About The Institute
Collaborate, Learn, and Explore the diversity of Modern Music Today
All levels of interest and experience are welcome
“Mostly Modern” is an international festival that is wholly immersive: participants perform side-by-side with faculty, both with the Mostly Modern Orchestra and chamber music. World premieres happen on each and every program. Everyone engages in a learning atmosphere inside and outside rehearsal. Mostly Modern radiates opportunities for musicians. It is a result-oriented festival, bringing top-caliber distinguished faculty to collaborate side-by-side with top talent. MMF opens doors outside normative career paths.
Chamber music is a cornerstone of the Mostly Modern experience. During the three week festival we offer the opportunity to perform in three chamber concerts, plus pop-ups all over town. Participants are put in the driver seat in a collaborative effort to program, rehearse, and perform 20th & 21st Century repertoire.
Participants perform in masterclasses instructed by top industry leaders. Participants enhance their skill set through entrepreneurial courses and seminars given by our Artist Faculty.
The institute accepts up to 140 students and has over 40 faculty members. Mostly Modern Festival features the Mostly Modern Orchestra, the American Modern Ensemble, guest ensembles, seminars, lessons, masterclasses, and weekly concerts. The Institute is open to musicians ages 18, and ALL ages and stages of their career.
Mostly Modern Festival takes place at Skidmore College at the Arthur Zankel Music Center. Skidmore College is ideally located in Saratoga Springs, New York, 3 hours by car from NYC, Boston, Philadelphia and Montreal. Public performances take place at the Helen Filene Ladd Concert Hall, a 600-seat acoustically tuned space. Participants go home with fantastic 3-camera shot performance videos and top-of-the-line audio of their works and performances.
Instrumentalists
Play 3 orchestra concerts with top conductors: features world premieres, and perform with side-by-side with our Artist Faculty.
Receive 3 private lessons and studio class/sectional /masterclasses as planned by faculty.
Audition for Concerto Competition (choose a work 20th Century onward). 2 winners are chosen to perform with MMO the following summer and winners receive a full fellowship to attend all three weeks the following summer.
Perform in chamber ensemble concerts, where you choose your repertoire and sign up.
Access to all masterclasses, a VIP pass to everything, including 3 parties: welcoming, opening and closing night parties.
Check this page for Mostly Modern Orchestra instrumentation.
Conductors
Conduct the American Modern Ensemble.
Conduct the orchestra readings of the Mostly Modern Orchestra.
2 conductors are chosen to perform and conduct the Mostly Modern Orchestra
Seminar-masterclasses with all three conductors every week
Receive top-of-the-line 3 camera-shot video (link to video posted on the MMF YouTube page) of your performance(s) at the festival.
Receive one-camera-shot (orchestra perspective) video (link to video posted on the MMF YouTube page) of selected rehearsal(s) during the festival, to review with conducting faculty, and for future archival use.
Access to all masterclasses, a VIP pass to everything at the festival including 3 parties: welcoming, opening and closing night parties.
Vocalists
Perform new opera scenes, arias, and repertoire from the 20th & 21st centuries, culminating in one performance per week.
A chance to workshop and perform brand-new short operas or scenes as part of our Modern Vocal Projects program.
Receive private lessons/coaching/masterclasses with vocal faculty members and creative team
Rehearsals and coachings during the week, dress rehearsals and performances in stunning Zankel Hall
Access to all masterclasses, a VIP pass to everything, including 3 parties: welcoming, opening and closing night parties.
Pianists
Perform in institute concerts at the stunning Zankel Hall.
Opportunities to perform chamber music, solo works, orchestral and vocal repertoire
Receive private lessons/coachings with piano faculty members.
Seminars, lectures, and masterclasses by our Artist Faculty (see Institute Events for details).
Access to all masterclasses, a VIP pass to everything, including 3 parties: welcoming, opening and closing night parties.
Composers (up to 30 composers accepted)
Receive a fully-professional, live performance from American Modern Ensemble or one of our guest ensembles.
Up to 15 composers receive an orchestral reading of a piece (or excerpt or movement from a larger work) up to 7 minutes in duration with the Mostly Modern Orchestra.
Two “winning” composers are selected to a have their work fully-rehearsed and performed by the Mostly Modern Orchestra.
Go home with top-of-the-line 3 camera-shot video (video posted on the Mostly Modern Projects YouTube page) and audio WAV file of your performance.
Professional ensembles work intimately with composers in rehearsals, the dress and the performance.
Private lessons/meetings with the Composition Faculty. (Meetings/lessons are generally taught in pairs with two composition participants per hour. Additional meetings/lessons available at the discretion of the composition faculty.)
Access to all masterclasses, a VIP pass to everything at the festival, including 3 parties: welcoming, opening and closing night parties.
Helen Filene Ladd Concert Hall
All Zankel Hall (Helen Filene Ladd Concert Hall) performances are recorded and fully edited for participants: both audio and video. Composers and conductors receive audio WAV files and links to polished videos of their performances (shot with 3 cameras) posted on MMF's YouTube channel. Composers who take part in the orchestral readings receive un-edited audio recordings of their readings (editing available for an additional fee).
Chamber concerts provide an amazing opportunity for participants and faculty to showcase contemporary repertoire of their choice. Performers will be given guidelines and may submit proposals for pieces they'd like to play. Works will be chosen on a first-come first-serve basis, based on time and programming considerations.
Visit our Frequently Asked Questions page for further information and for answers to questions not covered here.
Mostly Modern Festival is a division of Mostly Modern Projects, Inc., a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization.