HEARTS and Landmark on Main Street, two Port Washington nonprofits, have joined together to present HEARTS’ 2018-19 Master Classes, a series of four free experiential workshops for high school students and adults.
Each of the four classes provide up-close interactions with experienced professionals for aspiring artists in singing, songwriting, acting and dance.
On Oct. 29, HEARTS held its first class, Melissa Cross: The Zen of Screaming, at Landmark on Main Street. Voice teacher and Port resident Cross instructed class goers toward modern rock and extreme vocals, as well as endurance for all genres of voice.
“I think the best thing about an in-person clinic is hearing Melissa explain how to do the specific things she’s talking about while the DVDs, you absorb it on your own, but you don’t get that extra step of explanation,” said Will Winton, a fan of Cross’s who drove from New Jersey just for the first master class.
“I’m a person who has had a lot of musical training over the years,” said singer Melissa Violin after the first master class. “A lot of that training I owe to community programs. I owe to people going out of their way giving scholarship money to programs and creating funding for opportunities for kids. I came from a poor home. I would not have any of the training I have today without the kindness of a lot of people and community efforts.”
The next master class, Jeff Franzel: Songwriter’s Bootcamp, will run from 7 to 9 p.m. on Dec. 3. New York City based songwriter Jeff Franzel, who has written songs for Josh Groban, Clay Aiken and ’NSYNC, will share insight into the songwriting process, including the craft of songwriting, techniques in writing melodies, chord progressions and the art of a great lyric. The class will explore different styles, analyzing great hit songs from yesterday to today and will discuss the business of music and how to pitch songs to TV, film and record companies. Participants may bring their own guitar.
Following the Dec. 3 master class, are Jonathan Goldstein: Audition and Scene Study Technique on Feb. 11, from 7 to 9 p.m., and Roberto Villanueva: Pop Dance on March 4, from 7 to 9 p.m.
“These master classes represent HEARTS’ first venture into producing a series of community programs designed to bring free arts and arts education experiences to teens and adults in Port Washington,” said Stephanie Hall, president of HEARTS. “We’re grateful for the support of Laura Mogul of Landmark on Main Street for helping realize this exciting new venture. We hope this new series will encourage and inspire others to engage in the arts in new ways.”
For more information about each class, visit visit www.heartspw.org/masterclasses. Visit www.landmarkonmainstreet.org to register for the event.
