Madison 7th Grader Selected for Prestigious Violin Master Class

Momo Fredrickson of Madison, WI has spent her time in coronavirus isolation perfecting a violin piece that won her a coveted spot in The Philadelphia International Music Festival’s virtual Master Class with Philadelphia Orchestra Assistant Concertmaster Marc Rovetti on Thursday, October 15th, 2020 at 7 p.m. The prestigious online Master Class series attracts auditions from gifted musicians the world over, eager to perform for stars of The Philadelphia Orchestra on PIMF’s faculty.

“We’ve been seeing some very high-caliber young musical talent submitting extraordinary auditions,” says PIMF President Sandy Marcucci. “We’re delighted by the enthusiasm and so heartened to see how young musicians are pursuing their musical passion with a will to learn and improve in spite of so much disruption.”

Momo, a 12-year-old 7th-grader at Velma Hamilton Middle School, will play Ottokar Nováček’s “Perpetuum mobile” for Maestro Rovetti and a worldwide online audience at Thursday’s interactive Master Class, after which she’ll receive analysis and constructive criticism from him, along with supportive running commentary from viewers in real time.

“This piece is special for me because my teacher's teacher, Mr. Gingold, edited this piece,” Momo explains. “It is kind of learning my root of the musical family. I’m hoping that the audience can feel the steady pulse of perpetual motion as well as the sudden surprise dynamics that Nováček expressed. I hope to learn the new viewpoint of the piece by Mr. Rovetti so I can understand the piece more deeply.”

Momo has been concert mistress for several years in Midwest Young Artists’ Concert Orchestra and since last year has also played in its elite Symphony Orchestra, where she was accepted as an exceptional case despite her young age. Both are directed by Dr. Allen Dennis. Momo studies violin with world-renowned violinist and DePaul University professor Janet Sung.

“More and more, we’re finding that there’s a real hunger for that connection to live classical music performance that we’ve had to put on hold during the pandemic,” Ms. Marcucci adds, “along with a growing interest in improving musical skills and even just learning something new. Not to mention, we’re showcasing the classical music superstars of tomorrow! Our Master Class series hits all the right notes for so many music lovers, and we’re delighted to make them widely accessible.”

ABOUT The Philadelphia International Music Festival:

The Philadelphia International Music Festival (PIMF) is a summer music program directed by Kimberly Fisher, Principal Second Violin of The Philadelphia Orchestra, offering student musicians from around the world the unique opportunity of spending one, two, or four weeks immersed in music education and performance training with members of the world-renowned Philadelphia Orchestra, traditionally on the campus of Bryn Mawr College but this year online at VirtualMusicCamp.org.

Since March, PIMF’s new platform PIMFOnline.org has been filling the training void for social-distancing music students with Master Classes taught by PIMF Artistic Director Kimberly Fisher, Principal Second Violin of The Philadelphia Orchestra; by Ricardo Morales, Principal Clarinet of The Philadelphia Orchestra; by Boris Allakverdyan, Principal Clarinet of the Los Angeles Philharmonic; as well as group and individual lessons and supervised online practice rooms taught and overseen by members of PIMF’s world-class faculty.

For more information on PIMF, visit philadelphiamusicfestival.org, call (856) 875-6816, “like” the Philadelphia International Music Camp & Festival on Facebook, follow @pimfmusiccamp on Instagram and Twitter, and visit the Philadelphia International Music Festival YouTube Channel for performance videos from previous festival seasons.