Family Weekend Information and Schedule
October 2–3, 2009

Thank you for joining us at the college's annual Family Weekend. We hope you have a wonderful time! At the end of the weekend or when you go home, please be sure to take our parent survey.

Please note: Families attending Saturday events will need the schedule below to find their seminar attendance times.

I hope you enjoy the weekend!

Angela F. F. Davis
Director of the Office of Student Affairs and Parent Services

Friday, October 2, 2009

12:00 p.m.–2:00 p.m.
Registration and Student Life/Facilities Tours
David Friend Recital Hall, 921 Boylston Street
Tours of the college will be led by student ambassadors starting at 12:00 p.m. Each tour is expected to take approximately one-and-a-half hours; the last tour will depart at 1:00 p.m.

Lunch
150 Massachusetts Avenue Dining Hall
Enjoy some local dining in Berklee's dining hall, located at 150 Massachusetts Avenue. Lunch is our treat, so come to the cafeteria and check out our terrific ARAMARK food services from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. We also have our fabulous Cafe 939 at 939 Boylston Street. Stop by and check out some music! Credit cards and cash accepted at this location.

After lunch, stop by the Storytelling Project, an exhibition featuring the profiles of diverse members of the Berklee community—students, staff, and faculty. Each person has answered the same question: "Who are you?" The range and depth of these answers reveal the rich tapestry of backgrounds and visions that make up the Berklee community. The exhibition is located at the entrance to the Student Activities Center, which can be accessed by taking the elevator or stairs from the 921 Boylston Street building lobby to the third floor and then going through the hallway to the 939 Boylston Street building.

Photo by Phil Farnsworth

2:00 p.m.
Refresh the Body and Mind with Chi Gung for Parents and Families
939 Boylston Street, "The Loft" (accessed by taking the Uchida building elevator to the third floor and going through the Student Activities Center)
A little tired from traveling? Experience chi gung and tai chi by moving gently and slowly. You will feel an increase in your chi (energy force). Learn a few stretches and get centered and ready for a full weekend in Boston. Learn how martial arts enhances artistic creativity, increases self-confidence, and strengthens the body and the mind from Yao Li of the Boston Kung Fu Tai Chi Institute, a trainer to Berklee students, staff, and faculty (and Steven Tyler!) for over 20 years. The Boston Kung Fu Tai Chi Institute is one of LiveWell's fitness partners. Students can participate in classes there at a reduced rate because Berklee partially subsidizes student memberships.

3:00 p.m.
Singers Showcase Open Auditions and Rehearsal
Berklee Performance Center, 136 Massachusetts Avenue
Come check out what a live rehearsal is like for student performers as they prepare for this year's Singers Showcase. This is always one of the most popular concerts on campus, and is produced just like a professional program out in the "real world." Directed by professor Ken Zambello, the students will get ready for their big Berklee Performance Center show and give you a chance to get a behind-the-scenes perspective on education at Berklee.

4:00 p.m.
Break
Visit our information desk in the lobby of the Uchida Building at 921 Boylston Street to gather maps and information on sightseeing opportunities and places of interest.

7:15 p.m.
Family Weekend Concert Featuring the Berklee City Music Ensemble and the Mario Jose Showcase Band
Berklee Performance Center, 136 Massachusetts Avenue
The Berklee City Music SYSTEM 5 Ensemble will perform a variety of pop, r&b, and other styles. Tickets are not required.

Photo by Phil Farnsworth

Saturday, October 3, 2009

These seminars will begin at 10 minutes past the hour, and break at 45 minutes past the hour. Sessions begin at 9:10 a.m., 10:10 a.m., and lastly 11:10 a.m. Immediately following the last session time, folks are invited to head over to the Sheraton for the Jazz Lunch at noon.

Your schedule for the Saturday seminars is as follows, according to last name:

Last name A–H
9:10 a.m.—Start off at 921 Boylston Steet, then head over to the Back Bay Sheraton at 39 Dalton Street, and finish up at the 1140 Boylston Street building for the 11:00 a.m. sessions.

Last name I–P
9:10 a.m.—Start off at 1140 Boylston Street, then head over to the 921 Boylston Street building, and finish up at the Back Bay Sheraton at 39 Dalton Street.

Last name Q–Z
9:10 a.m.—Start off at the Back Bay Sheraton at 39 Dalton Street, then head over to the 1140 Boylston Street building, and finish up at 921 Boylston Street.

Parent Jam Sessions
Rooms on the third, fourth, and fifth floors, 921 Boylston Street

Jams@Berklee is a student-run organization that focuses on lighthearted musical meetings that serve as a platform for members to meet people, gain experience in group playing, and realistically assess any original compositions or musical ideas.

The mission of the club is not only to encourage the development of personal skills and mutual awareness in ensemble playing, but also to function as a social tool where musicians can improve their networking abilities. No one is excluded. All levels of musicianship are welcome. The only prerequisites are tolerance and goodwill.

For the parents and families of our students, Jams is offering a wide selection of playing opportunities for parents to participate in during the morning. Swing by and hit the stage! Find out what it is like to perform at Berklee!

Highlights of the MFA
with Professor Henry Tate
David Friend Recital Hall, 921 Boylston Street
**Only two sessions: 9:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m

Professor Henry Tate will present two 45-minute sessions. The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston is a treasure, and Dr. Tate is one of the finest faculty members in the Liberal Arts Department. Parents will have an opportunity to explore art history at Berklee just as their sons and daughters do.

Planning Ahead for a Career in Music
with Peter Spellman
Room 1A, 1140 Boylston Street

Peter Spellman is director of the Career Development Center at Berklee, where he provides career-building resources, programs, and advising to students and alumni.

He is the author of several handbooks on the music business, including The Self-Promoting Musician: Strategies for Independent Music Success (2000, Berklee Press), The Musician's Internet: Online Strategies for Success in the Music Industry (2002, Berklee Press), Indie Power: A Business-Building Guide for Record Labels, Music Production Houses, and Merchant Musicians (2004, MBS Business Media), and his latest, Indie Marketing Power: The Resource Guide for Maximizing Your Music Marketing (2006, MBS Business Media).

Spellman has worked as a performer, arranger, producer, record label director, booking agent, artist manager, and music journalist. With over 25 years of experience as a performing and recording musician, he brings his vast experience to Berklee to help students bridge their college experience to real-world opportunities in their chosen field.

He performs regularly as a percussionist with world music ensemble Friend Planet and sings folk songs to his kids before bed.

Navigating the Holidays: Tips, Tricks, and Traps to Having Your College Student Home
Room 1W, 1140 Boylston Street

Join Kay Kimball Gruder, 2009 Berklee Parent Orientation presenter and founder of Successful College Parenting, in this very interactive workshop. In this session: parents will have a chance to:

• hear students' experiences with reentering family life during the holidays
• anticipate areas of change in their own student
• clarify their expectations for their student's time at home and determine the best approach to communicate them
• construct and share parenting strategies around potential reentry challenges

With a little insight, anticipation, humor, and enhanced communication, you can make the holidays better for everyone!

Ear Training
with Professor Paul Stiller
Room 2E, 1140 Boylston Street

The development of listening skills happens through performance and recognition activities. Parents will study melodies, intervals, and exercises in various major keys, as well as basic rhythmic patterns and common harmonic progressions. The session will also introduce basic conducting patterns and common music notation.

Paul Stiller is a graduate of Berklee College of Music and the University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire. He has been on the Ear Training faculty at Berklee since 1995 and has taught Ear Training 1–4, Rhythmic Ear Training, and Performance Ear Training 1 and 2 for Voice.

Aside from his teaching, he has been an active adjudicator and clinician with numerous college and high school groups throughout the United States and Japan. He is a founding member, singer, producer, arranger, and vocal percussionist for the award-winning a cappella group Vox One, which is comprised of all Berklee faculty and alumni. He is also an active studio singer, keyboardist, and arranger/producer with other nationally acclaimed acts such as Club d'Elf, Rhythm Slam, and Toxic Audio. He has opened for Stevie Ray Vaughn, Atlanta Rhythm Section, Dwight Yoakam, Ray Charles, Chicago, the Woody Herman Orchestra, and the Count Basie Orchestra. His commercial work includes Sears, TCBY Yogurt, State Farm Insurance, Hood Milk, Pontiac/GMC, Superior Coffee, International Trucks, and Dr. Pepper.

African Drumming Circle
with Joe Galeota
and Special Guest Marcus Santos and BatukAxé
Back Bay Sheraton, 39 Dalton Street

All ages welcome, particularly those just beginning their musical career!

Joe Galeota is currently an associate professor of percussion at Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts as well as the owner of JAG Drums, a distinguished West African percussion manufacturing company.

Galeota began studying classical percussion under the direction of Alexander Lepak at the Hartt School, University of Hartford. After two years he transferred to Berklee to complete a bachelor of music degree under the direction of Gary Chaffee and Dean Anderson. He then pursued a master's degree in ethnomusicology for one year at the University of Ghana and completed his degree at Wesleyan University.

In 1984, Galeota started a manufacturing company of professional West African percussion instruments known as JAG Drums. JAG Drums has become the industry standard for many West African drums, such as the talking drum and ewe barrel drum.

Galeota has been a performer and educator throughout the United States, Europe, and Africa since 1972. He has taught numerous workshops, clinics, and residencies for all age groups. He has extensive experience in performance with both percussion and drum set. Some highlights include the percussion for Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, and sampling sessions with Kurzweil and Sonic Implants.

Along with teaching and performing in and around Boston, Galeota continues to study in West Africa, taking students abroad yearly. Galeota is also the director of the JAG Drum and Dance Ensemble, a diverse group of students and professionals with a common love for African music, dance, and culture.

BatukAxé is an Afro-Brazilian ensemble whose goal is to present a modern style of the authentic tradition of blocos afro and axé music to the American audience. BatukAxé was created in 2004 as part of AfroBrazil.org, an organization that preserves, promotes, and strengthens Afro-Brazilian culture in the United States. BatukAxé presents both traditional and contemporary music of northeast Brazil, and includes some of Boston's finest percussionists and musicians.

Developed in the state of Bahia, where 90 percent of the population is of African descent—especially in the city of Salvador—this music is rooted in the tradition of the Carnival Blocos Afro, groups of vocalists and percussionists performing Brazilian rhythms based on African roots. The music of the Blocos Afro, among which olodum and ile ayie are the most popular, often has lyrics of social involvement and empowerment of the lower classes and black population in general.

The Jazz Lunch
Constitution Ballroom of the Back Bay Sheraton
39 Dalton Street, Boston
12:00 p.m

Parents, families, and their students are encouraged to attend! Tickets are $35 for adults and $25 for children under 12. Remarks on the state of the college will be given by senior vice president/provost Lawrence Simpson, and a student ensemble will perform.

Recreation Options in Boston

While you're here, you can bring your student to share in some of the city's great activities and resources.

Duck Tours

1:00 p.m.
Prudential Center/Huntington Avenue
Buy tickets at bostonducktours.com

Discount Show Tickets

Admission
Members FREE
Adults $17
Seniors and students 18 and older $15
Youths 7–17 $6.50; free on weekends
Youths 6 and under FREE

Included with general admission:

• Full-day access to all open galleries (except ticketed exhibitions)
• One free repeat visit to the MFA's collections within 10 days
• Free guided tours and gallery talks
• Admission to the bookstore and shop, Bravo restaurant, and Remis Auditorium

Accommodations

Sheraton Boston Hotel
39 Dalton Street
Boston, Massachusetts 02199
Single/Double/Twin: $245
Club: $320
Suite: $345 and up
Additional Person: $40
*Room rates are quoted exclusive of applicable state and local taxes.
For Reservations: Call 888 627-7054 and ask for the Berklee College of Music Family Weekend room block. Special rates are based on availability. You must make your reservation before September 3, 2009 to receive the special rate.

Eliot Hotel
370 Commonwealth Avenue
Boston, Massachusetts 02215
Suite: $245
*Room rates are quoted exclusive of applicable state and local taxes.
For Reservations: Call 617 532-7123 and ask for the Berklee College of Music October room block. Special rates are based on availability. You must make your reservation before September 11, 2009 to receive the special rate.