Strings Camp...

When Brinton was 5 (almost 6) we bought him a cello and he began taking Suzuki Cello lessons at the Nevada School of the arts.  That continued until he was 7 and we moved to Kansas.  We kept his cello in hopes that we would find a teacher out here and he could continue but there were so many millions of things going on that I never really got my stuff together to get him a teacher.  :(

In our school district they start orchestra in 5th grade...sadly during 5th grade we weren't in this district and even if we had been Brinton would've missed 3 months of it because of his surgery and recovery.  So when I saw that they offered a Strings I camp through the summer school I begged and pleaded that they'd allow him to participate even though he hadn't so much looked at a cello since he was barely 7.  I was extremely happy when the school said, "Yes."

It was much like baptism by fire because all the other kids there had been playing all year and he was only 1 of 2 cellists.    Camp ran for 5 weeks, 4 days a week, 2 hours a day and in that time he got really, really good. I also have him taking private lessons once a week on the side. His only problem is he has a really good ear for the music so he picks it up super quick (probably from his time doing Suzuki method) but he really isn't that great at reading the music....that'll come.

So here is a short little excerpt from their strings concert at the end of their camp session.  He was the only cellist there that day and he really held his own.