A ‘classic’ summer camp experience

Adirondack music camps celebrate legacy and progress

By Arietta Hallock

For paddlers and passersby of summer camp properties across the Adirondacks, the smell of campfire smoke and shouts of field games are telltale signs that camp is in session.

Yet for those in earshot of Adirondack music camps, the sound of campers playing is particularly special. At Luzerne Music Center and Meadowmount School of Music, string and symphonic masterpieces replace rustic campfire singalongs as the summertime soundtrack.

“It’s lovely to be living here,” said Genevieve Twomey, Meadowmount’s executive director. “Walking to breakfast or walking to lunch, you hear music all the time.”

The two camps have built on years of musical tradition, transforming the bones of old properties into esteemed campuses for youth and young adult classical musicians. Their campuses are at the crossroads of the old and the new. Historic buildings have undergone fresh upgrades, and emerging artists are giving classical pieces new life.

Every summer, they churn out public performances with the help of prodigal students and talented teaching staff. And as their programs grow, so does their drive to transform and preserve their legacies.

Luzerne’s lakeside legacy

The Luzerne Music Center has welcomed students for 45 years, in the same spot where historic Camp Tekakwitha once stood. The music retreat runs two- and four-week sessions for middle and high school symphony musicians studying string, wind, brass, percussion instruments and piano.

On a visit last August, clarinet and violin echoed from the empty dining hall between mealtimes. Student-teacher duos practiced in the open air on the trail down to the water. In the afternoon, they would all come together as a full symphony, performing Brahms on the main stage.

The legacy of a former boys camp lingers in the site’s classic circle firepit and renovated log cabins. Yet, in recent years, the center has undergone dramatic transformations.

Most recent renovations, including the installation of air-conditioned and ADA-compliant cabins, took place during the COVID-19 pandemic. Marked by the sound of construction equipment, it was the only summer without student music since the camp’s inception. CEO and Artistic Director Elizabeth Pitcairn and Camp Director Emily Brown found a creative solution to maintain the musical tradition. They played a duet atop a mound of dirt, drawing neighbors to their docks for a distanced performance.

“Just so we could infuse our renovations with the musical tradition,” Pitcairn said.

That musical tradition will expand through further updates. In addition to their Stewart’s Shops-sponsored orchestra stage and original old lodge recital hall, an octagonal recital building recently opened for students to play “in the round.” More updates to the mess hall, practice cabins, and performance areas have begun as part of a capital campaign project. Pitcairn plans to open a new performance center complex by 2026 with grant support from the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA).

Looking ahead to Luzerne Music Center’s future, Pitcairn also envisions an open-air pavilion and a forest-facing composers’ studio. She draws stylistic inspiration from the nearby Yaddo retreat and Saratoga Performing Arts Center, where her students attend performances.

Maintaining Meadowmount

Even older than its southern Adirondack neighbor, Meadowmount School of Music celebrated its 80th anniversary in 2024. It sits on the historic Milholland estate outside of Lewis, which was converted into a music residency by famed violin teacher Ivan Galamian.

Surrounded by serene Adirondack woods, Meadowmount is a celebrated seven-week remote retreat for musicians aged 10 to 30. The camp is built around three string instruments—violin, viola and cello. Notable alums include Yo-Yo Ma and Joshua Bell.

Since its inception, it has expanded into a 52-building estate, including dormitories and a centerpiece white pine concert hall, named for donors Jean and Edward Lee Campe. Its main house, with a dining room, dorms and common areas, was original to the property and named after suffragist Inez Milholland.

Another favorite of Meadowmount’s executive director is an old schoolhouse that houses older musicians.

“It’s this beautiful old building, and the rooms in there have large windows. And so when you’re in there and you look out, it’s just a beautiful view,” Twomey said.

For Twomey, the Adirondack scenery is as extraordinary as any building on site. It contributes to an atmosphere of calm and concentration for classical training.

“You come out in the morning and there’s this mist, you know the Adirondack mist, that’s kind of hanging over the hills. And you see the mountains in the distance,” Twomey said.

Despite the aim to add additional housing and rehearsal rooms in the coming years, Twomey’s priority is backlog maintenance rather than new construction. That culture of preservation is apparent on Meadowmount’s campus—every summer, they host an on-site luthier, a specialty craftsman who adjusts and restores string instruments.

As for Meadowmount’s ongoing legacy, Artistic Director Janet Sung plans to “move the school into the future, expanding resources and opportunities, revitalizing the school campus, and engaging with the Adirondack community and beyond.”

A ‘classic’ camp experience

Both camps admit students via an online audition process, which hails a geographically diverse set of students. Last summer, Meadowmount welcomed 177 students from 26 states and 18 countries.

Luzerne Music Camp shared a similar range, with students from as far as Ukraine and Peru and as close as Lake Luzerne. Pitcairn is aiming to encourage more local Adirondack students to apply.

“It’s such a wonderful mix,” Pitcairn said, “They don’t all speak English but they all speak music.”

Studies are rigorous, with multiple hours of one-on-one practice. Students enjoy the Adirondack atmosphere and off-campus recreation on weekends and free afternoons.

Returning for an encore

“We always have alumni popping in to see it, marvel at the transformation, or to send their kids or donate,” Pitcairn said, a former Luzerne Music Center student herself. “I just remember as clear as day being a camper.”

Musicians who were once campers have returned as counselors and teachers. Students whose parents also went to Luzerne Music Center, which Pitcairn calls “second gen,” just began to arrive a few years ago.

At Meadowmount, Twomey says alumni and returning students look back on seasons spent at their “summer musical home” with fondness. Jessie Montgomery, a guest artist and composer at Meadowmount last summer, was one of many alumni who have returned to lead the next generation of students.

“It has such an impact on their future as a musician, some people meet their lifelong friends here. I’ve met a number of people that met their husband or wife,” Twomey said.

Community outreach

The atmosphere of the Adirondacks offers music camps their charm, and the camps charm their communities back. Meadowmount’s youngest residents and teachers often reside in the local community, and campers make connections with nearby neighbors.

“Being in this rural area, we have a lot of Amish farms, so we actually get to know our Amish neighbors.” Twomey said, “Everybody wants to go and buy pie.”

While both camps serve as refuges from the public for intensive practice, public programming is a hallmark of summer weekends.

The Luzerne Music Center hosts free student showcase concerts and paid programming with renowned outside groups. Meadowmount showcases younger students and older residents on campus.

“It’s really wonderful to see everybody driving up in their cars before a concert and coming in, and one thing that I would really want to do a better job of next year is making sure that people in the Adirondacks know that the concerts are free,” Twomey said.

“It’s a labor of love for me,” Pitcairn said, looking over passing campers carrying their violin cases to class. Over 80 miles north at Meadowmount, Twomey echoed a similar sentiment.

“This is kind of like a gift to all of the surrounding communities.”