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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Festival Camp Harmonizes With Nature

Finally Aron Dreher can practice as much as he wants.

He can pound in the mornings, thump in the afternoons and rat-a-tat in the evenings. And no one yells, “Knock off the racket!”

“I love to practice. I love the drums,” he says, with a glimmer in his eyes that most teenage boys reserve for girls. “This is the best camp I’ve been to yet.”

Aron left his home in Bellevue, Wash., July 18 for the 15-day Coeur d’Alene Music Festival at Camp Neewahlu. The camp is the brainchild and dream of Cathyanne Lavins, a Coeur d’Alene violinist and certified public accountant.

“I could do this all summer,” she says. In front of her, Kidd Island Bay glitters in the morning sun. Behind her in Neewahlu’s dining hall, 40 teenage musicians pour their souls into Samuel Barber’s “Adagio for Strings.”

“They keep asking for more rehearsal time,” Cathyanne says, shaking her head with amazement. She scheduled six and a half hours of practice time daily.

The camp is for serious musicians. They study with nine professionals, including Idaho Falls Symphony conductor John LoPicolo.

“Breathe,” he yells over their playing. They watch his baton rise and fall and they sit a little straighter as he yells, “Yes, yes, more, more.”

Cathyanne, 42, watches the young musicians with satisfaction. She’d wanted to start a music camp since she attended one in college 20 years ago.

With a lot of help from friends with the Spokane Symphony, she launched the camp last year and attracted 35 musicians. Nearly all returned this year plus five new campers. But no woodwind players.

Cathyanne isn’t worried. Word will spread from happy campers such as Aron and the summer symphony will fill out. The camp concert on Sunday will sound just fine.

“I’ll bring in some ringers from the Spokane Symphony,” she says. “Who wouldn’t want to work here?”

Be seated

Don’t pretend you didn’t gasp at the $20 ticket prices for the Coeur d’Alene Summer Theatre’s productions. The shows are worth every penny, but there is a way to get in without paying - and it’s legal.

Try ushering. Don’t groan. I did it and had so much fun that I did it again. People are happy when they’re dressed up and out for the evening.

They appreciate the usher who makes quick sense of the two levels, eight sections and dozens of rows in North Idaho College’s Schuler Auditorium.

I led friends, people I’ve interviewed and colleagues to their seats. I saw people I hadn’t seen in months or years. And then I watched “Annie Get Your Gun” - free.

Just for fun, I sold concessions for the theater at intermission and earned a ticket to another show. Not shabby pay for about an hour of work.

Shows run Thursday through Saturday nights and Sunday afternoons. Want to volunteer? Call 769-7780.

Sun spots

If you’re booked for the weekend, cancel your plans and go listen to the jazz of the Big Sky Mudflaps tonight at Coeur d’Alene’s Art on the Green. Go early and examine the artists’ booths, pick up some Christmas presents and eat a few German sausages.

The festival in Fort Sherman Park and its offshoots in City Park and downtown are free entertainment all weekend. The laid-back atmosphere is hard to beat. See you there.

Weird work

What’s the strangest summer job you’ve had? Work it out of your system for Cynthia Taggart, “Close to Home,” 608 Northwest Blvd., Suite 200, Coeur d’Alene, ID, 83814; fax to 765-7149; call 765-7128; or e-mail to cynthiat@spokesman.com.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: Free concert The Coeur d’Alene Music Festival’s free concert starts at 11 a.m., Sunday, on Camp Neewahlu’s front lawn. For details, call 667-8325.

This sidebar appeared with the story: Free concert The Coeur d’Alene Music Festival’s free concert starts at 11 a.m., Sunday, on Camp Neewahlu’s front lawn. For details, call 667-8325.