Horizon High summer music camp hits the right notes

Eric Misura, a rising eighth-grader at Hamlin Middle School, joined his fellow clarinet players in the auditorium of Horizon High School.

In unison, they started playing a portion of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.”

Although the clarinet players only had been playing together for four days during Horizon High School’s summer music camp, they were progressing in the song and as individual musicians.

Rather than spending their first two weeks of summer break sleeping in or doing activities they might not have had time for during the school year, these dedicated musicians returned to school to become better with their instrument and as an ensemble.  

They will join dozens of other middle school students as part of the camp’s intermediate and advanced bands to perform in a concert at the end of music camp Thursday, June 12. 

The concert also will feature end-of-camp performances from elementary students as well as fourth- through sixth-grade students in the camp’s beginner band. 

Throughout the four years Horizon High has offered the eight-day camp, students’ passion for music and their instruments only has grown. 

The camp itself also has grown since its inception. This year’s camp had 180 campers, 90 volunteers and nine instructors. The camp also now includes afternoon electives such as jazz band, flute choir, clarinet choir, low brass choir and french horn choir. 

From start to finish

Music camp participants such as Misura and Jacob Cygul decided to join the summer camp to get a head start on learning their desired instruments. For Misura, it was the clarinet, while Cygul picked up the saxophone and never turned back. 

Misura wanted to play the clarinet because one night when he was 10 years old, he was with his grandfather who owned a few different instruments. He gravitated toward the clarinet. He recalled being able to get a decent sound out of the instrument on his first try.

Photo by Liz Ramos

Attending the music camp three years ago and every summer since has helped him grow his skillset and learn new techniques and songs. 

“Over the years, I have developed better tone, maybe even some physical upgrades to my instrument, and I’ve been able to play more complex rhythms and things like that,” Misura said.

Misura said attending the camp each year since he was in sixth grade has been preparing him to join the band at Horizon High in the future. It gives him an advantage over students who will be in the band who did not attend the camp, he said. 

He returns to camp because of his drive to learn and play more. 

“I like the creative process behind music and the act of learning music,” Misura said. “It’s a pretty fun experience, and it’s very much an experience that you can look behind and see all your progress.”

Cygul once was a sixth-grader at the camp’s inception and had never touched an instrument before the first day of camp. The charm of the saxophone piqued Cygul’s interest, and he knew the fastest way to learn to play it was to be in the camp. Although he struggled a bit at first, like many students picking up a new instrument, he said the guidance from the volunteers gave him the confidence to be persistent.

He was hooked and eager to learn more.

Four years later, Cygul served as a high school volunteer at the camp, helping students who are in the same shoes he was in as a sixth-grader. 

“I really like exploring new things with my saxophone and also now being able to be a volunteer and pass on what I’ve learned to the new people wanting to do saxophone,” he said. “It’s surreal (to be a volunteer). I am remembering things that I did before. It’s interesting hearing all of their process, which I definitely remember doing like the first sound and learning the three notes to back then it was called ‘Warm English Pastries.’”

He said the fast-paced learning progression of the camp affords students a chance to learn skills that might take them two months to learn in school, in only a few days. 

As a rising freshman who’s been through the camp for years, Cygul encouraged beginners to stick with it and never give up, even if it might seem hard at the beginning. 

A new beginning

For many fourth- through sixth-graders, including rising Holy Family Catholic School fourth-grader Isabela Restrepo Medina, the music camp is their first opportunity to be introduced to the various instruments available. 

They might have come in with an idea of an instrument they would like to try, and they are able to see what might be the best fit for them. 

Restrepo Medina thought she’d try her hand at the trumpet and fell in love with it. From the buzzing sound the mouthpiece makes when she blows into it to learning the different fingerings on the trumpet’s valves to make certain notes, she has enjoyed every aspect of her new instrument. 

Photo by Liz Ramos

By the end of the first four-hour day, the camp staff and high school volunteers have taught students how not only to put their selected instrument together but also make a sound with it. Then the students go home with their instrument in hand to practice and play.

By the end of the second day of camp, students are rocking “Hot Cross Buns.” 

Restrepo Medina said it’s cool to learn to play the notes and different songs. She might try learning to play the saxophone at next year’s music camp. 

After only eight days of camp, the students come together in their respective bands to perform a concert for the community.

The rising first- through third-graders also will rock the stage with their own performance, for which Desmond Lynch, a rising second-grader can’t wait. 

He spent his days at camp learning all about various instruments, including the xylophone and triangle. The triangle has become his favorite because he liked the “ding” sound it makes.

“I learn something new every day,” Lynch said. “I like it because we sing songs and use instruments to learn how to play new notes. We also play kickball (during recess).”

He said he wants to dive into learning more about other instruments, like the piano.

Forming friendships

Lynch said on the first day of camp, he was a little scared because he was with a bunch of students he didn’t know, but much like other students in the camp, the shyness went away as he saw familiar faces and developed new friendships with other students. 

On pajama day Thursday, June 5, Lynch sported his Spider-Man pajamas and robe and brought his stuffed bear with him to share his newfound passion for music. Even his bear had a chance to play xylophone. 

Spirit days gave students a chance to break the ice as they learned about why they chose particular pajamas, including a Stitch or Elmo onesie or Pokémon pajamas. 

Middle school students have the opportunity to meet others who could be their future fellow band mates as many of them will attend Horizon High. The camp allows them to make those connections years in advance.