I wrote this short reminiscence of music in Chapel Hill for their website:
I am especially grateful for the 13-plus years I got to study violin with Mary Frances Boyce. She took my ideas seriously from a very young age and always encouraged me to focus on whatever most interested me, whether it was composition, music history, or playing in a rock band. When I left Chapel Hill to study at a conservatory, I met many musicians whose talent and technique far surpassed my own but very few who had as broad musical experience or as much enthusiasm for pursuing their own creative vision—two
traits especially cultivated by the Chapel Hill music scene.
Growing up in Chapel Hill in the 80s and 90s.
Chapel Hill is well known for its combination of cosmopolitan intellectual life and laid-back, small-town Southern charm. These qualities certainly characterized the musical world I grew up in there during the 80’s and 90’s and created a culture of openness and curiosity in the arts. Between Suzuki group lessons, seasonal guest teachers and conventions, youth orchestras, and summer
camps, the opportunities to play violin were considerable. Additionally, good local musicians of all stripes were friendly and accessible, authentic bluegrass jam sessions were held out in Orange County (if you could find them), and most Cat’s Cradle shows were all ages.
Chapel Hill is well known for its combination of cosmopolitan intellectual life and laid-back, small-town Southern charm. These qualities certainly characterized the musical world I grew up in there during the 80’s and 90’s and created a culture of openness and curiosity in the arts. Between Suzuki group lessons, seasonal guest teachers and conventions, youth orchestras, and summer
camps, the opportunities to play violin were considerable. Additionally, good local musicians of all stripes were friendly and accessible, authentic bluegrass jam sessions were held out in Orange County (if you could find them), and most Cat’s Cradle shows were all ages.
I am especially grateful for the 13-plus years I got to study violin with Mary Frances Boyce. She took my ideas seriously from a very young age and always encouraged me to focus on whatever most interested me, whether it was composition, music history, or playing in a rock band. When I left Chapel Hill to study at a conservatory, I met many musicians whose talent and technique far surpassed my own but very few who had as broad musical experience or as much enthusiasm for pursuing their own creative vision—two
traits especially cultivated by the Chapel Hill music scene.
