AMP is a year-long program designed for dedicated music students looking for a deeper and broader perspective of the art form. The goal of the program is to provide an enriching experience that teaches students valuable tools they can apply to any music they learn for the rest of their life. Here are just a few things you can expect:

Our faculty is growing.
Nora Karakousoglou and Sonja Larson are going to continue as AMP faculty members and will be joined by Keith Allegretti and Sasha Klare-Ayvazian. Keith is an accomplished pianist and composer currently pursuing his doctorate at UT Austin; Sasha is a talented pianist who also plays guitar and leads the classical folk band American Dreamer. They both bring unique skill sets and a love for working with this age group.

Our structure is evolving.
Like its pilot year, AMP will be offered in three distinct sessions: Fall, Winter, and Spring. However, this time, each session will have a unique character reflected in the lesson plans for each class and for the session. The first session will focus on diving deep into learning effectively through a growth mindset, and students will learn skills they can take into any future endeavor, academic, musical, or otherwise! They will also focus on building and reinforcing musicianship through theory, ear-training, and analysis. This session will lay a foundation for the rest of the year. In the Winter session, students will experience music history like never before – they will learn about different periods in music history, while also learning its context within important historical events, architectural styles, and art periods of the time. The Spring will focus on performance practice, and on synthesizing everything learned from the previous two sessions into practice as creatives, musicians, and performers.

Guest Artists are returning.
We are excited to bring in professional guests from within our organization and from the Austin community, including a Dalcroze specialist who will focus on learning musical concepts through movement, a return of Mother Falcon to engage with the students in songwriting, and more! Students will have the opportunity to experience performances up close, to see the life of a professional musician from multiple angles, and learn about different genres, instruments, and professions within the arts.

We are focused on making the experience more enriching and rewarding than ever.
We know it’s a big commitment to be here on a Saturday, so we are adjusting our policies to ensure the best possible learning environment.

• Although we accept tuition separately for each session, we would like for students to consider this a year’s commitment to ensure they are able to get the most out of the program.
• For each session (Fall, Winter, Spring) we are asking students to commit to not missing more than 2 weeks in the 9- or 10-week session. We want families to have access to this program, but also want to create an environment where students can consistently learn and grow together.

How to join:

• Students interested in participating should register online and submit a letter of recommendation from their private lesson teacher to sbgooding@acmsaustin.org.
• Students will be contacted by Sarah Beth Gooding to schedule an interview prior to the semester start date.

Interested in signing up for our Advanced Musicianship Program or just getting more information? Please feel out the form below and we will follow up with you.