA website “Members Only” page.

Remember to check out MTNA eFestival opportunities!

The MTNA eFestival runs year-round. No deadlines!

For more information, Click Here

VMTA Board Members

President:

Laurel Maurer

802-881-9153

laurelannmaurer@gmail.com

Immediate Past President:

Marie Johnson

802-879-8863

President-Elect:

TBD

Secretary:

Madeleine Montgomery

montgomerypiano@gmail.com

Treasurer:

Sarah Griffith

802-223-5307

sarah5432@gmail.com

Conference Chair:

Patty Bergeron (interim)

802-878-9873

pcberg86@gmail.com

Non-Competitive Auditions:

Lilly C. Ramsey

802-879-7425

cldkramsey@comcast.net

Competitive Auditions:

Linda Buermeyer

802-439-6469

linduxbuermeyer@yahoo.com

Certification:

TBD

Newsletter:

Yin Stewart

802-310-2110

yinmeistewart@gmail.com

Membership:

Patricia Cleary Bergeron

802-878-9873

pcberg86@gmail.com

Web Publicist:

Sarah Griffith &

Patty Bergeron

Composer Commissioning:

Michael Sitton

802-839-8336

michael.sitton1@gmail.com

GET INVOLVED WITH YOUR ORGANIZATION!

Volunteers are needed to serve on the VMTA board! We currently need to fill the following positions:

President-Elect

Conference Chair

Certification Chair

Come and join our wonderful group of board members and see how your organization works!

Wanted: FRESH ENERGY for Website-Builder review and comparison so that VMTA is prepared for upcoming changes to the current plan and services. Do you have those skills? Or do you know someone who would be willing to help out? If we do nothing, we will be paying more and getting less. Can we do better for our students and teachers?

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