Welcome! The Duke University String School, which was founded by Dorothy Kitchen and a member of the Ciompi Quartet, Arlene di Cecco, in 1967, has been part of Duke for forty-six years. Our basic principle is that of teaching the love of good music, the devotion to the quality of one's own performance of that music, and a sense of integrity in one's work. We do this through the means of teaching the violin, viola, cello, and bass through private lessons, our chamber music, and through our orchestras. In recent years, we have also added the base of understanding of the form of music classes in theory.
DUSS Summer Camps 2013
The Duke University String School is offering two separate weeks of chamber music camps directed by Dorothy Kitchen.
Camp I: June 10 through June 14
Camp II: July 15 through July 19
Half day: 9:00 - 12:00; fee: $215
Full day: 9:00 - 3:00; fee: $330
Concerts are held June 14 and July 19 at 5:30
Camps and concerts are held at St. Stephens Episcopal Church. Students should be dropped off in the main parish hall at St. Stephen's where we will gather and finish each day. Please note that parents must come into the building to pick up their campers at the end of the day.
You may drop off your child as early as 8:30 for camp, but no earlier please, unless you have made special arrangements with a teacher.
As the teachers have no office space at St. Stephens, they will leave soon after 3:00, so please pick up your children on time!
Camps include technique studies, chamber music, music appreciation, theory, and fun. After lunch, we make a trek out of the building for kick-beachball if the weather is good and we have been known to play charades.
On Friday,there is a theory bee and at 5:30 we present our special program including all that we have learned during the week. The level is mixed and it is essential we have enough students at each level, so we can do our best work. These are playing camps, and the level of the students rises greatly in one week of playing in this manner.
Fees include all music, snacks, t-shirts (you provide the size), and lunch for the all-day campers.
Before registering, you must make arrangements for an audition with Mrs. Kitchen: .
Please register and make your payment after receiving instructions from Katharine Whitmore.
Registration must be received by May 15th.
The Fall 2013 Season begins September 7 and ends December 15, 2013.
Master Classes
Master Classes, given by guest artists such as the Ciompi Quartet, the Borromeo Quartet, and the Miro Quartet, are funded by the DUSS Scholarship fund.
Scholarship Assistance
We have scholarship assistance from the Eason Foundation and from the Robert B. Fearing Endowment for Chamber Music which has been established for the Duke String School by the Fearing Family through Duke University.
The Duke University String School is a non-profit organization under the auspices of Duke University.
