Congratulations 2010 Soiva students and teachers for another fabulous camp week!
From the windy outside concert (amazing timing!) to the warm Salolampi performance and thrilling final concert, your musicianship was tremendous. It was so fun to see you make new friends and learn new musical ideas.
Please send in your photos if you have not already done so. Check out www.villagepages.org and click on "blog". Short video clips will be added soon.
Mark your calendars NOW for *June 12-19, 2011* at Salolampi or join us in Juuka, Finland in July! Invite a friend to join you! More details will be added here as they become available.
Stay in touch with your new Soiva Music Camp friends on Facebook! We'll see you next summer!
Photos from Soiva Music Camp 2010
Ready, Set, Play!
What do students think of Soiva Camp?
Please read the following comments from 2009 Soiva campers.
“I have learned so much in the way I look at music.” “Thank you so much for everything! I have met some of the most amazing people and have learned so many amazing things.” “Salolampi Music Camp was really fun. I think that the balance of music and culture & language was perfect.” “I think I learned a lot about and learned to respect the Finnish culture. I enjoyed learning about a different culture through contact with students my age from Finland.” “I had a blast learning other cultures and speaking the language. Hopefully, I can come back next year learn even more.”
Experience in Bemidji
Soiva music camp is held in Bemidji Minnesota. At the Soiva camp in Salolampi I enjoyed a wonderful experience there for the second time. The new counselors are always great to meet and fun to be around. The activities are just the greatest and always teach some great new learning skills like English speaking campers Finnish, Finnish speaking campers English, and fun Finnish songs. There is a sauna and lake for a great Finnish experience. The composition classes at Bemidji State University are the most fun along with the other classes for piano, clarinet, and flute. My instrument is the piano. This camp is the best! I will definitely come back for the third time in a row. Come and join the other campers and me at Soiva camp at Salolampi.
By Markus Hiukka (Washington composer and pianist who has attended Soiva Camp for two years)
Finland's acclaimed music education has succeeded in combining the best features of the old Russian and Hungarian schools with the principles of the Nordic welfare state and democracy. Establishing a good relationship between music and all other academic disciplines has become the basis of the new teaching methods. The audible result—quality—nevertheless continues to occupy a significant role. The pillars supporting the Finnish music school system have been—and still are—the state and municipal funding, the high standard of teacher training, institutional networking, the nationwide spread of good practices, and the Finns’ high respect for music and the arts in general.
Finland is also a real land of music play schools. Children learn basic musical skills by means of “aha experiences” and other meaningful experiences. Simultaneously, the lessons support the children’s cognitive, emotional, motor, and social development. As far as is known, there is no other music education system for preschool children elsewhere in the world that is as systematic.Finnish music and arts institutes have long evidenced a strong belief in nurturing creative talent both through intensive study and open exploration. Numerous Finnish superstars like conductors Esa-Pekka Salonen, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Osmo Vänskä, and opera star Karita Mattila are considered unique treasures. These and many other artists are the fruits of Finnish culture and education. It is our intent to bring these methods of pedagogy to the United States for the first time in a comprehensive manner at Soiva Camp at Salolampi. The initial program in 2008 focused on piano and flute instruction as well as improvisation and composition.
SOIVA Q&A
What are the eligible ages for participants?
Ages 11–17 (younger students accepted with recommendation of private teacher and camp administrators)
How do I register for the SOIVA program?
Use the regular registration form for Salolampi, listing IB1M as the session number. In addition, a letter of recommendation from the applicant’s music teacher is required, detailing level of proficiency.
Are scholarships available?
Yes. Regular Salolampi and Concordia Language Village scholarships are available, with any restrictions that apply to regular Salolampi applicants (e.g., geographical area, certain sessions.
Will participants learn any language? What sort of participation will the SOIVA villagers have in the language-cultural immersion of Salolampi?
Participants will learn some Finnish, but much less than participants in the regular Salolampi session. SOIVA villagers will participate in early morning activities, morning circle (a couple of songs, morning exercises), and breakfast (breakfast vocabulary, some table talk). They will rejoin the Salolampi program in the later afternoon, in time for one directed activity (directed in Finnish), afternoon free time with swimming (directed partially in Finnish), and the store (buying done in Finnish, with help from store staff). They will be with us for the evening meal (again with meal vocabulary and table talk), evening singing, and the evening program.
What type of supervision is provided during the various parts of the program?
The regular plan of continuous supervision will be in effect while participants are at Salolampi. Music instructors will provide supervision during the day at Bemidji State University, possibly assisted by one or two regular Salolampi counselors. Participants will have adult supervision at all times.
Where can I get more information about Soiva Camp at Salolampi?
The Salolampi website, www.salolampi.org, includes more details about Soiva Camp, including biographies of the instructors.
HOW TO ENROLL
Soiva Music Camp is a partnership between the Association of Finnish Music Schools (AFMS), Concordia Language Villages (CLV), the Salolampi Foundation, Bemidji State University and the Finlandia Foundation National (FFN). Additional funding comes from the Finland Society (Suomi Seura), the Wirtanen Family Fund of the Duluth-Superior Area Community Foundation and the Minnesota Finnish-American Historical Society.
Students will be housed at beautiful Salolampi Village near Bemidji. In addition to all-day instruction and practicing, the fee includes lodging, meals, and all activities at Salolampi. Scholarships are available from Salolampi Foundation and Concordia Language Villages.Transportation at the beginning and end of the week is the responsibility of enrollees. Information for summer 2011 is pending.
The program of instruction will be held June 12-19, 2011. This session will be limited to 40 students, ages 11-17, in advanced study of flute, piano, clarinet, violin and improvisation/composition. Instruction will be by five teachers from Finland and five from the United States for a ratio of four students per teacher, allowing for intense personal attention.Soiva villagers will begin their day at Salolampi, joining the regular Salolampi villagers for morning circle and breakfast. After breakfast, they will be transported by bus to the instruction site at Bemidji State University, which has 20 practice rooms with pianos in addition to studios and classrooms. A box lunch will be provided. In the later afternoon they will board the bus for the trip back to Salolampi, where they join the villagers there for afternoon and evening activities and dinner. Swimming and sauna will be available most days.
Go to the Concordia College website for the registration form. More information is available at the Salolampi website.You may call (800) 222-4750 or email clv@cord.edu.
