YES Academy Erbil 2019

Do you have a passion for rapping. singing, beatboxing, DJing or producing music?  Do you love Hip Hop?  Would you like to make art your profession?  To be a professional Hip Hop artist today, one must be a musician, performer, entrepreneur, activist and teacher. During this 10-day Hip Hop musical boot camp, aspiring emcees, singers, beatboxers, DJs and music producers will learn what it means to be a professional artist who uses their art to better themselves and their communities.

This workshop series will be a crash-course in the crafts of song-writing, beat-production, audio-engineering and performance.  Participants will:

• Learn about Hip Hop’s historical and cultural foundations.  
• Collaborate across linguistic and cultural borders with fellow participants to create new artistic material. Organize and participate in a culminating performance with the other artistic sections of the YES Academy program.  
• Develop a personal business plan that will lay the foundation for future personal and professional success.

The program will culminate with the creation of a collaborative album and final performance featuring rapping, singing, beatboxing, DJing and music production.

Check out the EP from a previous YES Academy, YES Asean 2016 here.

The Festival Orchestra is designed for advanced string students aged 14+ who want to improve their skills as soloists, chamber musicians and ensemble players.

Participants will explore baroque, classical and traditional orchestra music as well as new solo, etude/technical, ensemble and chamber music repertoire. Students may participate in a string orchestra, chamber ensemble, Masterclasses, private lessons, and other musical activities.  An advanced Baroque Ensemble will be available by audition only.

The Festival Strings Program schedule is daily from 8:30-1:30 pm with private lessons and other small group activities scheduled for the late afternoon and early evening.

Your day at YES Academy will include the following activities:

• Private lessons
• Master classes by instrument and sectional rehearsals
• String orchestra
• String literature class and guided listening in traditional and alternative repertoire
• Career advising sessions for advanced students
• Chamber music
• ​Optional training in conducting, string instrument methods and teaching

The composition program will be offered for young and young professional composers and arrangers with an interest in improving their skills and knowledge in composition, arranging, orchestration, conducting, and contemporary music literature of the 20th and 21st centuries. 

The central focus of the class will be the completion of an assignment of a 2 to 5 minute piece for any combinations of strings (or string orchestra) and/or piano. This composition assignment will be given in advance of the start of the program.

Completed compositions will be rehearsed and performed in class by faculty, recorded on video and several of the most successful compositions will be selected for public performance at the final concert. Outstanding compositions will be given consideration for performances in the United States. 

Other aspects of the class include:
-Contemporary trends in composition: study of current trends in modern composition (minimalism, serial/dodecaphonic, etc)
-New Music Literature: study and listening to scores by the great composers of the 20th century: Shostakovich, Bartok, Stravinsky, Messiaen, Samuel Barber, Leonard Bernstein, etc
-Orchestration: study of orchestration with a focus on string instruments
-Arranging: study of arranging techniques and styles

Built upon the success of the Lebanon and Iraq Young Composers Initiatives from 2012 to 2018, the 2019 program continues to be the only international summer training program available for young Middle Eastern composers and is funded by the Sinquefield Charitable Foundation.